Four countries, four dishes, four smiles...

Swedish meatballs with homemade flatbreads and roasted aubergine

INGREDIENTS

• Meatballs
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 slices bread, crusts off and soaked in ¼ cup milk
• 500 g minced beef
• 500 g minced pork
• ¼ cup parsley, chopped
• ½ tsp allspice powder
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 Tbsp butter, for frying
• 1 Tbsp olive oil, for frying
• Sauce
• 3 Tbsp olive oil or butter
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 2 cups beef stock
• ⅔ cup sour cream
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp mustard
• 1-2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Aubergines
• 2 aubergines, cut into 1cm thick slices or 9 baby aubergines, halved
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper
• Flatbreads
• 500 g self-raising flour and extra for rolling
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 500 g full fat yoghurt
• 1 Tbsp chopped fresh herbs like thyme or parsley
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• To Serve
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• ½ red onion, finely sliced
• Salt and pepper
• Drizzle of olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

1

To make the meatballs, cook the onions in 2 Tbsp butter for about 10 minutes or until soft and starting to go a little caramel in colour. Spoon onto a plate and leave to cool. Mash the soaked bread lightly with a fork (do not overbeat it). Mix the cooled onion and bread sauce with the rest of the meatball ingredients.

2

You can test to see if the seasoning in the meatballs is correct by microwaving or frying a teaspoonful of the mixture. Now roll ping pong ball-sized balls with the mix (you should get about 30 out). Leave to rest until the other elements are ready. To cook, heat the butter and oil in a large pan and cook the meatballs for about 5 minutes on a side or until brown all over. Set aside.

3

To make the sauce, give the pan a quick wipe with a paper towel and then add the oil or butter to the pan, along with the flour. Stir until it resembles a paste. Whisk in the stock and then keep whisking until thicker. Add the cream, sauce, mustard, and thyme and season well.

4

To make the flatbreads, mix all the ingredients together well. The dough should be hard enough to roll out but not too hard. If the dough is too hard, add extra yoghurt (or if it is too soft, add extra flour – 1 Tbsp at a time).

5

Knead for 5 minutes, then break into 12 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece out into an oblong shape that is about 5mm thick. You can either cook the flatbread in a dry non-stick pan or cook them over medium coals for about 4 minutes on a side or until a little charred and brown. Set aside until ready to serve.

6

To make the aubergine, season well with salt and pepper and toss with olive oil. Either cook them for about 4 minutes on a side on a griddle pan and then roast them for 20 minutes at 180oC in the oven or cook them over medium coals for about 8 minutes on a side – turning and checking them constantly until tender.

7

Toss the salad ingredients together and serve the flatbreads piled high with meatballs, sauce, aubergine, and salad.

---

Lebanese spice pumpkin

INGREDIENTS 

• 1 kg kent pumpkin 
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp sea salt flakes
• ½ tsp freshly ground pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp cumin 
• 1 tsp cardamom 

To serve

• ½ cup greek-style yoghurt
• ¼ tsp sumac 

METHOD

PREHEAT the oven to 200°C. Line a large oven tray with baking paper. 

WASH the pumpkin and pat dry with a paper towel. 

CUT unpeeled pumpkin into 5cm thick wedges and place into a bowl. Add the oil, salt, pepper and spices and rub seasoning onto each wedge. 

TRANSFER pumpkin to the tray, standing wedges upright. Roast for 50 minutes or until tender. 

SERVE roast pumpkin topped with yoghurt and dust with sumac.

FOOD TEAM TIP: The seeds are edible after roasting. However, if you prefer to remove them first, scoop out with a spoon.

FEATURE IMAGE: AREMEDIA

---

Mexican green rice

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 spring onions, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 green chili, finely chopped
• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 1 ½ cups vegetable stock
• ¼ cup chopped coriander
• ¼ cup chopped baby spinach

INSTRUCTIONS

1

Heat oil in a pot over a medium heat. Add the spring onion, garlic and chili and cook until fragrant. Stir in rice and vegetable stock and bring to the boil.

2

Reduce the heat to low and cook , covered for 15 minutes.

3

Stir in coriander and spinach.

FEATURE IMAGE: ARE MEDIA

---

Indian tomato rice

INGREDIENTS

• 30 g butter
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 ½ cups Basmati rice
• 200 g canned tomatoes
• 2 cups water

INSTRUCTIONS

1

Heat butter in a pot over medium heat. Cook the mustard seeds, ginger ,garlic and spices together for 3 minutes until fragrant.

2

Stir in basmati rice, canned tomatoes and water and bring to the boil.

3

Reduce the heat to low and cook, covered for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving.

FEATURE IMAGE: AREMEDIA