Apricot Lamb Meatballs with Avgolemono Sauce
A medley Apricot Lamb Meatballs and blistered sugar snap peas served on a bed of Israeli Couscous and drizzled with a velvety Avgolemono Sauce.
Equipment
- A large cast-iron skillet
- stand mixer or hand mixer
Ingredients
Apricot Lamb Meatballs
- 454g (1lb) ground lamb
- 2 shallots diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ⅓ cup dried apricot diced
- ⅓ cup breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup fresh mint finely chopped
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp herbes de Provence
- ½ tsp fennel seeds
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 300g (10.5oz) uncooked Isaerli Couscous
- 225g (8oz) sugar snap peas
- additional mint leaves for sprinkling
- microgreens for sprinkling
- lemon wedges for serving
Avgolemono Sauce
- 2 large eggs seperated
- 2 lemons
- 1 cup low-sodium beef stock
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven in 400°F
- Place the lamb, shallots, garlic, apricot, breadcrumbs, mint, and egg in a large bowl. Add the herbes de Provence, fennel seeds, and salt. With a clean hand, mix until all the ingredients are well-integrated. Using a tablespoon as a guide, form the lamb mixture into meatballs. Set aside.
- Pour the olive oil into a large cast-iron skillet and place over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the meatballs in an even layer. Brown the meatballs on all sides before transferring the skillet to the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, turning the meatballs once halfway through.
- While the meatballs are in the oven, make the Avgolemono Sauce. Place the egg yolks in a small saucepan and the whites in a large bowl. Add the lemon juice to yolks and whisk to combine - set aside.
- Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Slowly whisk in the yolk mixture, followed by the stock and the salt. The mixture will look seperated but that's okay. Make sure your stock is not hot as that will curdle the eggs.
- Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and place over low heat. Gently cook the sauce, whisking occasionally until the sauce thickens and becomes uniform. About 10 minutes. Don't let the sauce come to a simmer or a boil at any point. This will cook the eggs.
- While you're babysitting the sauce, place a large pot of water over high heat. Once the water comes to a boil, add the couscous and cook until tender. Drain and rinse the couscous and set aside until ready to serve.
- When the meatballs are done, take the skillet out of the oven. Remove the meatballs place the skillet over medium heat. Add the sugar snap peas and sauté until tender and slightly blistered - about 3-5 minutes. Season with a sprinkle of salt and set aside.
- When ready to serve, pour the couscous into a large serving platter. Arrange the meatballs on top and add the sugar snap peas. Drizzle the peas and meatballs with the avgolemono sauce and garnish with mint leaves, microgreens, and lemon wedges. Serve immediately.