To begin, dice the eggplant and thinly slice the mushrooms. Place the eggplant and mushrooms in a large bowl and coat them with a generous portion (~15 g) of coarse sea salt. Set aside and let the eggplant and mushrooms sit for about 30 minutes as you prepare the remaining ingredients. This is called “sweating” the vegetables.

Next, rinse one cup of quinoa in a strainer under cold water. Follow the instructions on the package to cook on the stovetop. If you have a pressure cooker (like the Instant Pot), add the rinsed quinoa and one and a half cups of water to the pot. Pressure cook on high for 1 minute. Let the pot depressurize for 20 minutes before opening.

Peel the red onion and blend in a food processor with the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce or coconut aminos, walnuts, and ½ cup of panko.

Once 30 minutes have passed, you can prepare the mushrooms and eggplant. Remove the excess water by placing them in a clean towel, cheese cloth, or a nut-milk bag and wringing out as much water as possible.

Add the mushrooms and eggplant to the food processor and pulse several times until everything is well combined. Remove the mix from the food processor into a large bowl, and stir in the cooked quinoa.

Preheat the oven to 400. Form the final mixture into sixteen balls, rolling each in more panko. Let the mushroom-eggplant “meatballs” sit for 20 minutes, then bake for about 40 minutes, flipping halfway through.

The batter may be doubled, and frozen either before or after cooking for future meal prep!