Baked Cranberry Turkey Meatballs with Lemon Yogurt Sauce

Easy to throw together, these flavorful and moist meatballs make a great weekday supper and they are low cal. Served with a dollop of lemony yogurt with a salad and some pita bread, dinner is ready in 30 minutes. To serve as a party appetizer, make the meatballs smaller and reduce baking time.

CRANBERRY TURKEY MEATBALLS makes 16

1 lb lean ground turkey meat
1/4 c finely diced onion
1 clove of garlic, finely minced
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 c whole wheat bread crumbs
1 t ground cumin
1 t ground coriander
2 T dried cranberries
2 T fresh mint leaves, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375F. Combine all ingredients and form into 16 heaping tablespoon-sized meatballs. Bake on a parchment lined sheet for 20 minutes. Then broil for 5 minutes more to brown.

LEMONY YOGURT SAUCE

1/2 c non fat Greek yogurt
1/2 c grated cucumber, drained
Juice of half a lemon
2 pinches of ground cumin
2 T fresh mint leaves, chopped

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and serve a dollop over the meatballs.  Makes 4 servings.

Lemon-Ginger Scones

With every season of Downton Abbey, I’d try a different scone recipe.   Set in the Roaring Twenties, season 5 featured fabulous costumes. I thought a sassy scone recipe would suit this era.

I whipped up a batch of scrumptious lemon-ginger scones that I think even the exacting Dowager Countess of Grantham would enjoy. If you are a lover of ginger you will adore these scones which are bursting with big chunks of crystalized ginger.   The scones offer tantalizing bits of spice in every bite, just like the spicy drama of every episode.  The recipe is adapted from Nancy Silverton’s Pastries from La Brea Bakery.  Did you know you can catch up on past episodes of Downton Abbey directly on the PBS site?  Click on the “watch online” tab.

Pink Grapefruit-Champagne Sorbet and other Uses for Leftover Champagne

Got leftover champagne?  Don’t throw it out!  It can be transformed into a refreshing sorbet.    I have served this sorbet as a palate cleanser in between courses at dinner parties.  Guests are always surprised by the bright flavors and love it.  It could also be served as dessert.  Because of the alcohol content, the sorbet will never freeze solidly and is best consumed right after serving.   If made without an ice cream machine,  It has more the texture of a granita, which I happen to like.   You can substitute  any type of sparkling alcohol in the recipe and even a bubbly that has lost its fizz is fine.  Of course if you don’t have any leftover champagne, you can always pop open a new bottle and sip a glass while you wait for the sorbet to freeze!