This recipe came from Moof:
This is an old recipe passed on to me by my Grandmother. It was great fun because the whole family got involved in rolling the balls.
For a more eastern taste, you can use coriander instead of parsley. You might also want to add some ground cayenne pepper to the mixture to give it a bit of heat. Make sure your onion is chopped as finely as possible, because if it's too thick, the the meatballs won't bind together. The cinnamon adds more of a festive Christmassy tang, and is by no means essential.
Serves four reasonably hungry people
- 500g/1lb Minced beef
- 500g/1lb Minced pork
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- a bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed
- 2 slices of day-old white sliced bread
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- a pinch of cinnamon (optional)
- a little flour, for coating
- First of all, cut the crusts off the bread, and soak the slices in a bowl of water.
- While it's soaking chop the onions and parsley and place them in a large mixing bowl with the meat, and add the garlic, salt, pepper, and cinnamon (if using).
- Beat the egg and add it to the bowl, and then squeeze the water out of the slices of bread and add them to the bowl too.
- This where it gets messy: mix the whole lot together with your hands until you get an evenly mixed "dough" that doesn't stick to the edges of the bowl.
- Pull off small bits to make balls the size of walnuts. Roll them in a plate full of flour to coat them.
- Heat some oil and (optionally) some butter in a frying pan, and fry the meatballs until brown. You will probably have to add fat between each round of balls. It may be useful to have one person rolling balls up while another is actually frying them.
- Serve alongside a rocket salad, dressed with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, or a mixed herb and lettuce salad dressed with extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice and a pinch of salt. You could also serve them with a thick tomato sauce, either as a dip, or combined together to make a meatball sauce.