Lamb Meatballs 101.

I think it's safe to say, you either fall into the "I love meatballs" camp or you fall into the "I can live without meatballs" camp. For most of my life, I believe I fell into the "I can live without meatballs" camp, but every now and then a recipe will rear it's cute lil' face and entice me into trying it. One thing is for sure, I'm more into the non-traditional meatball as opposed to the typical spaghetti and meatballs (for an example, I wrote a post about two meatball recipes that were to-die-for here).

Years ago I started a project, organizing recipes I had pulled from magazines and newspapers - recipes I had the noble intention of trying at least once. Recently, I looked at the growing pile of magazines and the folder project and decided to come up with a more technologically saavy way of organizing said recipes. I spent a portion of a weekend going through the recipes I had collected and weeding out the ones that still tripped my trigger. One of those recipes happened to be a recipe for Northern Indian lamb meatballs featured in a Martha Stewart Living magazine circa January 2005.

So I spent Sunday evening making these delectable balls of juicy lamb which simmered in a tomato based sauce fragrantly spiced with turmeric, cayenne, coriander and garam masala. The method was a tad different then my prior experience with making meatballs, but the results absolutely yielded the most tender, flavorful meatballs I have ever made.

To accompany the meatballs I heated up some garlic naan from Trader Joe's and I made an impromptu yogurt sauce from scratch. Here's my very own yogurt sauce recipe:

1/2 c. greek yogurt (plain)

1/4 tsp. kosher or sea salt

1/2 tsp.-3/4 tsp. garam masala

1/4 tsp.-1/2 tsp. cayenne

1 shallot, minced

1/4 c. flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

Mix together in small bowl and chill prior to serving with meatballs and naan.