Recipe: Bulgar & Lamb Meatballs (& me in Cooking Light!) - The Food Hussy (2024)

I’m a Twitter junkie and am always watching brands and publications for fun opportunities and found a great one from @CookingLight. They are working with author and host Allison Fishman on “The Twelve” and having real readers implement 12 healthy habits in 2011.

Every month, Allison chooses a new reader to take on that months challenge and for April – SHE CHOSE ME! The challenge is a big one – eat three servings of whole grains EVERY DAY!I probably don’t eat three in a month! But she’s working with me to figure it out.

My first challenge was to identify the “whole grains” and find recipes that I might like using them. The first one I found and decided to make is Bulgar & Lamb Meatballs in Tomato Sauce from Cooking Light.

And later today, there will be a blog from Allison about me and the April challenge! I’ll add a link once it’s up.

I must say – using these fresh and natural ingredients sure does make pretty food! First I soaked the bulgur for a couple of minutes and then drained it. Then added parsley and dill.

Seriously – look how pretty it is!!!

I added a “meatloaf mix” instead of straight lamb and didn’t use eggs in the meatballs – but they stuck together just fine. I was a bit apprehensive about “boiling” the meatballs rather than frying them – but went for it anyway!

I also ended up using a can of Rotel Hot Tomatoes because that’s all that was in the cabinet – and they were HOT!!! I tried to keep out some of the habaneros because I didn’t want to ruin the meal – but it turned out okay. I also substituted beef broth for the red wine and threw in a can of mushrooms.

The recipe mentions serving this over rice – I was in the mood for pasta but went the healthy route with Whole Wheat pasta.

And voila! A sprinkle of parmesan and dinner is served!

It tasted great – a little spicy but I really enjoyed it. I’d say next time I would use the Muir Glen tomatoes because they are so wonderful, add a touch more of salt and add a small can of tomato sauce.

The bulgar sort of takes the place of the breadcrumbs and there’s still enough meat to not make them taste funky. It’s a very light dish with lots of flavor.

I hope you enjoy and let me know if you eat whole grains…I’ll continue to share throughout the month of April about my challenge.

Bulgar & Lamb Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• Meatballs:
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup uncooked bulgur
• 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 10 ounce lean ground lamb
• 2 large egg whites
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Sauce:
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• Dill sprigs (optional)

Preparation