Lamb Meatballs with Tzatziki Sauce

So on top of all the goings-on for this past weekend, I had some time to cook some Greek food. This go around (and after watching Rachel Ray), I decided to do the same recipe, but of course my own way. In the end, it came out great. Hope you enjoy it!

 Ingredients:

2 lbs lamb meat
1 cup panko crumbs
1/3 cup milk
1 large egg
2 tbsp mint
2 tbsp dill
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp paprika
1 tbsp worcheshire
juice of half a lime
Salt and pepper

So get the lamb meat out of the package. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.

Add the spices first to the meat. After you have added the spices, add the egg and milk. This will help keep the meat moist.

Add the panko after you have mixed the spices etc. Mix the meat and panko until a good consistency.

After you have mixed, make them into golf sized meatballs. Notice that the rack is placed on top of a cookie sheet. Place the Greek Meatballs into the oven. Allow them to cook for about 30 to 45 minutes.

 Take them out of the oven and allow them to cool.

While that is cooking, start working on the tzatziki sauce:

1 cup greek yogurt
2 small seedless cucumbers
ground pepper
salt
1/2 tsp dill
1/2 tsp mint
1/2 lemon

While that is cooking, place the yogurt into a bowl. Peel the skin off of the cucumbers. Shred the cucumbers Place into a colander. Salt the cucumber. Apparently if you salt it, the water from the cucumber will drain out.

Mince the dill and mint and then add the cucumber.

 

Add the yogurt to the green mixture. Make sure to mix the yogurt. Add some salt and pepper to the 

 

 
Squeeze the juice out of half a lemon atop the yogurt. Mix with the spoon and place into the refrigerator to chill. This allows the spices to meld with the yogurt.

I am enjoying the meatballs with some couscous and pita bread. I am very selective in my Greek food, but this was really good!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Well, came to San Antonio and tried to relax. I ended up shopping over in San Marcos and had a great time. After a rather long day of shopping, I was trying to figure out what I was going to have for dinner. I didn't really want anything that was too heavy, so I opted instead to go to shop over at a local store close by the apartment.

After looking around, I decided to buy a bunch of ingredients for Chicken Tortilla Soup. It is a rather easy recipe and I find it much lighter than say a steak and potatoes tonight. Nothing like making it easy as opposed to cooking for a couple of hours.

Ingredients

1 Rotisserie Chicken
1 package precooked potatoes
2  8 oz caldo de pollo with tomato bouillon (or chicken stock)
2 tbsp butter
1 onion diced
2 stalks celery diced
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp worchestershire
1 tsp poultry seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon
1/3 cup cilantro diced
1 avocado, sliced and diced
Sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese

In a large pot, place the pats of butter. Add the diced onion and celery. Now keep in mind, I used diced onion and celery that were already ready to cook. Cook these until the mixture is semi translucent.

Add the stock and start to bring to a boil. Start to add the garlic, cumin, worchestershire, poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper.

 

Continue to bring to a boil. Add the cilantro to the soup as well, stirring on occasion.

Take the meat off of the carcass. Don't add the skin as the recipe calls for the chicken meat. Once off of the carcass, pour into the soup.

 

Add the lemon and the package of precooked potato. Mix in and allow to continue to cook. Continue to cook for another 15 minutes. Bring to a simmer and allow the potatoes to cook through. Finally, add the cilantro and the juice of the lemon.

While the soup is off of the heat, dice some corn tortillas. Preheat the oil in a small pan. Start to cook the strips of tortillas until rather crisp. Take out of the oil and allow to drain in a separate plate.

Enjoy it with some tortilla strips, shredded cheese, sour cream and diced avocado.

Making some good quiche

Well, its been a while since I have posted anything. I have been rather busy with my Winter Symposium (a training event that we have at my work).

This recipe was something I came across on a recipe book I bought when I used to be a teacher. For this time, I made quiche with some leftovers that I had when I went to visit my family down in Lower South Texas. Needless to say, they really did love this. It was the first time that my mom had quiche. I had also made potato croquettes (recipe for another time). I doubled this recipe in order to have two different types of quiche.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
2 to 3 oz water
Dash Salt
butter
1 oz diced ham
3 eggs
2 cups half & half
1 oz Swiss
1 oz White Cheddar
1 pkg mushroom
2 tbsp butter

Combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and work it into the flour until the consistency is coarse.

Stir and work in the egg and water until dough becomes a ball. Coat the work surface with a little flour and let the dough rest for a couple of minutes.

Now keep in mind, I had leftover large eggs. I used them and had a dough that was a little sticky. I had to add flour until it was able to work.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter a pie dish. What I ended up using was 2 cake pans.

Spread the pastry out to cover the bottom and sides with fingers. Use flour to help, push dough from middle to sides of dish. Let pastry stand a bit higher than the dish edge. Bake the pastry for 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven before the pastry shrinks, adjust the sides if you need to.

Place ham and cheese in the pan. In meantime, beat the eggs and half & half. Add pepper and salt.

Work with all the ingredients. I have different fillings for the quiche. I am using leftover green onions, ham and mushrooms that I used for Thanksgiving. I have shredded cheese, diced the green onions, diced and reheated the ham and sauteed mushrooms.

 

 

  
Add the ingredients that you have sauteed or diced. Add the cheese on top of the ingredients. Pour the egg mixture into the pan and bake for 30 minutes until center is firm.

As you know, I have made two different types. One was mushroom with a small amount of ham and green onions. The other was ham and green onion.