recipe: lamb meatballs with spiced tomato sauce

photo from nytimes.com. i really need to get better at photogging my food.

MEAT BALLS: 
taken from: foodnetwork.com 

changes: baked instead of fried; whole wheat flour in place of semolina no changes to overall ingredients 

result: perfect. exactly what I was looking for in terms of flavor, and really easy to put together. 

ingredients:
- 1 lb ground lamb
- 1/4 cup finely chopped scallions
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp semolina (or substitute flour, if needed)
- 1 egg, beaten

to make: put the lamb into a large bowl and add the scallions. sprinkle in the spices, salt, and egg. work everything together with your hands until evenly mixed, then cover and leave in the fridge for a 1/2 hour.  

when ready to prep balls, preheat oven to 400F degrees. line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

form meat into 1 & 1/2 inch balls, and place on prepared baking sheet. bake for about 20 minutes, turning once during the cooking process. 

SAUCE:
taken from: NY Times Cooking

changes: very minor. can of crushed tomatoes instead of whole, subbed ground thyme instead of fresh, coconut sugar in place of white sugar.




result: i added a touch too much orange - the zippy orange flavor shined through a bit more than everything else in the sauce. i was still able to taste the delicate flavor of the lamb, but would prefer all things equal in terms sauce flavors. it was still overall really, really good though, and something i would make again. 

ingredients:
- 1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small sprig rosemary
- red pepper flakes
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- pinch ground cinnamon
- pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tsp white sugar
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1 3-inch strip of orange peel, pith removed
- kosher salt & fresh ground black pepper to taste 
- 4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 tbsp thinly sliced mint leaves 

to make: preheat oven to 400F degrees.

heat dutch oven over medium-high heat for a minute, then add olive oil, rosemary, and red pepper and cook for another minute. add onion, thyme, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, and bay leaf, and saute until the onions are translucent, about 5-7 minutes. add tomatoes, sugar, orange juice and peel, and salt and pepper.

cook for 8-10 minutes over medium-low heat, until reduced by 1/3. adjust seasonings as needed. transfer meatballs to the dish, about 1/2 inch from each other, then bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. top with crumbled feta and mint.