Baked Italian Zucchini Balls Recipe

These delicious zucchini balls make the perfect appetizer! Made with Italian herbs and parmesan cheese, they’re loaded with flavor while still being bite-sized and easy to eat. Serve them as a healthy snack or vegetarian meatball substitute.

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It’s zucchini season, and I know that many of you are probably making breads, muffins, and zoodles! I’m here today to throw a less common zucchini recipe into the mix.

These healthy zucchini balls use grated zucchini, similar to many other recipes that feature this vegetable, but have a savory twist instead of a sweet one. I bulked them up with bread crumbs and grated cheese and added fresh basil, parsley, and garlic.

Each little ball is bursting with Italian-inspired flavors. I thoroughly enjoyed dipping them in marinara sauce and had to stop myself from gobbling up the whole tray!

Whether you serve this healthy zucchini snack as an appetizer for a holiday party, an after school snack, or just as part of dinner one night, you can’t go wrong. I highly recommend making a batch of my Canned San Marzano Tomato Sauce to go with them!

How to Make Zucchini Balls

1. Use a hand or box grater to grate a zucchini to produce ~2 cups, then squeeze out any excess water between paper towels. Add this to a mixing bowl with the bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, beaten eggs, and seasonings. Stir until the mixture comes together.
2. Scoop out about 2 tablespoons of the mixture and roll it into a ball. Repeat with the rest of the mixture until you have 12 balls. Place them on a lined baking sheet.

Pop the balls in the oven until golden brown. Prepare some marinara for dipping while they’re cooking, and enjoy!

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Expert Tips

• Be sure to squeeze the water out of the grated zucchini as best as possible. Otherwise, you run the risk of the zucchini balls becoming soggy, and/or they may not stay together.
• Feel free to mix up the seasonings to include herbs other than parsley and basil. If using dried herbs instead of fresh ones, use about 1 teaspoon dried for every tablespoon of fresh (1:3 ratio).
• To make these gluten free, use gluten free breadcrumbs. I suspect oats would also work, but I have not tried the recipe with them.
• These are best enjoyed right away but stay really well in the fridge. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 or 4 days. You can eat them cold or reheat in the microwave on high for 1 to 2 minutes.
• If you are making these for a crowd, serve them with toothpicks for easy grabbing! This method can also prevent the spread of germs.

Serving Ideas

Zucchini cheese balls make a delicious appetizer or snack, but you can also serve them as a vegetarian meatball option. Place them on top of pasta, and toss in tomato sauce for a plant-based meal. You could even go so far as to use them in a vegetarian meatball sub!

More Zucchini Recipes

If you like these delicious Italian zucchini balls, you may also want to check out the Zucchini Overnight Oats, Healthy Olive Oil Zucchini Bread, Summer Squash and Dill Salmon Burgers, Zucchini Carrot Oat Muffins, and Creamy Peanut Zucchini Noodles with Chicken.

I’d love to hear how you like this recipe! Rate/review using the stars on the recipe card or in the comments, and follow the Veg World on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Looking for something totally different? Browse the recipe library.

Have a great first week of September! – Lizzie