Meatball and Rice One-Pot #SecretRecipeClub

Time for November's Secret Recipe Club!

This month I received Maxine's blog, Why I Am Not Skinny (isn't that a fantastic name). Maxine is from South Africa and lives in Brussels.  I was excited to check out her blog because she has a wonderful variety of different recipes! A few of the recipes I was eyeing up were the Indian Rice Salad with Chicken, Gorgonzola & Leek Tartlets, Cauliflower & Stilton Soup and Lime & Beer Cake. In addition to all of Maxine's recipes she has a large variety (almost 200) restaurant reviews from Europe and South Africa and, while me may live in different parts of the world, I always enjoy reading reviews from different types restaurants! 

When selecting a recipe I was looking for something  that my little man would like and is weeknight friendly.  I came across Maxine's Meatball and Rice One-Pot and knew it was perfect for my family. I had to adjust the ingredients to reflect the U.S. standard measuring system. I also used a ground pork sausage from our butcher and not links and it allowed me to skip the step of striping off the casings. This meal is lovely and the flavors are delicious. As Maxine noted, the rice absorbed a lot of the liquid. This photo was take the following day and much was absorbed. When we had our initial meal there was a little more liquid in the rice, but it was equally delicious.  I love the flavors or coriander and cumin, but it is not a flavor commonly paired in my area with tomato sauce and meatballs. However, my entire family loved this and Kellen cleaned his plate- anyone with a toddler knows that is a total win! 

Today we watched the Packer game....sigh.... The first half was sooooo disappointing. However, they started to pick it up later in the game, but there wasn't enough time to pick up what the first half lost. Next week it will be better- I know it! My mom also stopped for dinner tonight for spaghetti and play time with Kellen. Today was a wonderfully lazy day and I actually feel like I got a few things accomplished! 

Thank you Maxine for a lovely meal my entire family loved!

Ingredients

1 lb ground pork sausage 

1 Tbl olive oil

1/2 small onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1 1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 cup rice

3 1/2 cup reduced sodium chicken stock

1 1/2 cup crushed tomatoes

Salt and Pepper, to taste

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions

Roll sausage into small sized meatballs. In a medium dutch oven, brown the meatballs until cooked. Remove from the dutch oven and place on a paper towel lined plate.

Add the onion and garlic to the pot and cook over medium-low till onions begin to soften. Add the rice, cumin and coriander. Cook, stirring, for an additional minute. 

Add the stock and crushed tomatoes and stir. Simmer on medium-low for 15-20 minutes; stirring often. 

Add the meatballs, stir and cook for an additional 5 minutes. 

Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Scoop into plates and top with chopped cilantro. 

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