Chicken Meatballs with Preserved Lemon and Harissa Relish

So happy it is Friday!  As we continue our cleanse month I find that I crave sugar a lot, to the point that I am constantly craving and must fulfill it.  Last night I ended up making some amazing hot chocolate with coconut milk and 1/4 cup heavy cream...yes it was to die for.  Normally I like to drink red wine when I do drink and there does tend to be lots of sugar in wine so that has got to be the source of these cravings.  This weekend is a pretty full one with bowling tonight, a home buying class all day tomorrow, and then hanging with my best friends and cleaning the house on Sunday, hopefully I can squeeze in some rest too.  In my last post I talked about going to the restaurant Rose VL Deli with my brothers and it was pretty good.  I got the spicy beef pho (pictured below) and it was definitely not a traditional pho, the rice noodles were thick like spaghetti noodles and the broth wasn't as licorice-y but it was still tasty...and honestly kind of a nice change.  The atmosphere was hilarious, next to our table was a large flat screen T.V. and playing on it was one of Celine Dion's Vegas performances...it was quite interesting.  Now I will talk about this meal; last night I slightly adapted this recipe by Ottolenghi and it was absolutely delightful.  If you don't know him he is an amazing chef that is pretty big in the scene right now and has several cookbooks out.  I recently just got my mom his Jerusalem cookbook and wish I had purchased one for myself as well.  I hope you make and enjoy this wonderful meal.  I paired it with roasted broccoli.

Serves 4

The Ingredients
1 whole corn cob, husk removed
About 3 tablespoons bacon fat
1/2 cup almond flour
1 pound ground chicken
1 small onion, grated
1 clove of garlic, pressed
2 teaspoons ground coriander
3 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
1½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic chili paste
1 medium egg, lightly beaten
Salt and black pepper
Olive oil

Lemon and harissa relish:
3 preserved lemon slices, flesh and skin sliced into thin strips
1 teaspoon lemon juice;
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons harissa paste


The Process
1.  Pre-heat the oven to 375F.

2.  To prepare the corn, put a ridged griddle pan on high heat and allow it to get really hot. Brush the corn with ½ a tablespoon of the olive oil and char grill it for 8-10 minutes, turning regularly. You want the flesh to get lots of dark charred specks and the corn to turn smoky. Remove from the heat, and once cool enough to handle, shave the corn off the cob using a large, sharp knife. Place the kernels in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

3.  For the relish, mix together in a medium bowl all the ingredients and set aside until needed.

4.  To make the meatballs, add to the bowl with the corn the almond flour, chicken, onion, garlic, parsley, coriander, cumin, garlic chili paste, egg, ½ teaspoon of salt and a generous grind of black pepper. Stir the ingredients until well combined. Lightly moisten your hands with some of the olive oil and then form them into 12 round meatballs and lay on a greased baking tray.

5.  Return the griddle pan to a high heat. Once hot, cook the meatballs for 1-2 minutes on each side. They should have visible char marks and lift up easily from the pan. Take off the grill and place back on the baking tray. Put in the oven for 6 minutes or until cooked through.  Serve the meatballs warm with the relish.