Asking children to help you in the kitchen encourages them to explore new foods, and fun recipes like this one make dinner time child’s play.

Recipe Callum Hann | Photograph Brendan Homan | Styling Natalie Homan | Little Helper Lily Green

Lamb meatballs on polenta with zucchini and orange salad
serves 4

500g lamb mince
2 tbsp fennel seeds
1 red capsicum, finely sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
¼ bunch of basil, leaves picked
700g jar tomato passata
1½ cups salt reduced chicken stock
½ cup instant polenta
20g parmesan, grated
1 tbsp olive oil, plus 1 tbsp extra
2 zucchini, shaved into ribbons using a peeler
2 cups baby spinach
2 oranges, skin and pith removed, sliced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Using your hands, combine mince and fennel seeds. Shape mince mixture into 3cm meatballs. Add one tablespoon olive oil to a large frying pan. Heat over high heat and then add the meatballs. Cook, turning occasionally, for about two minutes or until browned all over. Remove meatballs from the pan and set aside. 

In the same pan, add capsicum and garlic. Cook until vegetables soften and then stir through tomato passata. Bring to the boil, cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the meatballs back into the sauce and reduce heat to low. Cook for a further 3-5 minutes or until meatballs have just cooked through. Stir through basil leaves.

Bring the chicken stock to the boil over high heat in a small saucepan. Whisk in polenta until well combined. Turn down heat and cook for a further 2-3 minutes, stirring, until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in parmesan. Set aside and keep warm until serving.

Toss zucchini, baby spinach, orange, vinegar and remaining one tablespoon of oil together. Serve meatballs on polenta with zucchini salad.

 

This recipe first appeared in the August 2019 issue of SALIFE magazine.