What You Need
M E A T B A L L S
8 Cups Fresh Spinach Leaves about two bunches
1 Teaspoon Salted Butter melted
3 Slices White Bread preferably Sourdough
2 1/2 Pounds Ground Beef
1 Egg
1/4 Cup Parmesan
2/3 Cup Dry Red Wine
8 Garlic Cloves minced
1 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano, crumbled
Freshly Ground Pepper
S A U C E
2 Tablespoon Cornstarch
2 1/2 Cups Chicken Stock or canned broth
1/2 Cup Strained Fresh Lemon Juice
2 Egg Yolk
4 Tablespoons Lemon Zest
2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Parsley to taste
Salt to taste
Recipe .03 – Garlic Greek Meatballs with Avgolemono Sauce
So it’s not the most photogenic meal, but one bite of this hearty Greek-style entrée feels like the hug you never knew you needed.
I’ll level with you; my Mom rarely misses the mark on a meal, and every so often, she’ll even hit it out of the park. This meatball entrée did just that. I’ve never seen all eight members of my family swoon over a meal like this before. It was a poetic experience, and if I’m honest, given the opportunity, I’d indulge in these meatballs daily. The sauce alone is something you can repurpose for any dish to give it that light, zesty, yet hearty feel.
Meatballs can seem like a real to-do. I suppose that’s why most people opt to buy them frozen from Trader Joe’s, but let’s not let the convenience of our time prevent us from enjoying the hand to hand combat of forming those gooey balls of meat. After all, homemade is always better (except when it comes to Pinterest crafts obvi). Don’t be intimidated by the meatball. This is an easy recipe written for beginners to follow and execute, I promise.
I so enjoyed making these, and I know you will too. It’s an entirely therapeutic experience to cook a meal from scratch. So, if you’re looking for a real winner to make your friends or family swoon, let’s get into it!
How Many Humans Does This Feed? 4-6
Here’s How You Make It – don’t mess this up.
M E A T B A L L S
Step One: Preheat oven to 350
Step Two: Steam spinach until just wilted. Drain well; chop.
Step Three: Toss Spinach with melted butter in small bowl; set aside
Step Four: Soak bread in milk until softened. Squeeze out liquid. Crumble into pieces; set aside
Step Five: In a large bowl, mix the egg, ground beef, wine, garlic, salt, and oregano
Step Six: Add bread pieces, and parmesan to the meat mixture. Use your hands and combine well. Squishy, Squishy! Form meatballs into 1 1/2 – 2-inch rounds (aka balls, lol); set aside
Step Seven: Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper; set aside
Step Eight: In a frying pan with oil of your choice, fry the outside of the meatballs until lightly brown. Once outside has browned, place meatballs on the cookie sheet to finish cooking in the oven approximately 25 minutes or when internal temp reaches 160 degrees.
Step Nine: While meatballs are baking, prepare Orzo according to packaging instructions and begin the sauce
S A U C E
Step One: In a saucepan, bring chicken stock to a boil.
Step Two: In a separate bowl whisk cornstarch with cold water to create a lump-free creamy texture
Step Three: Whisk creamy cornstarch mixture into boiling chicken stock until fully incorporated. Once mixed, bring down to a simmer.
Step Four: In a separate bowl, whisk yolks together and slowly add chicken stock until eggs are tempered, so they don’t scramble when added. Once warm, whisk eggs into stock mixture.
Step Five: Add lemon juice & lemon peel to mixture; stir
Step Six: Salt to taste
S E R V I N G
Place Meatballs on a bed of Orzo. Cover meatballs with sauce
and top it off with some shredded parmesan and parsley.
E N J O Y
