I like to think that meatballs are an all-four-seasons kind of food. While, in their most traditional form - served with spaghetti and covered in marina sauce - they speak of cold winter nights, that’s just one of the options on the table.
These chicken meatballs, for instance, were made with warm spring days in mind. It helps that they feature enough wild garlic leaves to dye them a very pale shade of green (though note that you can always use spring onions if wild garlic is hard to find in your neck of the woods). Lemon makes them bright, and ricotta is both a useful binding agent and a way of keeping them light and tender. Even though they’re oven-baked rather than cooked on the hob, they remain ridiculously juicy.
They’re also highly versatile. You could have these meatballs on their own as a side dish, or atop a springy pasta. But in this case, craving lightness and crunch, I decided to serve them as part of a bowl, complete with a base of whipped labneh and feta, flavoured with olive oil and a generous handful of spring herbs.
To go with, I added a crunchy, seasons-bridging salad, featuring a mix of radicchio, fennel and little gem lettuce, plus even more wild garlic, that’s lightly dressed with lemon-macerated shallots and a touch of sesame oil to add nuttiness. The result is just so satisfying, and fitting for this time of year - I know I’ll be making it for many more spring meals to come.
I like this dish even more when paired with a bottle of Cantina Ortaccio Bianco 2021. This copper-coloured wine, made with Procanico Grechetto, Trebbiano and Malvasia grapes, has presence. Delightfully bright and funky, with a cider-like note and concentrated apricot character, it’s a perfect match for the chicken and labneh, with enough structure to stand up against the dish’s richness.
So, yes, there’s certainly more than one way to do meatballs (and wine). This spring, that means skipping the red-sauce and Chianti, and trying something a little different - and a little more vibrant - instead.
Lemon-Ricotta Chicken Meatballs with Herb Labneh and a Spring Salad
Herb labneh adapted from David Lebovitz
Makes approximately 16 meatballs/Serves 4
For the chicken meatballs:
500g chicken mince
125g ricotta (excess liquid drained off)
1 egg, beaten
35g panko breadcrumbs
20g wild garlic (or use spring onions)
3 échalion (banana) shallots
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional for greasing
Zest and juice of ½ lemon
1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the herb labneh:
400g labneh 200g feta, finely crumbled
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
20g mint 20g coriander
20g wild garlic (or use spring onions)
Zest and juice of ½ lemon
Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon, to taste
For the spring salad:
1-2 échalion (banana) shallots
Juice of 2 lemons
2 heads little gem lettuce
2 heads chicory
1 bulb fennel
20g flat-leaf parsley
20g wild garlic (or use spring onions)
3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1-2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1. First, prep the meatballs. Add the chicken, ricotta, egg, and breadcrumbs to a medium bowl, and mix well. In a food processor, add the wild garlic, shallots, and olive oil, and blitz until they form a rough paste. Add to the chicken, alongside the lemon zest and juice, salt, and pepper. Stir well, until completely combined.
2. Line a large baking tray with parchment paper. Make rough meatballs: Measure out roughly 50g balls, and give each a quick roll with your hands, just until they roughly cohere, before placing on the tray. The mixture will be very sticky at this stage, so you don’t want to overwork it.
3. Transfer the meatballs to the fridge and leave to firm up for 20–30 minutes. Meanwhile, prep the herb labneh. Add the labneh, feta, and 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large bowl; whisk well to combine (or use a stand-mixer or electric whisk).
4. To a food processor, add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil, as well as the mint, coriander, and wild garlic. Blend until finely chopped and uniform. Add to the labneh mix, alongside the lemon zest and juice. Whisk very well, until airy and well-combined. Taste, and add flaky sea salt if needed. Set aside.
5. Once the meatballs have chilled, remove from the fridge. Preheat the oven to 220°C. Line a second large baking tray with parchment paper, and add a tablespoon or two of oil to grease, spreading to ensure it’s well-covered. Wet your hands with cold water - you might find having a small bowl nearby is handy - take a meatball, and roll between your hands, until it is an even, slightly compacted sphere. Transfer to the prepared baking tray, and roll gently to ensure it's lightly coated in oil.
6. Repeat with the remaining meatballs, arranging them roughly 1 inch apart. Once preheated, transfer the meatballs to the oven. Bake for 10 minutes; remove the tray from the oven and, using tongs, flip the meatballs. Bake for 10 minutes more, or until they’re lightly browned and fully cooked (they should register an internal temperature of 74°C on a probe thermometer).
7. While the meatballs cook, prepare the salad. Cut the tops and bottoms off the shallots, and remove the peel. Slice into very thin rings with a sharp knife. Transfer to a small bowl. Squeeze over the juice of 2 lemons, and set aside.
8. Next, stem the lettuce and the chicory, and separate into individual leaves, discarding any browned or bruised leaves. Then, remove the stem and stalks from the fennel, and any browned outer layers. Using a sharp knife or a mandolin, slice into very thin layers. Roughly chop the parsley and wild garlic.
9. In a large mixing bowl, add the prepared lettuce, chicory, fennel, and herbs, and toss to combine. Add the shallots and the lemon juice. Next, drizzle over both oils, and season generously with salt and pepper. Using your hands, gently toss until well-mixed, and all the leaves are evenly coated and seasoned.
10. To plate, divide the herb labneh between large pasta bowls; use the back of a spoon to swirl it into an even layer. Divide the salad between servings, mounding on one side of the plate. Finally, divide the meatballs between the bowls, nestling into the labneh. Serve right away.
Claire M Bullen is a professional food and travel writer and all-around lover of tasty things. You can follow her at @clairembullen. For more recipes like this, sign up to our Natural Wine Killers wine subscription - you'll receive Claire's recipe and food pairings plus expert tasting notes for three amazing wines like this one every month (or two, if you choose our bi-monthly option).
