Gluten Free Baked Lamb Meatballs

It's been great being back in the kitchen cooking. I had no idea that finding new homes for all my cooking and baking equipment and supplies would be so challenging. It isn't that there isn't room, nor that I hadn't planned where to put most of it, the problem is that I find that where I thought things should go is not truly where they fit best when actually using the kitchen. That means rethinking a lot of my original plan.

I look pretty crazy sometimes as I open and close drawer after drawer and door after door of the cabinets, looking for a whisk or grater, a citrus juicer or colander. Some things have been moved four or five times since the project started and my memory just isn't what it used to be.

Still, I wouldn't go back to the old kitchen and I love all of the work space. I even used the little table this week while I was preparing pounds of home grown, just picked cherry tomatoes for roasting. Sitting instead of standing to remove all of those little tomato tops before I prepared them for roasting was a treat. After the tomatoes were roasted I decided that as long as the oven was hot, I could make meatballs for dinner.

I had thawed some frozen ground lamb from the freezer and somewhere recently I read a recipe where they used almond meal instead of bread crumbs for making meatballs, so I decided to see what I could come up with using items already in the pantry and fridge. I'm not eating gluten free myself, in general, but it's always nice to have a dish to make that is when I might have guests who need to eat gluten free. This dish is not vegan or vegetarian however, but it is dairy free. Because Sweetie is not a big fan of mint, it is a mint free dish, too. Mostly I would make these again because they were awesomely yummy.

There was just over a pound of ground lamb. The fridge had a wonderful caramelized red onion and fig conserve, some Dijon mustard, an egg yolk left over from another recipe, eggs, fresh basil, and the almond meal. The pantry had salt and pepper. That was all I needed. Because the onion and fig conserve was ready to go and very full flavored, the meatballs went together very quickly.

I scooped them on to a foil lined baking sheet and baked them in a 400 degree F oven for about 18 minutes. I was going for 20 minutes, but they seemed to be done at 18 and I hate overcooked lamb.

A key thing to remember if you decide to make these is to handle the mixture lightly. That keeps 'em tender and juicy. The other thing to know is that they may flatten just a bit, so don't expect tight, round meatballs. Instead look forward to light, juicy, delicious meatballs with some crispy bits where they sat on the pan. The lamb flavor shines and is enhanced by the slightly sweet onions and figs. The mustard and basil are background flavors and I didn't really taste the egg or almond meal at all. You can serve them with some more of the conserve or a bit of tomato sauce, or some yogurt...all three would be good. I served them with a neighbor's gift of fresh from the garden broccoli, which I roasted with garlic, and corn on the cob, and that was wonderful, too.

Elle's Gluten Free Baked No Mint Lamb Meatballs

1 pound ground lamb
1 egg yolk
1 medium or large egg
1/4 cup caramelized red onion and fig conserve (any kind of onion-fig jam or conserve will work)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup almond meal (ground blanched almonds)
2 - 3 tablespoons minced fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste (I used 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper)

In a mixing bowl, using a fork, lightly stir together the above ingredients. Scoop balls about the size of a walnut on to a foil lined baking sheet, leaving about an inch to two inches between balls. (You can make the meatballs any size you like, but the smaller size bakes more quickly than larger ones.)

Bake in a preheated 400 degree F oven for 12-20 minutes. Check after 12 minutes to see how done they are - they should be browned around the edges and spring back a bit when prodded - turn the pan 180 degrees and continue baking until done.

Serve at once and enjoy! Serves 3-4.

Creamy - Coconutty - Bliss!

I've rarely thought of myself as competitive but sometimes it creeps up on me. Sweetie tried a small single-person size coconut cream pie at a cafe' near here and went on and on about it. I tried a bite and was not convinced. I told him I could make a much better one (which is about as competitive as you can get!) and yesterday and today I did. This pie...actually a tart in the final version...was going to be part of a late Thanksgiving dinner at dear Natasha's near Sacramento. That never happened since Sweetie wasn't thrilled with the idea of driving for about three hours each way in heavy rain. Rain is wonderful if you don't have to drive a lot in it, right? So I had all the ingredients for the pie/tart and some of them don't keep well. I also have a dear friend with a birthday coming up, so we invited her, and her hubby, to join us for coffee and pie/tart today to celebrate her birthday a little early. Good thing, too, because otherwise Sweetie and I may have eaten a half tart each. It really was that good.

There are various ways to make the cream filling for coconut cream, banana cream, ginger cream or similar flavors. Basically you are making pastry cream. I decided to make a variation on the pastry cream that we put into cream puffs when the Daring Bakers made Gateau St. Honore' in 2007.

It uses both egg yolks and flour, both whole milk and whipping cream. Some gelatin is added, too, which helps stabilize the filling. The recipe calls for whipping egg whites and folding them in but I skipped that step since I wanted the filling to be denser than that. I also added some vanilla. To make it coconut cream I also folded in fresh coconut that had been hand grated a few days before, then stored in the 'fridge.

For the tart shell I used a recipe in Dorie Greenspan's book Baking, from my home to yours. It makes a nice shortbread type crust. This would have been perfect for surviving a trip past Sacramento since it is pretty sturdy, but it is also perfect because the buttery crispness makes a wonderful contrast to the creamy, coconutty bliss of the filling. Once the filling had chilled after being spooned into the tart shell, I topped it with dollops of whipped cream and a sprinkle of toasted coconut for garnish...and flavor. This really is a special occasion dessert, but worth the effort. Sweetie agreed that it was far better than the one at the cafe'. The good news is that I'll be making another for the trip to Sacramento area in early December. The bad news (for my waistline if nothing else) is that now I know I can make a killer coconut cream tart and will want to prove that again and again. Ah, competition.

Coconut Cream Tart

1 envelope unflavored gelatin (7 gr.)
¼ cup cold water (60 ml)
½ cup + 2 Tablespoons sugar (130 gr)
½ cup all-purpose flour (70 gr)
¼ teaspoon salt
5 egg yolks
2 cups whole milk (500ml)
1 tablespoon rum
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ cup whipping cream (57 gr)
1 3/4 cups lightly toasted fresh coconut, divided
1 9-inch blind baked tart crust, cooled to room temperature

Soak the gelatin in the 1/4 cup of cold water.

Put the sugar, flour, and salt into a saucepan and stir together with a whisk. Add the yolks and enough milk to make a paste. Whisk in the remainder of the milk.

Place over low heat and stirring constantly, cook until thick. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and the gelatin. Stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved.

Stir in the whipping cream (and rum if using). Set the mixing bowl in cold water and stir until the cream is cool. Fold in 1 1/2 cups of the coconut. Pour into tart or pie crust and spread evenly. Chill until set. Garnish with whipped cream rosettes and rest of coconut. Serve at or close to room temperature for the best flavor.