Resham Lamb Kebabs

When my husband and I were dating, one of our favorite spots was a Pakistani restaurant converted from an old, dilapidated diner in West Philly called Kabobeesh. I know… We’re weird. Perhaps it was something about the flickering florescent lights, the uneven tables, and ripped booth cushions, the giant TV in the corner playing melodramatic Bollywood soaps in Hindi (talk about romance), or perhaps it was just the AMAZING kebabs and curry!

Seven years and one kid later, we don’t often get out to West Philly and Kabobeesh anymore. Partly because it takes an extraordinary amount of effort dealing with Philly traffic (we’re in the burbs), and partly because the kid isn’t as big a fan of spicy food as his parents are. Since our dating days, the restaurant has had a facelift, so that’s pretty awesome, but alas, the hassle of taking a trip downtown with a preschooler for dinner is too much. That said, we’ve created our own Kabobeesh fun. Our favorite dish was always Resham Lamb Kebabs, so after some experimentation, and after toning the sweat- and runny nose-inducing heat down a bit, we came up with our own version that’s agreeable to the entire family. After all, kids love eating food off of sticks!

Resham Lamb Kebabs

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes                   Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

Lamb Kebabs:

• 1 lb ground lamb
• 1/2 C finely chopped yellow onion
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped mint
• 1 large clove of garlic minced (or 2 small)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp coriander
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil for the pan
• 10 wooden skewers

Cucumber Sauce:

• 1 6 oz container of plain non-fat Greek yogurt (I prefer Fage for this recipe)
• 3/4 C diced cucumbers
• 1/8 tsp salt

Directions

1. On the morning you are planning on making your kebabs, place your wooden skewers in a ziplock bag with water. You’ll need 8 skewers for this recipe, but I threw in 10 in case one or two broke or became splintery. Put your skewers in a safe place, which would be out of the reach of grabby little fingers that will pop the bag.

2. Preheat  your oven to 425ºF. Finely chop your onion, parsley and mint. Mince your garlic.

3. Combine the ground lamb meat, honey, onion, and your herbs and spices in a bowl until the mixture is evenly combined. Don’t over mix.

4. Place your skewers and 1/2 Tbsp of olive oil on an old cookie sheet and evenly coat the pan and skewers. Don’t forget this step, otherwise your Resham Lamb  will stick to it’s skewers (I’ve made said mistake)!

5. Divide the meat by 8ths, form it around the skewers, and place the kebabs on your cookie sheet.

6. Roast at 425º F for about 15 minutes until they are browned and cooked through.

7. While the Kebabs are cooking, combine the cucumber sauce ingredients in an immersion blender cup or a small bowl. If you don’t have an immersion blender you can use a food processor or a blender.

8. Blend until the sauce becomes smooth.

Once your Kebabs have finished cooking, serve them with your cucumber yogurt sauce. This is a great appetizer for a party, or it can be eaten as a meal served with my Sweet Coconut Cauliflower Rice.