Turkey Kofta

During our 2011 trip to Turkey, we fell in love with the gorgeous landscape, the history of the people, and we loved wondering through the marketplaces looking at all the wares for sales by the vendors and the spices for sale, (some never heard of in the United States, others very expensive at home, but inexpensive in Turkey).  We were fortunate to share a traditional meal with a family during our trip, to "The City of Cherries", and we will never forget the experience.  Every once in a while when I long to return to the Mediterranean area, I compensate by preparing a dish from the region.  Today, I share with you my version of Koftas, made with ground turkey.

You will need:
1 cup finely grated fresh bread crumbs
1 pound lean ground turkey
1/2 teas salt
1/2 teas pepper
1 teas cumin
1/2 teas allspice
1 teas chopped fresh mint
2 cloves garlic
2 Tabs fresh parsley
1 egg
1 Tabs olive oil

For the 1 cup of bread crumbs, just take approximately 2 slices of bread and grind them in a food processor until they are finely ground, (approximately 10 - 20 seconds).

Next add your ground turkey.

You could also use lamb, (a more traditional meat), or ground beef.

Pulse until well blended.

Rough chop the garlic and parsley.

 Add the egg, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper, cumin, allspice, and mint.

 Process until a fine texture.

It will look very much like a meatloaf mixture.

 Form into a small palm size loaf, (not to thick).

You will get 6 to 8 loafs.  Place them on a baking sheet.  I then refrigerator mine for at least 30 minutes to set up the meat mixture, (but you can cook them immediately if you want).

In a heavy bottom pan, (I like to use a cast iron pan), heat the olive oil. and cook the kofta until golden brown and cooked thoroughly.

 They will look nice and brown on the outside.  And they are ready to serve.

I am serving mine with stuffed grape leaves, hummus,homemade pita bread, a quick tahini sauce, (1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt, 2 Tabs tahini, 1 teas lemon juice, a dash of red pepper, 1 minced clove of garlic - whisked together until blended and chilled).  Mixed olives with feta cheese, a tossed green salad with a Greek dressing, and as is traditional, a bowl of iced cherries for dessert.

Give these a try.

Enjoy!