Moroccan Kofta Kebab (Mediterranean Meatballs)

Note: Original recipe from Claudia Roden's Jewish cookbook, p. 387-388. Two pounds of ground meat makes 3-4 servings.

Ingredients

For each 2 lbs. of ground meat (lamb, beef, turkey, or some combination thereof), add: 1 medium onion, finely diced (or grated) 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley (leaves only, no stems) 2 Tbsp. fresh OR dried mint leaves, crushed or chopped finely 2 crushed or minced cloves of fresh garlic 1 tsp. cinnamon 1 tsp. cumin 1 tsp. paprika 1/4 tsp. cayenne (more if you like things spicy but be careful not to overdo it) 1 tsp. salt a few twists of freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Mix all seasonings thoroughly into the meat. Form into either patties, or long fingers, or meatballs.* Either grill or broil on a broiler pan, 3-4 minutes per side (or until each side browns). Serve over seasoned rice or couscous (can add cinnamon, cumin, paprika, salt, garlic powder, or any combination of those to the rice or couscous). Great with grilled/broiled eggplant because you can cook the meat and the eggplant simultaneously, as they take the same length of time at the same temperature. Or, make a pita sandwich by topping the meat with tomato/cucumber/parsley salad, shredded lettuce, and hummus.

*Very easy to mix up a larger quantity of the meat with seasonings, and separate the meat into some to cook that night. The rest of the raw meat mixture can be frozen if wrapped in plastic wrap and then placed in a Ziploc bag.