No fuss Saturday night #eats!
We decided we wanted something a little different last weekend that we could easily share with family and that was fuss free. This is a superb meatball recipe that you can make ahead and then just reheat. Lovely served with some simple pasta, I paired ours this time with linguine, but any pasta would work. They would be nice with mashed potato too as there is plenty of sauce to mop up, we opted for lovely crusty bread and a sprinkling of pecorino cheese #nomnom
These meatballs are made with a mixture of pork and steak mince and lightly spiced too. They are bound using yogurt which makes them lighter than their counterparts that are normally bound in egg and breadcrumbs.
This recipe is from the Alison Roman Cookery Book: nothing fancy, which really has some great recipes for when you need to rustle something up for friends coming over, but as the title says, it doesn’t need to be fancy (just good tasty food!).
I made the meatballs on Friday night, covered them, and kept them in the fridge ready to cook the following day. You can also make the whole recipe ahead of time (up to 2 days ahead) and keep refrigerated.
To finish off our Saturday night treat, I made some Champagne and Raspberry Possets and served them with fresh raspberries, a few shavings of dark chocolate and some vanilla Viennese thin biscuits. The recipe for these can be found here: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/champagne-raspberry-possets
Once again, these are made ahead of time and refrigerated until you eat them – so perfect for entertaining!
(Note: the servings are quite small, so I would urge you to double up this recipe!).
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SPICY MEATBALLS IN A BROTHY TOMATO AND TOASTED FENNEL SAUCE
SERVES 4-6 PREP 20 MINS COOK APPROX. 50 MINS
Ingredients:
6 garlic cloves, 2 grated, the rest thinly sliced
1 handful of finely chopped chives
1 handful of finely chopped parsley
125g full-fat Greek-style yogurt
2 teaspoons of fennel seeds
2 teaspoons of hot smoked paprika
1 ½ teaspoons of salt
750g of minced (ground) pork, lamb, beef and/or turkey – or as I do mix!
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
750g of red cherry tomatoes, halved – using fresh tomatoes instead of tinned really makes a huge difference to this dish!)
60ml of white wine vinegar
To Serve (optional):
1 large handful of mint leave
Hunk of pecorino or parmesan cheese for grating
Crusty bread
Method:
Place the grated garlic in a medium bowl along with the chives, parsley, yoghurt, fennel seeds, paprika, salt and chilli flakes. Mix until well combined.
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Add the meat and season with pepper. Using your hands, mix until well combined. Roll the mixture into balls about the size of a plum; I like these meatballs on the smaller side. Place on a baking tray or large plate.
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Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-based saucepan or flameproof casserole dish over medium–high heat. Add a few meatballs at a time, taking care not to crowd the pot. Cook, using tongs or a spatula to occasionally gently rotate them, until they are all golden brown all over, 8–10 minutes; they may not hold their perfectly round shape, but that is more than okay. As the meatballs are browned, transfer them to a large serving platter or plate. Leave the remaining bits and fat in the pot.
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Add the shallot and sliced garlic to the pot and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallot is tender, and the garlic starts to brown a bit, 2–3 minutes.
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Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until they burst and become all saucy and caramelise a bit on the bottom of the pot, 5–8 minutes. Add the vinegar and 750 ml (25 fl oz/3 cups) water, scraping up any bits along the bottom. Bring to a strong simmer and reduce the sauce by about one-quarter, just until it thickens slightly, 5–7 minutes; it should still be relatively brothy.
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Return the meatballs to the pot and reduce the heat to medium–low. Simmer until the meatballs are cooked through and all the flavours have melded, 10–15 minutes.
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Remove from the heat. To serve, top the meatballs (either in individual bowls or right in the pot) with the mint, and more chilli flakes and fennel seeds, if you like. Drizzle with olive oil and serve with the cheese for grating, and toast for dipping.
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Enjoy!
Note: The meatball recipe can also be found on the following websites: