These little meatballs, made from a mixture of minced lamb and rice, flavoured with thyme, lemon and nutmeg, are grilled on cocktail sticks with vegetables for easy eating. The classic Greek egg and lemon dipping sauce has a tangy flavour, which is a perfect partner for the meatball kebabs.
Use green or yellow capsicum instead of red, or replace it with wedges of fennel. * For a quick and easy lemon-mint dip, stir the grated zest of 1 lemon and 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint into 1 cup (260g) Greek-style yogurt. * The kebabs can be prepared 3–4 hours ahead and then kept in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap.
Minced lamb can have quite a high fat content but, because these meatballs are grilled, much of the excess fat is drained off during the cooking process. * Making the meatballs with a mixture of lamb and rice means less meat is used than normal, and healthy starchy carbohydrates are added with the rice.
GI estimate not able to be calculated because the carbohydrate content is minimal.
It's kind of fiddly having to prepare all the kebabs so I probably won't make this much. After doing the kebabs I got lazy and just served with lemon wedges instead of making the dip though I am certain the dip would be great with it. I skewered strips of roasted capsciums onto the kebabs too. - 24 Feb 2009