In this Moroccan inspired dish, a spiral of lamb meatballs and vegetables cooked in tomato makes a stunning and delicious meal. Eve made this from another fabulous recipe by Nagi of RecipeTinEats.
To make the meatballs combine ½ a cup of panko breadcrumbs in a bowl and grate ½ an onion over them. Toss with your fingers then add 500g (1 lb) of lamb mince, 1 egg, 2 finely minced garlic cloves, ¼ of a cup of finely chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, 1 teaspoon of ground coriander, 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika, ¼ of a teaspoon of ground cinnamon, ¼ of a teaspoon of cayenne pepper and ¾ of a teaspoon of salt. Mix well with your hands. Roll the mixture into 16 balls then squish them slightly to 1.5 cm (0.6″) thickness and set aside. Cut 2 fat zucchinis (courgettes) into 5cm (2″) wide rounds and 1 large red capsicum into 20 similar sized chunks. Toss each of these vegetables in separate bowls with a little olive oil, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside. To make the sauce mix 2 crushed cloves of garlic, 2½ tablespoons of tomato paste, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, ½ a cup of warm water and ⅛ of a teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Now preheat your oven to 200°C (375°F). To assemble the dish, in a baking dish or cast iron pan, loosely stand the zucchini rounds and the meatballs in a spiral shape starting from the edge and working your way into the centre. Next wedge the pieces of capsicum in between the meatballs and zucchini wherever you can. Pour the sauce over everything and drizzle with some olive oil. Bake for 35 minutes until the meatballs are nicely browned. Serve with flatbreads or rice and yoghurt. Enjoy!
michelle picker cooks 