Last Updated on September 5, 2020 by Ellen Christian
I love trying foods from different countries. That presents a bit of a problem here in rural Vermont. The only different cuisines I can find around here in restaurants are Chinese and Italian. While I love Chinese and Italian food, sometimes I want something a little bit different.
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When that happens, I turn to my own kitchen to create something different. I have tons of different cookbooks that feature foods from other countries but sometimes I have a hard time finding all of the spices and ethnic foods in my small town. I find it easier to use a spice blend than try to come up with a whole bunch of different spices.
Today I started with a Beef Shawarma Spice Blend from DeDeMed Mediterranean Kitchen. Shawarma is typically a large piece of meat prepared on a spit all day and then shaved off into very thin slices and made into sandwiches. Since I don’t have a spit in my kitchen or all day to spend preparing dinner, I had to be creative with this one.
The Beef Shawarma Spice from DeDeMed listed the ingredients as: spices, garlic, onion and salt so it’s hard for me to pin point exactly what’s in here. Shawarma spice often includes cinnamon, cayenne, turmeric, coriander and sometimes cardamom. It’s hard to say what exactly is in the DeDeMed Beef Shawarma Spice Blend but whatever it was, it was quite good. Here’s my recipe:
Shawarma Meatballs
Meatball mixture:
1 pound ground beef
2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
1/2 small onion, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon DeDeMed Beef Shawarma Spice
Sauce:
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon dry dill
1 small cucumber, peeled and seeds removed
Garnishes:
pita bread or flat bread
thin sliced tomato
thin sliced onion
thin sliced cucumbers
In blender combine all the sauce ingredients. Cover and refrigerate until later.
In bowl mix ground beef, garlic, yogurt, spices, lemon juice and onion. Make into small meatballs – about 15. Bake in 350F oven for 30 minutes until done. Let cool for 5 minutes.
In a pita pocket or between two slices of flat bread, place sliced meatballs, tomato, onion, cucumber and drizzle with sauce. Enjoy!
I really love the convenience of using DeDeMed’s Spice Blends. It really saves a lot of time and money instead of having to keep 10 different spices you hardly ever use in your spice cabinet.
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Ellen is a busy mom of a 24-year-old son and 29-year-old daughter. She owns six blogs and is addicted to social media. She believes that it doesn’t have to be difficult to lead a healthy life. She shares simple healthy living tips to show busy women how to lead fulfilling lives. If you’d like to work together, email info@confessionsofanover-workedmom.com to chat.
