Meatballs with dried tomato cream, olives and capers

I just finished reading a book recommendation in which the author says that you learn to cook to love, to give pleasure, to please. Without love there is no cooking, only survival. And these meatballs with cream of dried tomatoes, olives and capers are made with a lot of love in the Le Creuset cocotte. An ideal, durable casserole dish that will last a lifetime. Perfect for making lollipop recipes like this one.

Very simple to make, this recipe is one to show off. You will definitely need bread. You will need bread to mop up the plate with the remains of the cream of dried tomatoes, capers and olives. This is an Italian-inspired recipe with very interesting and intense flavours but without excess. If you wish, you can accompany these meatballs with a little long basmati rice and even some baked potatoes would go well.

With the Le Creuset Cocotte I was able to prepare the entire recipe from start to finish; the advantage of cocottes is that they are so pretty that you can serve them directly on the table. I used it together with Revol porcelain plates. The perfect table.

Revol plates from the No.W collection

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

• 250g minced beef
• 250g minced pork
• 1 large egg
• 90 gr of bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs with garlic and parsley
• 100 ml of milk (can be vegetable, I used oatmeal)
• 50 g grated parmesan
• salt and pepper
• Breadcrumbs for molding

For the cream:

• 200ml white wine
• 200ml of water
• 6 sun-dried tomatoes in oil
• 2 tablespoons of pitted black Aragon olives
• 1 tablespoon of seasoned green olives
• 1 tablespoon of capers
• 1 large lemon (juice and grated peel to serve)
• 1/2 clove of garlic
• fresh basil a bunch of about 20 gr.
• extra virgin olive oil

To serve:

• Chopped fresh basil, black olives and plenty of grated lemon peel

Preparation

1. To prepare the cream: In a food processor or blender, place the well-drained pitted olives, the well-drained sun-dried tomatoes, the rinsed capers, the fresh basil and 1/2 clove of garlic.
2. Blend for a few seconds until you get the consistency of a thick cream. Set aside.
3. For the meatballs: In a bowl, soften the bread with the milk, squeeze it well with your hands to crumble it. Transfer it to a bowl together with the minced meat, the whole egg (without the shell), the parmesan cheese, a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper, and mix the mixture with your hands.
4. Finish adding two tablespoons of breadcrumbs to the meatball mixture. Form 25g balls with the mixture and coat them in breadcrumbs (you can use meatball and croquette tongs to help you).
5. To prepare the stew: Heat a dash of extra virgin olive oil in the Creuset cocotte and lightly brown the meatballs. It is not necessary to cook them inside. Add the white wine and lemon juice and allow to evaporate for 2 minutes.
6. Add the water. Dilute the tomato cream in a few drops of water and add it as well. Cover the pan and let it cook for 10 minutes on low heat. Uncover the pan and let it reduce for 5 more minutes until the sauce has reduced a little.
7. Finally, serve with some black olives, some capers, plenty of grated lemon peel (it's the special touch), and a little chopped fresh basil.

Le Creuset cocotte and Revol plates from the No.W collection