I love Greek food and while I’m not of Greek decent, I do pretty well fixing Greek food at home. I just love the idea of a share platter of mezes, little bites, that my guests can share before dinner.

One of my favorite Greek mezes is Greek meatballs/sausages, keftedes in Greek. Some folks make them round like a meatball, I prefer to make them a little oblong in shape for more grilling surface – the shape is up to you!

There are many variations, some of the meatballs get coated in flour and fried, some get baked but my top way of making keftedes is to grill them. I like the charred outside and the moist, juicy inside when made this way.

These Greek sausages can be made with a combination of lamb and beef, but I like the all-lamb version. These keftedes are great served with tzatziki sauce, a cucumber/yogurt sauce and pita bread.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground lamb
• ½ of a medium onion chopped or grated (I like a chunkier texture)
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• ¼ cup chopped fresh mint
• Zest of a lemon
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• ½ tsp. each salt and fresh ground pepper
• Tzatziki sauce (optional but essential)

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients (except Tzatziki sauce) until just combined – overmixing will cause the meatballs/sausages to be dense. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes to make it easier to form the meat into your preferred shape.
2. Form about a tablespoon of the meat into balls or sausages. I like to NOT use breadcrumbs when possible to keep the sausages light and fluffy, but if your mixture is too loose, add 2 teaspoons of breadcrumbs. Refrigerate for 30 – 60 minutes.
3. Oil your grill and preheat on medium-high heat.
4. Cook the sausages directly on the grill, about 4 minutes on each side.
5. Serve hot or warm with Tzatziki sauce, if using.

Makes 15-20 sausages.