Juicy Lucy Meatballs

The Juicy Lucy burgers have been making their way through all of the diners and have been seen on many food network shows. I came across the Juicy Lucy meatballs on Pinterest and thought that would be a fun idea for a game day or tailgating especially with the combination hot sauce and barbecue sauce. I baked them in the oven and kept them warm in the slow cooker for us to munch on through the afternoon.

INGREDIENTS
1 pound ground beef
2 Tablespoons minced onion
1 egg yolk
3 Tablespoons Panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 Tablespoons hot sauce
Dash of salt
Dash of pepper
4 ounces cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes. About 15 pieces
Sliced scallions for garnish if desired

SAUCE
1/3 cup hot sauce
2/3 cup barbecue sauce, I used a honey BBQ sauce

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.  Cut cheese into 15 small squares and set aside.  Combine onion, egg yolk, bread crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix until combined, add the ground beef and mix until just combined.
Divide the meat mixture into 15 equal pieces, flatten one piece at a time.  Add one cheese cube into the center of the flattened beef and wrap the beef around the cheese sealing the cheese in the best you can. Do this for the remaining beef and cheese.  Bake 15-18 minutes, it’s ok if the cheese leaks out slightly.
Combine the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, allow to boil for two minutes while stirring. Add meatballs to the sauce, toss to coat the meatballs and serve warm.  If you want to you can transfer to a slow cooker to keep warm.

Enjoy!