Total Challenge Part 2: Minted Lamb Kofta Wraps with Tzatziki

So after the success of the banana cake, I wanted to come up with an idea for using the Greek yoghurt in a savoury dish. One of my favourite dips, the traditional Greek mezze tzatziki, was an obvious choice.

The garlicky, herby, fresh cucumber yoghurt is a perfect accompaniment to meat and bread so I made these lovely little lamb koftas (meatballs) flavoured with plenty of mint and cumin, rolled them up in a flour wrap with a pile of fresh salad leaves, red onion, fresh coriander and topped it with a generous helping of the gorgeous tzatziki. It was bursting with flavour, so tasty!

It makes a great lunch or a nice light dinner. So healthy that I didn't feel at all guilty when afterwards I proceeded to polish off a few banana and chocolate muffins which I made with all the leftover ingredients from the cake last week (must post the recipe soon - they were absolutely divine!).

RECIPE (makes 4 wraps)

For the Tzatziki
½ Cucumber
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
200g Greek Yoghurt
1 clove of garlic, crushed
A small handful of Fresh Dill, finely chopped
2 tsps Fresh Lemon Juice
2 tsps Olive Oil

Peel, deseed and finely chop the cucumber. Squeeze the cucumber pieces to get rid of excess water and place it in a sieve over a bowl. Sprinkle over the salt and red wine vinegar and mix. Leave it to stand for 30 minutes.

Place the cucumber in a bowl and add the yoghurt, garlic, dill, lemon juice and olive oil. Taste and add a little more garlic, dill or lemon juice if desired.

For the Koftas
500g Lamb Mince
1 large clove of Garlic, peeled and crushed or finely chopped
1 tsp runny Honey
1 generous handful of Fresh Mint, finely chopped
1 tsp Ground Cumin
1 tsp Ground Coriander
Freshly ground Black Pepper and Salt

Place the mince in a bowl and add the garlic, honey, mint, ground cumin and coriander. Season generously with the pepper and salt. Kneed the mixture with your hands until it is well combined.

Take small handfuls of the mixture and form them into balls then flatten them to make little round or oval shaped patties. You should be able to make about 6-8 koftas. Place under a hot grill (or on a grill pan) and cook for a few minutes on each side until nicely browned.

For Making the Wraps
4 Flour Wraps
4 Large handfuls of Mixed Salad Leaves
A small Handful of Fresh Coriander Leaves
½ Red Onion, peeled and thinly sliced
½ Red Pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped

Lay the wraps flat on a plate and place your salad leaves in a vertical line down the centre third of the wrap leaving a little gap at the bottom. Scatter over the coriander, red onion and pepper. Place 2-3 koftas, either torn in half or left whole, on top of the salad and top with a generous portion of tzatziki.

Turn up the uncovered part at the bottom of the wrap and then fold over one side of the wrap followed by the other. You may want to wrap a paper napkin round the bottom to hold it in place.