Meatballs with chickpea mash

Ingredients for meatballs:

• 500g lean pork and beef mince
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, finely grated
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 egg
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil

Ingredients for tomatoes sauce:

• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 100ml red wine
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 200ml water

Directions meatballs:

• Put the meat in a large bowl , add the garlic, onion, carrot, egg, oregano, salt and pepper
• Mix and shape the mixture into small balls
• Add the oil to a pan and fry the meatballs over medium heat for 10 minutes turning them around until they become slightly brown, remove from the pan to a plate
• For the tomatoes sauce, add the 2 tbsp of oil to a pan and fry the onion for 4 min, and the garlic and fry for 1 min.  Add the tomatoes, red wine and water and cook for 5 min
• Add the meatballs to the sauce and bring to simmer, cover and cook for 20-30 min stirring from time to time until the sauce becomes thick

Ingredients chickpea mash:

• 400g canned chickpeas
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 tbsp skimmed milk
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 tbsp fresh coriander
• Salt and pepper

Directions chickpea mash:

• Add the oil to a pan and fry the garlic for 2 min, add the chickpeas and milk, cook for a few minutes
• Transfer to a food processor, add coriander and blend until smooth
• Season and serve

Calories: 380

Serves: 4

Time: 55 minutes

Health benefits: Chickpeas are a good source of protein for vegetarians, can help lower the cholesterol, stabilize blood sugar, boost metabolism, for women can lower the risk of breast cancer etc.