Greek Meatballs in Pita with Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

I love all things little, pudgy and round (hence 4 children...so far). That also means I am a huge fan of puppies, chocolate chip cookies, and of course, meatballs. Any cuisine of meatball sounds good to me, I even obsess over vegan "meatballs", but for my latest mission, I knew it had to be a meaty, Greek thang. I wanted some massive, rich flavors - and I got it - with lamb and loads of herbs and spices. Baked then stuffed in whole wheat pita with creamy tzatziki and a lemony spinach salad with slivered red onions and chopped tomato, it surpassed my expectations and I implore you to make this recipe the next time you want to sit down at dinner and say "this is ridiculously good". But when I reflect on what happened when I brought this dinner to the table, there wasn't a lot of talking, just lots of oohs and ahhhs and eye-rolling to the heavens in thanks. So just trust me, you will be a Greek goddess the night you make this.

Mission Greek goddess food: Accomplished 

Greek Meatballs in Pita with Tzatziki and Lemony Spinach Salad
serves 6 (with leftovers for lunch)

Meatball Ingredients:

1.5 lbs ground lamb
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup crumbled feta
squeeze of lemon juice (from half lemon)
1/4 cup minced red onion
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1/4 cup minced fresh mint
1 tsp dried oregano
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp Hungarian paprika (sweet)
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Accompaniments:
6 whole wheat pita pockets ( I love Stonefire brand, Whole Foods)
Tzatziki (feel free to make your own but I love Cedar Lane brand in a pinch)
Lemony Salad (see below)
Mediterranean Quinoa salad (see below)

Lemony Spinach Salad Ingredients:
3 big handfuls baby spinach
1/2 red onion, halved and shaved thin
1 generous cup tomatoes, seeded, diced
juice of 1/2 large lemon
drizzle of olive oil
S &P

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad:
2 cups cooked white quinoa (seasoned with salt)

1/2 large cucumber, diced
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
1/3 cup feta
1/3 cup halved kalamata olives
1/2 cup minced fresh basil
1/3 cup minced fresh mint
1/2 large red bell pepper, seeded, diced
zest of 1 lemon
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
olive oil
s& lots of P
juice of 1/2 lemon

For the Meatballs:

In a small bowl, mix the milk and bread crumbs. Set aside for 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix the lamb with all the ingredients, including the moist bread crumbs, and mix gently. Form into balls about the size of golf balls, about 20. Refrigerate balls for at least an hour for flavors to mingle.

Preheat oven to 400. Roast meatballs in a baking dish for about 22 minutes.

For the Lemony Salad (can be made ahead):

In a medium bowl, place the sliced onions and the tomatoes. Drizzle with lemon juice. This is a key step because marinating the onions helps to reduce their bite. Add the tomatoes on top, followed by a little olive oil and salt and pepper. Add the spinach on top. Toss the salad when you are ready to serve dinner.

For the quinoa:
Quite simply, add the chopped veggies, herbs, cheese, lemon zest, and pine nuts to the cooked quinoa. Add a big glug of olive oil (~2 Tbsp) and lemon juice. Season for salt and pepper - I like a lot of fresh, cracked pepper. Salad can be refrigerated for several hours before serving if needed.

To Assemble the Pita pockets:

Cut pita open, to which you should add about 1-2 Tbsp tzatziki. Then add a handful of lemony salad, followed by 2 meatballs cut in half. Serve quinoa salad on the side, along with a your best Greek goddess grin.

Enjoy!!