This has been a very busy Spring!  Easter was a whirl, with Sister and her fiancé coming down for wedding planning and the holiday.  My grandpa returned from his year in Japan.  Organic Chemistry is…exactly what you’d expect:  HARD.  And in the midst of all that, I’ve made more time for eating than for blogging.  So I do have some good recipes to share with you, it’s just taking a while to blog about them.

Easter is a busy time for Mom.  She has many church responsibilities to prepare for the potluck breakfast we have every year at church.  So I try to take some of the burden of cooking off her plate.  So this year we planned for a pretty casual Easter (since everything was up in the air until that weekend it was hard to plan ahead), so we settled on what turned out to be an awesome Greek/Mediterranean inspired meal.  I made these Turkey Kibbeh Meatballs to serve with Tatziki, a Deconstructed Falafel Salad, Roasted Cauliflower, and then an assortment of store-bought dips (hummus, baba ganoush, fattoush) served with pita.  It was an excellent assortment of things, I would definitely recommend that if you’re feeling overwhelmed thinking about planning a big meal, to pick something that you can make a few things and then supplement with store-bought items to lessen the amount of work you feel.
Now, these Turkey Kibbeh Meatballs are delicious.  They’re a mixture of bulgur, turkey and aromatics.  The bulgur has a great texture and helps your turkey go further (helpful if you’re trying to cut down on your meat).  The za’atar, lemon zest, and apricots add great flavor and a hint of sweetness.  These pair great with a little homemade tatziki sauce.  I ate the leftovers with potatoes and roasted cauliflower, not the most colorful meal, but super satisfying and delicious.  These are great to have on hand to mix with your favorite vegetables and starches to form lots of creative bowls.

Turkey Kibbeh Meatballs

Makes about 32 meatballs

Adapted from Food, Faith, Fitness

• 1 cup uncooked bulgur
• 2 yellow onions, diced
• 2 Tbsp Za’atar
• 2 lemons, zested
• 1/2 cup dried apricots, diced
• 1 bunch parsley, chopped
• 4 Tbsp pine nuts
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 3 eggs, beaten
• salt and pepper, to taste

Cook the bulgur according to the package directions.  Allow to cool in a large bowl.

In a large skillet, sauté  the onions until soft, then add the Za’atar and the lemon zest, mix constantly for about 1 minute.  Then add the apricots, parsley, and pine nuts.  Stir for an additional minute, then add to the bulgur.  Season with salt and pepper and allow to cool.

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Mix in the ground turkey and eggs and mix well.  Use a 1″ cookie scoop to form the meatballs, and line them up on a large, greased baking sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until beginning to brown, and cooked through.  Serve immediately.

While the meatballs bake you can whip up a quick tatziki.

Tatziki

• Plain Greek Yogurt
• Cucumber, chopped
• Mint, minced
• Garlic, minced
• Lemon juice
• salt and pepper, to taste

This is just a general idea, mix things together to your preferred taste.