Kofta Meatballs

By The Mediterranean Dish · 60 min

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 425°F. Lightly brush a large sheet pan with a thin layer of olive oil.
2. Soak the slice of bread in 1 cup of water for 15 minutes until very tender. Squeeze out the liquid, discard the water and crumble the bread back into the bowl.
3. Finely mince the onion, garlic and parsley in a food processor (or by hand), setting aside a small handful of parsley leaves for garnish.
4. Combine the bread with a good drizzle of olive oil, the minced onion, garlic and parsley, the ground beef or lamb, allspice, ground green cardamom, paprika, sumac, nutmeg, cayenne, a big pinch each of kosher salt and black pepper. Mix well with your hands.
5. Shape into small balls a little larger than a golf ball and space them apart on the prepared pan.
6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, turning them halfway, until well browned and no longer pink in the centre.
7. Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a little olive oil over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and golden. Move to a plate.
8. A few minutes before the meatballs are done, return the skillet to medium heat with the 1/4 cup olive oil and the Aleppo pepper. Warm for a few minutes, then turn off the heat.
9. Spread the hummus on a platter, pour the warm Aleppo oil over it, top with the meatballs, and garnish with the toasted pine nuts and reserved parsley leaves.

Summarized from The Mediterranean Dish's video. Watch it for the details.