Ground Turkey Meatballs


Fried meatballs, French fries, fried banana peppers and even fried zucchini and fried eggplant were typical Saturday dinner foods while I was growing up in Greece. Saturday was the day that my mother used to do all the groceries (which is still very common there; everything is closed on Sundays in Greece, even now). Her day was packed from early in the morning till around 2:00 in the afternoon. She had to go to the baker for fresh bread to last till Monday; the butcher for meat to have for the weekend, the grocer to get milk and condiments, and the market for veggies. By the time she was all done it was time for everyone to gather for the mid- afternoon meal which was around 3:00-4:00 in the afternoon.

I used to go to school on Saturdays too. School there was 6 days – not 5 as it is here. (I am not sure, but I think now it is only 5 days). So when I‘d come home from school, my task was to help my mother with the food preparation and cooking. I used to love Saturday afternoons. All of us gathered in the house, no matter what the weather. Since these types of foods were mostly cooked in the summer, I remember the hot summer days, with all the doors and windows open, listening to the cicadas while most people were taking their afternoon siesta. The quietness of the summer heat, that you did not only feel but could hear… and yet our house was lively with conversation and recapping the week’s events. I loved those Saturdays and still remember them and cherish them. 

As for the meatball recipe, it is my mother’s recipe. She never used a cookbook or followed a recipe. She would just whip them up, and voila, we had tasty meatballs, that were practically gone by the time we all sat down to eat. And then, she would make more. The only difference with this recipe is that I use ground turkey instead of ground beef. I find ground turkey healthier and lighter on the stomach than ground beef. 

Enjoy!


Ground Turkey meatballs
Makes about 29-30 meatballs (about 1.5 oz each)

½ cup grated onion

¼ tsp crushed garlic

1.5 lbs ground turkey

1 cup dried bread crumbs

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper
½ tsp dried oregano
 
½ cup of olive oil for frying

Peel and wash the onion. With a cheese grater, grate the onion and set aside. Crush the garlic in a garlic press. Set aside. In a bowl, mix together the ground turkey, the crushed garlic, grated onion, the bread crumbs, the salt, pepper and oregano. Mix well together till all the ingredients are completely incorporated. Shape into 2” meatballs. In a frying pan, heat the ½ cup of olive oil, but not burning hot. Add the meatballs one at a time and fry till golden brown. You can omit this step and instead, place the meatballs in a cookie sheet and bake them in a preheated oven at 400° F for about ½ hour. Remove from the oven. 

You can either have the meatballs as appetizers or you can incorporate them in the marinara sauce, on my previous post, and serve over hot spaghetti. Take about 4 cups of the marinara sauce, add the meatballs, bring to a slow simmer till heated through, and remove from heat.


Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1.129 oz (32g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 97
Calories from Fat 59
Total Fat 6.5g
Saturated Fat 1.3g
Cholesterol 23mg
Sodium 90mg
Total Carbohydrates 2.8g
Dietary Fiber 0.2g
Sugars 0.3g
Protein 6.7g

 






Marinara Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes

Makes 7 cups

3 cups diced cooking onions

16 cups crushed fresh tomatoes

3 cloves garlic (about 3 tsp) crushed

1 cup olive oil

2 tbsp fresh Greek oregano

2 tsp salt

2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Pinch of sugar

Wash and clean the tomatoes. Place them in a food processor and grind. In a large pot over high heat, add the olive oil, the crushed garlic and the diced onions.  Sauté till transparent.  Add the crushed tomatoes, the fresh Greek oregano (if you don’t have Greek oregano, any type of dried oregano will do), salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar. The sugar will take the acidity of the tomatoes away. Let it all come to a boil stirring constantly. Then lower the heat to simmer and let it cook till the sauce reduces to about half the size. That will take a couple of hours.

Since tomatoes retain a lot of water, I would suggest that you don’t cover the pot while simmering the sauce. Condensation will build up and the sauce will end up being watery instead of thick and creamy-like. It freezes well, and can also be used for homemade pizzas, or dip fresh bread in it.  Another note: if you don't have fresh tomatoes you can use can of crushed tomatoes.  It will work the same way, as the fresh ones.  I used to make this sauce with canned crushed tomatoes also.    

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 8.106 oz (229.8g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 176
Calories from Fat 92
Total Fat 10.2g
Saturated Fat 1.5g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 617mg
Total Carbohydrates 18.2g
Dietary Fiber 7.0g
Sugars 12.0g
Protein 5.1g


 
It has been a long time since I published anything on my Greek Fusion Cuisine blog.  But it’s been a busy and yet wonderful summer.  Not that I didn’t cook or barbeque.  I did plenty of those.  But we had such wonderful weather, that I didn’t want to be inside in front of a computer.  And, truly, I haven’t forgotten you, dear followers. 

Our summer this year was amazing.  I don’t ever remember a summer in Michigan this beautiful since I moved here many years ago.  This year I was not able to go to Greece and enjoy the beautiful weather there.  But I think the Greek summer came here to visit me.  The weather was warm, it reached to 104 degrees (F)on some days, and the sky was clear and blue.  The only thing that I was missing in my back yard was the Mediterranean  Sea. 
This year my husband decided to plant a garden in our back yard.  We had an abundance of zucchinis, squashes, banana peppers, grape tomatoes and tomatoes.  He also planted some jalapeno peppers, which I don’t eat.  I find them too hot for me.  I was going to try to make a jalapeno dip with Greek yogurt, but it didn’t happen (stay tuned for that recipe; I’m sure I’m going to try to make it one of these days).  As you can see from the pictures the zucchinis grew quite large which I ended up making zucchini moussaka with them (that recipe on one of my next posts).  And as for the banana peppers I washed them, pricked them with a fork and barbequed them.  Then drizzled some olive oil and red wine vinegar on them and ate them as a side dish.  This type of dish is very common in Greece in the summer.  My mother used to fry them all the time.  This type of food was a staple on our table every Saturday during the summer months. 

For fruits we ended up eating plenty of strawberries and blueberries with which I made a mixed berry sauce that I used on top of ice cream or some plain Greek yogurt (I prefer the Fage yogurt).  The berry sauce stays well in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.  But it didn’t last that long in my household. 
Here is a first tease with the mixed berry sauce recipe to entice your appetite.  Stay tuned for more recipes.    
Our garden crop
 
 
Some funny shaped strawberries that I bought.


 

Mixed Berry Sauce

5 cups mixed berries (I used strawberries and blueberries)
 7 tbsp sugar

 Wash and clean the berries. In a deep saucepan, add the berries and the sugar. Turn the heat on. With a potato masher, mash the berries. Let the berries and sugar cook while stirring constantly with a spoon. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer while stirring constantly. Let it cook for another 15 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. If it doesn’t look that thick in the beginning, don’t worry. As you let it sit, and it cools it will thicken.  

Once cooled pour into jars and refrigerate. It will last up to 3 months. Use to top ice cream or plain yogurt, or use it as spread for toast. It goes quite well on French toast or use as a topping for cheese cake.   

Makes about 20 servings of 2 tbsp per serving 




Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1.355 oz (38.4g)
 Amount Per Serving
 Calories 35
 Calories from Fat 1
 Total Fat 0.1g
 Saturated Fat 0.0g
 Trans Fat 0.0g
 Cholesterol 0mg
 Sodium 0mg
 Total Carbohydrates 8.7g
 Dietary Fiber 1.3g
 Sugars 6.9g
 Protein 0.2g
 Vitamin A 1%
 Vitamin C 13%
 Calcium 0%
Iron 1%