Meatballs! The Greek Way!

   

hello everyone!

Today I will make meatballs. ! special for Sage!
I know how difficult is for the young kids specially to like their food and veggies, but the secret is all about the presentation. I remember that my grandmother was promoting her meatballs in a so funny way that I was eating them at once! She used to make a nice mountain of  mashed potatoes or rice and inside have hide the meatballs! On the top of the "mountain" was poured the red sauce and was surrounded with the veggies stuck on it like small trees! The broccoli is excellent to create trees! She was telling me that the mashed potatoes is the volcano the sauce is the lava, and the meatballs was the power balls that if someone finds and eat can do anything! Who can deny that? I can do anything after meatballs!

you will need:

2 Lb lean ground beef
2 eggs
1 tablespoon of well chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon  of dry mint or peppermint if you have fresh is better)
2 pinches of oregano
a pinch of baking soda
1 big onion well chopped
2-3 garlic gloves
2 cups of "wet" bread ( Use leftovers of  bread, moisten in milk or water ( I do it in water) and press it in the strainer to get out the extra water.)
1 tablespoon of olive oil
salt and pepper
flour (all propose white flour) and canola oil for frying


Put the onion-garlic in a chopper and let them come out fine and not thick pieces.
In a large mixing bowl combine all the ingredients.  Knead mixture so that everything is incorporated evenly.  Let it stand for 10 minutes in the refrigerator and then shape them in small balls or bigger, (I prefer them in the shape of the walnuts or small limes). Often the meat is sticky in our palms as we shape the balls. Keep next to you a bowl with cold water and occasionally wet your fingers before you make the balls. (this is the secret to avoid the sticky meat dough between your fingers). Then dredge
 them in the flour (use a bowl half-full of flour and "shake" the balls afterwords in a strainer to lose the extra flour) and fry them in the hot oil (it has to be hot, so keep your fire high) until the meatballs are brown all around. Personally I use an old pot half-full of canola oil for frying and not the frying pan cause I do not enjoy that much the oily surfaces at the end!  If you use the pot you do not have to turn the meatballs one by one but shake the pot gently).  Put them in a paper towel to get rid of the extra oil .

   

to make the mashed potatoes:

2 Lb of nice clean potatoes.
milk 1 cup
2 egg yolks

1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil

a pinch of nutmeg

salt and pepper

 

the pics above from the web

Boil the potatoes with the skin and after they are done peel them off, mash them with the potato musher and add the egg yolks, the butter and the hot milk and spices (The potatoes and the milk must be hot so the eggs will cook).

Decorate the potatoes with broccoli and cucumbers. It looks really cool. Add some tomato and carrots and the kids are going to enjoy really much.  It is one of the plates that really makes me feel like a child!!!

I wish you luck and a Biiiggg appetite!

Emmanuel

(if you don't like them fried you can put them in the oven but takes longer time ..)

Nutrition Facts ( Greek Meatballs)





Amount Per Serving %
 Daily Value Calories 50.5 ,
Calories from Fat 28 56% .
Total Fat 3.1 g 4%
Saturated Fat 1.2 g 6%
Monounsaturated Fat 1.3 g 6%
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g 0%
Trans Fat 0.1 g 0%
Cholesterol 22.2 mg 7%
Sodium 29.8 mg 1%
Potassium 67.8 mg 1%
Magnesium 4.7 mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 1.2 g 0%
Dietary Fiber 0.1 g 0%
 Sugars 0.2 g 0%
Protein 4.0 g 8%

nutrition facts from the web