Spicy Tahini Meatball Bowls with Tomato, Cucumber and Pine Nuts

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THE WHY BEHIND THIS RECIPE

There are a lot of meatball recipes out there - that’s because they are easy, nourishing, and delicious. However, many times meatball recipes require breadcrumbs (and often refined grain ones) or they have a long ingredient list and then don’t actually seem so simple.

My goal with these meatballs was SIMPLE and FLAVORFUL. Tahini is the hero ingredient that helps hold the meatballs together, AND it becomes the base of the sauce. Super easy.

In my opinion, every greek meatball must come with tomatoes and cucumbers, so I serve this with a simple tomato and cucumber salad that also has some toasted pine nuts for crunch.

Now, let’s talk about how to zhuzh up cauliflower rice. My framework for cauliflower rice is:

• 1. Toast some nuts you can throw on top. Set aside.

• 2. Saute some minced garlic in olive oil.

• 3. After adding the frozen cauliflower rice, add 4 tsp seasoning of choice. In this recipe I did turmeric and cumin, but you could do sumac, paprika, Italian seasoning, anything.

• 4. Add herbs! I used parsley here - but basil, cilantro, mint etc. would be great.

• 5. Lemon and kosher salt to finish. Zhuzh it up with a little lemon zest, juice, and as always…salt.

Let me know what you think!

Yields: 3-4 servings

Total time: ~30 minutes

• Prep time: 10 minutes

• Cook time: 20 minutes

WHAT YOU NEED

What you’ll need:

• Chefs knife

• Large mixing bowl

• Small mixing bowl

• Large baking sheet

• Large saute pan

• Cutting board

• Mixing spoon

• Measuring cups/spoons

Meatballs + tahini sauce

• 3/4 cup tahini

• 2 tbsp sriracha or hot sauce (1 tbsp if you prefer less) - my favorite is Yellowbird

• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

• Zest and juice from 2 limes

• 1 tsp kosher salt

• 1 lb ground meat (turkey, beef, lamb)

• 1 egg

• Water as needed to thin sauce

Cucumber, tomato, pine nut salad

• 3 cups cherry tomatos, halved

• 1 english cucumber, diced

• 1 shallot, thinly sliced

• 1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped (or your herb of choice)

• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar

• 3 tbsp olive oil

• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

• 1/4 cup crumbled feta (optional)

Cauliflower rice pilaf

• 1/4 cup almonds, roughly chopped

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 4 garlic cloves, minced

• 4-5 cups of frozen cauliflower rice

• 4 tsp spice of choice, I like 2 tsp cumin + 2 tsp turmeric but you could use sumac, paprika, Italian seasoning, anything!

• 1/4 cup parsley or cilantro (or your herb of choice)

• 1 lemon, zested and juiced

Toppings:

• Avocado, diced for topping

• Feta, crumbled

• Mint, chopped

HOW TO DO IT

Make meatballs, tahini sauce and cucumber, tomato salad:

1. Preheat oven to 425 F.

2. Combine tahini, hot sauce, cumin, and zest and juice of 1 lime into a large bowl. Stir well.

3. Set aside half of the sauce into a smaller bowl (this will be your tahini sauce for topping).

4. Add ground meat into the large bowl, crack one egg into the bowl and add 1 tsp kosher salt. Mix well with your hands and then form into 10-12 meatballs.

5. Add the meatballs to the oven and roast for 5 minutes and then flip to the other side for 5 more minutes. For the last 2-3 minutes, turn the oven to broil to crisp them up! Check internal temp is 165.

6. Wash the large bowl that the meatballs were in and re-use it to combine the cherry tomatoes, shallot, cucumber, with fresh mint with red wine vinegar, olive oil and a pinch of kosher salt. Set aside.

7. Toast your pine nuts in a saute pan for 4-5 minutes. I like to toast my nuts completely dry, just keep stirring and pay attention because they will go from brown to burnt in a split second!

8. Take the small sauce bowl and juice the second lime into the sauce. Mix well. Add water to your desired consistency.

Make cauliflower rice pilaf:

1. Roughly chop almonds and lightly toast them over a large saute pan. Remove to a small bowl.

2. In the same saute pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil and add garlic. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Then add cauliflower rice, spices of choice and herbs. Stir until heated.

3. Finish by zesting lemon over the top. You can use the rest of the lemon to juice over your bowls!

SWAPS, TIPS & TRICKS

• Don’t overcook the meatballs or they will become dry! Always better to check them a little early than a little too late!

• Dairy free?: Just leave off the feta.

• Double the sauce? If you want more sauce, add more tahini, and a touch more cumin and hot sauce to the dressing to make it extra saucy (my favorite).

• Storage: Keeps in the fridge for a week.

Nutritional Info

Per serving, yields 3-4 servings

Calories: 749
Carbohydrates: 26g
Fiber: 11g
Net carbs: 15g
Protein: 24g
Fat: 50g
Sodium: 1400mg
Sugar: 7g (no added sugars, all natural!)