Baked Sun-dried Tomato & Basil Chicken Meatballs with Summer Squash Sauce

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Lightly oil a large baking dish (I use a lasagna pan) with olive oil.

In a large pot that you can make your sauce in later, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the yellow onion and saute for about 3 to 4 minutes, or until starting to become translucent. Add the clove of minced garlic and saute for an additional 2 minutes, or until fragrant. Transfer the onion and garlic to a large mixing bowl and allow to cool. Set the pot aside for a few minutes (you don’t need to clean it).

Once the onion and garlic mixture has cooled, add the rest of the meatball ingredients and mix thoroughly with your hands until well combined.

Roll heaping tablespoons of the meat mixture into small balls with your hands and place evenly in the oiled baking dish.

Bake for 40 minutes at 375 F, turning once halfway through cooking to ensure that both sides are evenly browned.

While the meatballs are baking, start the sauce. Heat the olive oil in the large pot over medium heat. Add the diced squash and zucchini and saute for about 5 minutes, or until just beginning to soften. Stir in the garlic, oregano, salt and red pepper flakes and cook an additional 1 to 2 minutes or until fragrant.

Add the crushed tomatoes with any juices to the pot. Cook over medium heat for about 5 more minutes, stirring frequently but being careful not to let the tomatoes break down and get too mushy. Right before serving, sprinkle in the chopped fresh basil leaves.

To serve: Either add the meatballs to the pasta sauce and stir to coat if serving alone, or toss the sauce with cooked al dente pasta and serve the meatballs on top. Add a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese and enjoy!