Moroccan Meatballs
Serves 3-4 small rissoles per serve
480 calories per serve
Ingredients
400g minced lamb (500g will just make a few more for leftovers)
1 onion finely grated or finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed to a paste
1/2 cup (80g) pine nuts, lightly toasted and roughly chopped, or panko breadcrumbs
1 teasp. ground paprika
1/2 teasp. ground allspice
1 teasp. ground cumin
(or instead of the above spices use 1 teaspoon of ras al hanout spice blend or more if you like it spicy)
1 beaten egg
Small bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped
Small bunch of fresh mint, finely chopped
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil or vegetable oil
Sea Salt and freshly ground pepper
For the Salad: (2-4 serves)
100g spinach leaves
1 tbsp. sliced almonds
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
2 tbsp. chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 spring onions, chopped
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
Juice of half a lemon
Tahini dressing: (4 serves)
1/4 cup (70g) good quality tahini
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (definitely not the bottled stuff)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup (60ml) warm water
Method:
- In a large bowl, mix together the minced lamb, onion, garlic, pine nuts, paprika, allspice and cumin. Add the egg white and mix again.
- Stir in the chopped herbs and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Shape the mixture into 6 evenly sized balls.
- Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the meatballs over a medium heat, turning occasionally, for 10 minutes, until golden brown on all sides and completely cooked through.
Moroccan Salad:
Place the spinach leaves in a bowl. Add all the other ingredients and toss together. Serve with the meatballs and dream that you are in Morocco.
Tahini Dressing Method:
- Add tahini, lemon juice, cumin, sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper to taste in a small ethnic style bowl and stir to combine.
- Slowly add the warm water until your dressing reaches a creamy consistency, and it will become nice and creamy. I didn't need all of the water but it depends on how thick the tahini is.
- Please note: If you use a good quality tahini from a Middle Eastern shop or deli, the liquid won't have separated from the tahini paste. Unfortunately some of the tahini brands I have tried from the supermarkets have separated and aren't easily mixed back together making the dressing very gluggy.
To serve:
Serve the meatballs with the Moroccan Salad or an Eggplant Salad and the Tahini Dressing. Serve it on small pita breads if you wish.
Looks like a complete meal in one. And I like that you've thought ahead for leftovers. I LOVE leftovers! :D
ReplyDeleteYes so do I Lorraine.
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