Author Archives: michcorbett

Middle Eastern Feast(ern) part 3: Lamb Meatballs

Posted on by

Meatballs are one of my favorite dishes.They feel so homey and comforting. You can eat them during any season, and they are super versatile. I have been trying to perfect my meatball recipe for a very long time now and I’m happy to say that as of a few months ago I accomplished that goal! Not only is the seasoning just right, but it tastes equally delicious with any type of meat. Well actually, I’ve only tasted it with lamb and ground beef, but I’m sure its just as delicious with turkey.

The first secret is the seasoning.

Now, I’m not really a measuring person, I just shake each spice into the mixing bowl containing 1 lb ground meat (I used lamb today) so that you get a thin coating on the top. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s about 1tsp of each spice above (Garlic salt, cumin, chili powder, brown mustard seed, and paprika). Now if you don’t have brown mustard seed, you can use some ground mustard or some regular mustard (which is what I used before I got ground mustard seed).

Next, I add 1 small (or 1/2 large) finely diced onion along with my next batch of secret ingredients:

Yep, that’s right. 2 TBSP Greek Yogurt and 1/2 cup Panko Breadcrumbs to be exact. The Greek yogurt serves 2 purposes: 1. It acts instead of eggs as a binder and 2. it keeps the meatballs extra moist. Panko breadcrumbs are great because they add a much better and lighter texture than normal italian seasoned breadcrumbs. Once the onion, meat, seasonings, yogurt, and breadcrumbs are in the bowl mix gently until combined. You don’t want to over-mix meatballs otherwise they get really dense. Form into small balls of equal size and place in oven-safe baking dish. I usually get about 20 small meatballs out of 1 lb of meat.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes. Enjoy while hot.

And there you have it. My recipe for perfect meatballs. If you’re cooking for a larger crowd and want to cut down on the fat content, I suggest using 1lb of ground lamb and 1 lb of lean ground turkey. The fat from the lamb will help keep everything moist and delicious while the turkey lets you make twice as much food without all the extra calories.

 

 

Middle Eastern Feast(ern) part 2: Quinoa Tabouli

Posted on by

Have you ever used Quinoa? It’s a little grain that is a bit evil. I say evil because it’s a little tricky to work with. First of all, when I say it’s a little grain, I mean tiny! Normally tiny grains are nothing to worry about, but the second thing that makes quinoa evil is a coating of bitter-tasting chemicals called saponin. In order to get rid of the saponin, you are supposed to rinse the quinoa before cooking with it. Now, the jury seems to be out on how important this rinsing really is, but the instructions on the bag that I had purchased say to rinse it. I don’t have one of those convenient mesh sieves which would have made this whole rinsing thing a lot easier. The first time I tried to make quinoa I took some internet advice and used a coffee filter. This seemed like a good idea except the third thing that makes quinoa evil is its tendency to stick to everything! But… we’re getting a little off topic. The bottom line is quinoa is really healthy and really delicious, but just a little bit evil unless you have a nice mesh sieve or quinoa that is pre-rinsed.

The recipe I’ll be talking about in this post in quinoa tabouli, another treat from my pita and the best of the middle east cooking class. The recipe itself is actually quite simple aside from the quinoa. Here’s what you’ll need:

If you’re more of a list person than a visual one the ingredients are:

  • Mint
  • Parsley
  • Cherry Tomatoes
  • Cucumber
  • Lemon

Ok so back to the quinoa for a minute. Rinse 1/2 cup of quinoa in cold water and add to pot. In order to get rid of the excess moisture, you’ll want to dry toast the quinoa in the pot. What this means is turn the burner on and stir the quinoa around a bit until the residual moisture steams off. You’ll know it’s ready to go when it starts to stick to the bottom of the pot. Add 1 cup cold water, give it a quick stir, and cover. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. The next part is really important. Are you listening? KEEP THE QUINOA COVERED AND DON’T TOUCH IT! I mean it. Don’t stir it or anything. I accidentally stirred it in class and got yelled at. Apparently stirring it makes unfluffy, half cooked quinoa. Once all the water has dissolved, remove from heat and let it cool.

In the mean time, you’ll want to prepare the ingredients. This is as easy as seeding and chopping everything (cucumbers, tomatoes, 1/2 c mint, and 1 bunch parsley) and adding it to a bowl with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, salt and pepper. Add the cooled quinoa to bowl, mix and allow flavors to marry for 15 minutes. 

Here are some final images:

 

Middle Eastern Feast(ern) part 1: Baba Ghanoush

Posted on by

A few weeks ago I took my first cooking class ever: pita and the best of the middle east. It was a lot of fun, especially since I have always been scared of baking bread. Ever since then I have been wanting to re-create some of the dishes we made in that class. Now it was a little too hot to make pita (which bakes at 500 degrees), and we just got some beautiful eggplants from the farm share so I decided to make some other favorites from the class: baba ghanoush and quinoa tabouli. I also decided to make lamb meatballs, a favorite in our house.

This post will focus on the baba ghanoush. Let it be known that I hate eggplant. Something about the texture has just never seemed appetizing to me. But Geoff and I joined a farm share this summer and don’t have control over what produce shows up at our door on Thursdays. I tried to make baba ghanough last time we got eggplant, but something was off about it, so I was excited to learn the tricks in a class setting.

The first trick I learned is to roast the eggplant over an open flame. In class we used a chile roaster, but I do not have one at home, so I used the grate from a toaster oven. The trick is to rotate the eggplant (using tongs) so that it is charred on all sides. They’re ready when they are soft all the way through and literally collapsing.

Once they’re done roasting put them in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and/or a plate to steam them. This will help the skin come off easily. After about 15 minutes they will look like this:

 

Use a pairing knife to peel off the skin. Discard it along with the juice at the bottom of the bowl. Place in a food processor with 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, 3 tablespoons of tahini, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt and pepper.

The result is a delicious, smoky, creamy baba ghanoush. Don’t be afraid if when you first taste it it is a bit lemony. That just means you haven’t put enough salt in it. Here’s the final product: