Cooking for Two - Meatballs and Cherry Relish

This meal was my first foray into the kitchen for quite some time. I cook the odd cake or pikelets but this was a lot of fun.

I got out my herb chopper.

I got out my mortar and pestle.

I refused to get my hands all sticky mixing the meat. It was bad enough rolling the meatballs.

There was just enough for two but DH doesn't like all the spicy bits so I got to put the other half away for the next day.

This recipe was highly adapted from a Kylie Kwong recipe. I didn't have fresh dates or preserved lemons or sour cherries so I used what I had to hand. It was delicious.

Meatballs and Cherry Relish

Ingredients

250g minced beef

100g minced pork

1/2 medium red capsicum chopped

1 small red onion chopped

2 tbs olive oil

1 tbs chopped fresh ginger

1 tsp sea salt

1 egg

2 tsp grated lemon rind

3 tbs chopped mint

3 tbs chopped parsley

1 tbs honey

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 cup extra olive oil

Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the capsicum and onion until soft.

Grind the ginger and sea salt together with a mortar and pestle.

Mix all the ingredients with the mince.

Shape into about 12 small meatballs and roll in some plain flour.

Use the extra oil to shallow fry the meatballs 6 at a time.

Meanwhile make the cherry relish.

Ingredients

2 tbs frozen blueberries, thawed

2 tbs craisins

Spring onion finely sliced

2 tbs olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

1/3 cup chopped fresh cherries

2 dates chopped

2 tsp vinegar

Soak the craisins and dates in 1/3 cup of boiling water for 20 mins.

Heat the oil in a saucepan and stir the onion and salt for 2 mins.

Add cherries and stir for another 2 mins

Stir in the blueberries and the soaked fruit and water.

Simmer for 5 mns until slightly reduced.

Stir in the vinegar.

Place the meatballs in a shallow dish. Add the relish and a dollop of plain yoghurt.

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Happy Quilting and Crafting,

Val