Vegan Meatless Meatballs

I will include the just vegetarian recipe as well, but these actually taste more like meat when I made them vegan. Who knew! They are undoubtedly the best meatballs I've ever had. Could be that the sauce is awesome or that they just have a perfect texture and make you want to eat the whole batch before they cool. Anyway, these are a must try. If they are not the Best Vegan Meatballs in the world, tell me and I will retract my statement.
Not only are these delicious straight out of the oven, they keep well in the fridge/freezer and are just as good cold (not frozen though).

To make the meatballs:

• 1 sleeve saltine crackers, crumbled (I assume any plain crackers would work as well)
• 4 vegan eggs (4tbs ground flax + 16tbs boiling water) (for just vegetarian use 4 eggs)
• 1 onion, finely chopped (literally food process them into as much of a liquid as possible) 
• 2 cups pecans, chopped
• 8 vegan grillers thawed and food processed. any plain burger will work (Or 1 bag vegetarian burger crumbles (thawed and chopped a bit finer)
• 6tsp Garlic Salt
• ½ cup grated vegan cheese. (I used Daiya shreds mozzerella style and it was good) (cheddar or mozzarella works best if going just vegetarian)
• 6-8 tsp. liquid smoke

1. Mix in a large bowl in any order you wish (I suggest starting with the dry stuff and working to the wet, since much of the ingredients are chopped in the food processor)
2. Form into balls; bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes or until brown.
3.  Let cool and pour the sauce over top!

Topping:

• 2 cups ketchup
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 stick margarine
• 1 onion, chopped and sautéed in the margarine
• 5-7 tsp. liquid smoke

Mix and pour over balls.

(TIP: I like it spicy, so I like to add lots of red pepper or cayenne)

A few tips: You can sub for healthier alternatives on the sauce. I will be trying honey, or dates instead of sugar, and probably olive oil would be ok to use instead of margarine. And i'm sure you could make your own Ketchup to use. This is just the original recipe with my vegan substitutions.