I attempted cooking a Greek meal on Tuesday! It was basically, meatballs in tomato sauce: «Κεφτεδάκια με Σάλτσα» is the Greek name.
The recipe came from a book called “Meze Cooking“, by Sarah Maxwell, and is very simple to follow.
I started by getting all my ingredients out on the side, making sure that I had everything needed. The ingredients included minced beef, breadcrumbs, a range of herbs, a can chopped tomatoes and water, as well as salt and pepper. You’ll need to buy the book for exact quantities and the full list of ingredients. 😛
Basically, its a case of chucking all the ingredients (with the exception of the can of chopped tomatoes, and the water) into a mixing bowl, and mixing. After that, shape them into small balls and arrange on a baking sheet. They go into the oven for a while.
BEFORE
AFTER
That’s the meatballs done, the hardest bit. The next step is to make the sauce. You need to put the can of tinned tomatoes (minus the can ;)) into a blender/food processer and purée until smooth. You then put them through a seive (to remove the seeds – discard these).
Then put them with the water in a saucepan and simmer for a few minutes.
The whole lot – sauce and meatballs – goes into a baking dish, then into the fridge to marinate overnight. When you want to serve, its into the oven for a little bit… and you might want some rice to go with it!
My attempt wasn’t perfect – and yours probably won’t be either. But its an excellent way of reminding yourself of sitting in a little taverna last summer whilst you’re sat, freezing cold, here in the UK!
Read the book for the whole recipe.
