Perhaps you're wondering what Kofte is? They are Turkish meatballs. They are also called "Kofta" and are found throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. They are usually made with ground meat, spices, onions and garlic and they are deeply flavourful. If you do not eat meat you can substitute falafel (chickpea fritters) for the meatballs. These kofte are Keto, Paleo and Whole30 friendly. I serve them in gluten free flatbread as well as just as they are, along with the salad and topped with dairy free (or sheep's milk feta) & tzatziki sauce. Since this makes a lot, it makes for multiple meals. I even made the meat mixture ahead for camping and all I did was cook them as patties on our camping griddle. It became 3 meals: dinner, lunch and breakfast hash. In fact, the kofte taste even better on day 2 or 3. If you have a food processor or mini food chopper (often comes with an immersion blender), I recommend using it as it cuts the prep time down to mere minutes. You can make the meat mixture a day ahead which makes them even more flavourful. If you do not like lamb you can use any ground meat or mixture of ground meat. However i really encourage you to try with the lamb and beef mixture. Because it is mixed with the beef the lamb flavour is very mild.
* If you are using a food processor/chopper cut the onions in half and add the garlic whole and pulse until finely chopped. Add the parsley and pulse until coarsely chopped. Pour contents into a large bowl and add the spices then the meat. Use your hands to mix thoroughly.
Set meat mixture in fridge and allow the flavours to meld for at least an hour or overnight. The meatballs can be formed and made right away as well. Preheat oven to 375 F. Form meat mixture into American football/ rugby ball shapes and place on a large parchment lined rimmed baking sheet
Bake in the centre of your preheated oven for 15 minutes, turn over and bake for another 5-10 minutes until meat it baked through.
Cook the quinoa in the water for about 15-20 minutes or until fluffy (Bring to a boil, cover & turn heat down to medium low to cook) I often turn off the heat at about 15 minutes and allow to cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Allow to cool.
Add all of the vinaigrette ingredients to a mason jar , shake well and set aside. Shake vigorously again before adding to the salad. Add all of the salad ingredients (except for quinoa and spinach) to a large bowl. Mix and then add the cooled cooked quinoa. Fold in the spinach. Pour vinaigrette over the salad and toss lightly. Serve.
Ingredients
Directions
* If you are using a food processor/chopper cut the onions in half and add the garlic whole and pulse until finely chopped. Add the parsley and pulse until coarsely chopped. Pour contents into a large bowl and add the spices then the meat. Use your hands to mix thoroughly.
Set meat mixture in fridge and allow the flavours to meld for at least an hour or overnight. The meatballs can be formed and made right away as well. Preheat oven to 375 F. Form meat mixture into American football/ rugby ball shapes and place on a large parchment lined rimmed baking sheet
Bake in the centre of your preheated oven for 15 minutes, turn over and bake for another 5-10 minutes until meat it baked through.
Cook the quinoa in the water for about 15-20 minutes or until fluffy (Bring to a boil, cover & turn heat down to medium low to cook) I often turn off the heat at about 15 minutes and allow to cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Allow to cool.
Add all of the vinaigrette ingredients to a mason jar , shake well and set aside. Shake vigorously again before adding to the salad. Add all of the salad ingredients (except for quinoa and spinach) to a large bowl. Mix and then add the cooled cooked quinoa. Fold in the spinach. Pour vinaigrette over the salad and toss lightly. Serve.