This is an adaptation of another recipe from Georgina Haydne’s cookbook Greekish: Everyday recipes with Greek roots.  It was an opportunity to use my mint patch one more time before the cold weather does it in for the season.  This takes about an hour and will make 6 servings

½ bunch of fresh mint

3 red onions, divided

3 garlic cloves, divided

½ bunch of fresh Italian parsley

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

50 g. breadcrumbs

1 tsp. sweet smoked paprika

½ tsp. dried mint

Zest of 1 lemon

1 lb. ground lamb

3 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. all-purpose flour

2 Tbs. tomato paste

2-15 oz. cans chickpeas

300 ml beef broth

Yogurt for serving

Start by making the meatballs.  Pick the mint leaves from the stems and put half in the bowl of a food processor, reserving the other half for a garnish.  Roughly chop 1 of the onions, and put in the food processor.  Add 2 of the garlic cloves and the Italian parsley.  Pulse until finely chopped.  Add the salt, black pepper, breadcrumbs. Smoked paprika, dried mint and lemon zest.  Pulse a few times to mix.  Add the ground lamb and pulse a few times to mix.  Use a 1-inch scoop to portion the mixture into meatballs on a cookie sheet.  Use your hands to finish shaping the meatballs.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs in 2 batches.  Put the cooked meatballs on a cookie sheet or bowl.  Spoon off any excess oil into a small bowl in case it is needed later.

While the meatballs are cooking, chop the remaining 2 onions and 1 garlic clove.  Add them to the skillet which was used to cook the meatballs.   Cook until the onions are translucent, stirring occasionally and scraping all the browned bits on the bottom of the skillet, about 10 minutes.  Sprinkle in the flour and cook about a minute.  Scrape an empty section in the middle of the skillet and fry the tomato paste for a minute or two.  Mix everything in the skillet together.  Add the 2 cans of chickpeas including their liquid, the beef broth and the cooked meatballs.  Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.  Cook for about 15-20 minutes to blend everything together and to slightly thicken a sauce.  Serve with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkle of the reserved mint leaves.