Some months ago, I noticed I had completely lost my taste for beef in any form - not burgers, meatballs, steaks, even thinly sliced roast beef. I do love turkey, probably more than chicken, and I eat a lot of fish, so I don't seem to be missing it, but it is curious.
Now that summer is really here (!), I like to tour my garden patches, picking a few chives here, some rosemary sprigs there, and snipping off some sorrel leaves and turnip greens, celery leaves, and if I have blooming nasturtiums, those will go right in my basket, too. Sometimes they go into a salad, but often they end up in soup or something like these juicy, plump turkey meatballs. Sometimes the meatballs are tiny, but today I wanted big beefy diner-sized meatballs, two or three make the perfect lunch or dinner, nestled in a wedge of iceberg lettuce, just to be authentic - and OH! were they good!
I don't fry them up on high heat, but simmer them on middle heat, covered. They come out tender, juicy, and have enough herby flavor to be tasty, but not overpowering.
How's your weather? We are having thunderstorms and rain every late afternoon or evening and the plants ( and I) love it - no need to haul out the hoses, thanks to Mother Nature!
Ground Turkey Meatballs with chopped herbs
This made about 10 large meatballs.
1 one pound package ground turkey
About 3 loosely packed cups of various herbs and greens: I used:
4 scallions (green onions) trimmed and sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 piece bread, torn up
1 large egg
1 medium red onion, quartered and sliced into chunks
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme ( which I prefer to fresh)
sliced sorrel leaves, stems are ok to use as well
rosemary sprigs
turnip or other greens, torn (spinach, tender kale, etc can be used, too)
nasturtium leaves and flowers
garlic scapes
radish leaves
celery leaves and some of the stalk, sliced
sprigs of oregano
chives
sea salt and pepper
about 4 T. salsa, divided ( I used Green Mountain Gringo hot salsa)
Place ground turkey in a large bowl.
In food processor add the herbs and greens, the red onion, the scallions , the bread, thyme, and 2 T. of the salsa. Pulse or chop by hand into a coarse mixture.
Scrape the mixture into the bowl with the turkey, and add the sea salt and the raw egg and mix well.
Pour a few tablespoons mild olive oil into a skillet and heat on medium.
Form the turkey mixture into large balls - a little smaller than a tennis ball.
Cook for 10 minutes on medium, covered, then flip the turkey patties over and cook another 5 minutes, covered.
Serve on iceberg wedges or hearty rolls, top with a little more salsa and serve. Now I'm thinking a little goat cheese crumbled on top would be fabulous - next time!
Enjoy!
