Finally, a dish to share with you

We've been having some computer issues, but I think all is well now. For a while there I thought I would finally be getting the Mac that I have always wanted - but alas, Patrick was able to fix our laptop. Although I do want a Mac, I think it's a good thing because I wasn't ready for the expense of a new computer quite yet.

Honestly, I haven't had a lot to write about anyway. It's not that I haven't been cooking, but none of the dishes that I have made have been good enough to tell you about. It's not that anything was horrible, but nothing I've made had a big "Wow!" factor. There has been a perfectly fine roasted chicken, a grilled chicken and roasted red pepper sandwich that needs some work, a decent spaghetti all'arrabbiata, and an edible spicy Thai chicken pasta dish. As I'm sure you can tell, I'm not in love with any of these dishes. I needed to cook something that I just had to tell you about.

And I hadn't cooked anything that good until last night. I have been thinking about making Kofta for a long time. They are a very highly spiced Middle Eastern style meatball, normally made of lamb. When I was young, I practically lived at my friend Shazi's house. Her house is where I first tasted Indian/Pakistani cooking, and where I started to learn to cook. My mom was not a very good cook, and it was such a wonderful change to go there and taste such highly spiced and good food. Shazi's mom cooked spicy - some would say too spicy (and they were her Indian friends!). The first time I tried dhal, I thought my mouth was on fire. It was so hot. It didn't take me too long to get used to hot food, and now I can't do without it. She would cook all the time, but like most people she would cook even more so during the holidays. Shazi's mom would spend days in the kitchen cooking, and Kofta were always part of those meals.

Over the years, I have tried to re-create many of the dishes that I used to eat at their house, dhal, spinach, spicy meat and potatoes - but I had never tried to make Kofta. Last night I finally tried to replicate them, and for my first try, I think they turned out quite well. I don't remember if Shazi's mom used rice in her Kofta (it has been more than 14 years since I've had her meals), but after looking at several recipes, this seemed to be the closest to my memory. I adapted the meatball recipe from "Everyday Asian" by Patricia Yeo and Tom Steele. I served them with a Yogurt and Tahini sauce from "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone" by Deborah Madison. This recipe makes a large batch, which is great to have in the freezer for additional meals. I served them on top of a basic rice pilaf, but they would be wonderful in pita bread with sliced tomato, cucumber and romaine lettuce.

Middle Eastern Spiced Meatballs

Adapted from the recipe Meatballs and Yogurt Sauce in "Everyday Asian" by Patricia Yeo and Tom Steele

1 pound ground beef

1/2 pound ground veal

1/2 pound ground pork

2 eggs

2 cups cooled steamed rice

1 cup caramelized finely chopped onion

1 tablespoon toasted ground coriander seeds

1 tablespoon toasted ground cumin seeds

1 tablespoon toasted ground cardamom pods

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

2 teaspoons ground cayenne

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 tablespoons canola oil

Mix together the beef, veal, pork, eggs, onion, spices, salt and pepper with your hands. Preheat the oven to 350F. Form the mixture into 3/4 inch balls. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sear and brown the meatballs in the canola oil in batches to avoid crowding. Transfer the browned meatballs to an oven safe dish and roast in the oven until they are fully cooked, approximately 15 minutes. Serve with Yogurt Tahini Sauce.

Yogurt Tahini Sauce

From "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone" by Deborah Madison

1 clove garlic, finely minced

salt

1 cup yogurt

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice and the grated zest of lemon

Make a garlic paste by sprinkling the minced garlic with 1/4 teaspoon salt and press the flat of the knife blade into the garlic to form a paste. Place in a bowl and stir in the tahini. Gradually add the yogurt and the lemon zest. Season to taste with lemon juice and salt.