Name: Leon's famous meatballs for children
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 ½ pitta; 120ml milk; 1kg minced lamb; A small bunch of parsley and the same of mint finely chopped; 1tsp dried oregano; 2 cloves of garlic chopped; 30ml olive oil; 3 cloves of garlic crushed; 1600g (2 x 800g tins) chopped tomatoes; 1 ½tbsp harissa; A handful of basil and the same of parsley chopped; Rice or couscous to serve

Ingredients

For the meatballs

1 ½ pitta
120ml milk
1kg minced lamb
A small bunch of parsley and the same of mint finely chopped
1tsp dried oregano
2 cloves of garlic chopped

For the sauce

30ml olive oil
3 cloves of garlic crushed
1600g (2 x 800g tins) chopped tomatoes
1 ½tbsp harissa
A handful of basil and the same of parsley chopped
Rice or couscous to serve

Method

STEP 1
Rip the pitta and soak in the milk for 10 minutes (use water if you want to be dairy free). Add the mince, garlic and herbs. Mix well then roll into walnut sized balls (bigger children have bigger mouths but a meatball on a fork is too much fun to ignore, table manners are for wimps). Either griddle on a pan or under a very hot grill, brown the balls quickly, its about colour not cooking them through.
STEP 2
To make the sauce, heat the oil in a heavy bottom pan and gently fry the crushed garlic. Tip the chopped tomatoes in with the harissa and simmer for 25–30 minutes until the sauce has been reduced. Put in the meatballs and continue to simmer for a further 20 minutes. Lastly, stir in the herbs just before serving.