Juicy meatballs with potatoes Cretan style

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 750 g minced meat, mixed (beef and pork)
• 2 slices of dry white bread
• 150 g milk, lukewarm
• 4 medium-sized potatoes, waxy
• n. B. Salt
• 1 m.-sized eggs
• 1 m.-large onion(s), brown
• 2 medium-sized garlic cloves, fresh
• 8 tbsp parsley leaves or celery leaves, fresh
• 12 g beef broth, instant
• 1 tsp oregano, fresh or frozen
• 1 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated
• ½ tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 m.-large onion(s), brown
• 600 g tomatoes, fully ripe
• 1 tsp thyme, fresh or dried
• 1 pinch of rosemary, fresh or frozen
• 1 tsp white sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• n. B. Salt and pepper, white to taste
• 100 g white wine, semi-dry
• 150 g feta cheese, shredded
• e.g. extra virgin olive oil for oiling the mold
• e.g. parsley leaves or celery leaves, fresh
• n. B. Sesame, white
• n. B. Grapes, light yellow, sweet, seedless

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour 10 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes

A spicy potato and minced meat casserole with tomato sauce.

Cut the bread into thumbnail-sized pieces and pour lukewarm milk over them. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. Grease a sufficiently large baking dish with olive oil. Wash and peel the potatoes, and slice them into 5 mm thick slices. Lightly salt the slices and arrange them in a single layer in the oiled baking dish. Finely chop the onion and garlic, and roughly chop the parsley leaves. Squeeze the milk out of the bread with a clean tea towel. Knead the bread with the minced meat, egg, onion, garlic, parsley leaves, instant beef broth, and seasoning until smooth. Divide the mixture into 12 equal portions and form into balls. Flatten them slightly, sear them on both sides in olive oil, and place them on top of the potato slices. Wash the tomatoes, remove the stems, peel, quarter, deseed, and cut them crosswise into thirds. Halve the brown onion lengthwise, trim both ends, peel, and cut into small pieces. Heat a medium-sized pan, add the olive oil, and heat until hot. Add the onions and roast until translucent. Add the tomato pieces and white wine and simmer for 5 minutes. Preheat the oven to 170°C (top/bottom heat). Remove the sauce from the heat, let it cool slightly, then place it in a blender with the remaining sauce ingredients, except for the salt and pepper, and blend on the lowest setting for 15 seconds. Season with salt and pepper to taste and pour over the minced meat. Crumble the feta cheese over the sauce. Place in the preheated oven and bake on the middle rack for about 60 minutes. Garnish in the casserole dish and serve warm with white bread. Serve with a full-bodied red wine. Recipe source: Mr. Olympios, Armonia Hotel, Crete.