Cinnamon Cumin Lamb Meatballs topped with Lemon Mint Yogurt. Served with Raisin and Pistachio Quinoa

tonight’s dinner was another get-rid-of-crap-in-fridge night. these little projects of mine have been turning out surprisingly well. i really should do this more often. ratio of quinoa to meatballs was pretty good. i had about 4 meatballs and the boy had 6. i found this to be a good portion size. he however, asked for leftover mashed potatoes after dinner. fine by me. they’ve been sitting in the fridge for a few days now anyway. (:

note: over salted the quinoa and under salted the meatballs. ): fine when eaten together. but in the future, after salting the onions to taste, add more salt to meat mixture and no more extra salt in the quinoa (even with low sodium chicken stock.)

INGREDIENTS:

for meatballs –

1/2 onion
1/2 lb ground lamb
2 -3 tbs breadcrumbs
2 tbs milk (or 1/2 egg)
cumin
cinnamon
parsley
salt and pepper

1 cup greek yogurt
2 tbs lemon zest
fresh mint leaves

for quinoa –

1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 onion
cinnamon
3 tbs honey
golden raisins
pistachios, unsalted.

PREP:

1. chop 1 onion and saute, adding cumin, cinnamon, parsley, salt to taste.
2. remove to cool.
3. with hands, mix in 1/2 of onions with ground lamb. add milk and sprinkle in breadcrumbs slowly while mixing.  salt and pepper. set meat in fridge.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. heat pan. toast quinoa until it pops and sizzles.
2. pour in liquid and sautéed onions. bring to a boil.
3. reduce to low-med heat. add more cinnamon, honey, and raisins. simmer and stir ~20 min.

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. roll lamb mixture into 10 mini meatballs.
3. line baking pan with foil, butter. space meatballs evenly and bake on 350 for ~ 15 min.
4. in a small bowl, combine lemon zest, mint chiffonade, and yogurt.

1. turn off heat on quinoa. stir in pistachios.
2. serve and top with meatballs. spoon on yogurt generously. eat!