Just a little bit ago I got the most wonderful gift from my friend, Shabnam, at FlavorN'Spice. Among other things, she sent me an awesome Butternut Squash from her garden, a beautiful silk scarf, some woven placemats and a homemade Apricot-Habanero Chutney she paired with a cheese and cracker tray.
I had also recently purchased some pastured ground lamb from one of my favorite farms, Thames Farm, so my mind was whirling with recipe ideas. Hmmmm, why not pair some lamb meatballs with the chutney? And so this culinary journey began! Wow what an amazing pairing ... tender, slightly spicy meatballs, in a sweet and tangy chutney. Amazing!!
Ingredients
Meatballs
1 lb. ground lamb
1 tbls. dried minced onion
2-3 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. thyme leaves
1 tsp. tarragon leaves
1 tsp. course-ground black pepper
1 large egg
1/4 cup bread crumbs
Chutney Sauce
1/2 - 3/4 cup Apricot-Habanero Chutney
1/3 cup raw, local honey
Method
Preheat oven to 350. Put all ingredients for the meatballs together in a large bowl, and mix with hands to thoroughly combine. Shape into 1-inch meatballs (approx. 16 meatballs) and place in a covered casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake meatballs 20 minutes, covered, or until cooked through. Remove meatballs from oven and drain grease. Return meatballs to casserole dish.
While meatballs are baking, mix apricot-habanero chutney with honey and heat on your stove-top in a small saucepan until bubbly and well combined. Pour sauce over drained meatballs in casserole dish and stir to coat. .
Bake meatballs with sauce another 10 minutes. Remove from oven; serve meatballs over hot, cooked rice.
Yield: 4 servings
Enjoy,
Mary