Difficulty: Easy
Serves: 6 at home or 30 tastes in the kitchen
Fresh from the garden: coriander, garlic, lemon, parsley, silverbeet, tomato
Recipe source: Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation |
Equipment
- metric measuring scales,
- cups and spoons
- non-slip mat
- cook’s knife
- chopping board
- zester
- bowls – 1 large, 1 small
- fork
- mortar and pestle
- food processor
- mixing spoon
- large saucepan
- 2 large frying pans
- tongs
- kitchen paper
- serving platters
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Ingredients
- 720 g cooked chickpeas
- 5 garlic cloves
- zest of a lemon
- 3 cup fresh breadcrumbs
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 small handful of parsley
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 tbsp olive oil
For the sauce:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 red onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 6 tomatoes or 1 cup passata
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1½ cups Vegetable Stock
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 3 silverbeet leaves
- 1 small handful of coriander
- 2 tbsp natural yoghurt
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What to do
- Set out your equipment and ingredients.
Make the chickpea balls
- Dry roast the cumin seeds in a small frying pan until fragrant then tip into the mortar. Dry roast the coriander seeds in a small frying pan until fragrant then tip into the mortar. Finely grind the spices with the pestle.
- Peel and finely chop the garlic.
- Zest the yellow rind from the lemon using a zester.
- Finely chop the parsley and set aside.
- Mince the chickpeas with the mortar and pestle or in the food processor until soft, but with chunks.
- Put the minced chickpeas, garlic, lemon zest, breadcrumbs, spices, parsley and eggs into the large bowl. Combine them using your hands, gradually adding 1 tbsp of olive oil.
- Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls and refrigerate them while making the sauce.
Make the sauce
- Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic.
- Finely chop the tomatoes, in using fresh.
- Finely chop the silverbeet and coriander leaves.
- Add the olive oil and onion to the saucepan and cook over a medium—high heat for 2–3 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.
- Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and stock. Let the sauce simmer gently for 8–10 minutes.
- Set up the two frying pans to cook the chickpea balls. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in each frying pan.
- Cook the balls over a medium heat in two or three batches, tossing in the pan occasionally, until golden all over.
- Add the chickpea balls and cayenne pepper to the sauce and allow to gently simmer for a further 5–10 minutes until the sauce has reduced slightly and the flavour is rich and spicy.
- Remove from heat and toss through silverbeet and herbs. Add a dollop of yoghurt to the sauce before serving on platters to share.
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