Thinking Spring; lemony Baked Greek Chicken Meatballs

After a long, horrid, blustery winter, I am SOOOOOO ready for anything spring-like! Lemon to the rescue; these light, flavorful meatballs were just the thing to pick me (and my girlfriends) up! The Tzatziki sauce was an awesome accompaniment! Zesty! I served the meatballs with a super simple 5-layer Greek dip (see 5/10/13 post for recipe) with warm Naan bread and some red raspberry brownie bites (brownie mix in mini muffin tins topped with fresh raspberries - oh yeah!). Welcome, spring!

Baked Greek Chicken Meatballs with Tzatziki 

(I found the recipe on Pinterest, of course, but forgot to note the source - sorry!)

1 pound ground chicken

1/2 onion, diced small

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

zest of one lemon

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 egg

1/2 cup breadcrumbs (I used panko). 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place ground chicken in a large bowl and add the onion, garlic, oregano, lemon zest and salt and pepper.  Add the egg and breadcrumbs and mix with hands until just combined.  Lightly oil a baking sheet with olive oil.  Form meatball in large portions and place onto the baking sheet.  Bake for 12 minutes, flip them over, and bake for another 12 minutes, or until they are no longer pink inside. 

Serve with Tzatziki sauce:

1 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced very small

2 Tablespoons dried dill 

juice of 1/2 of a lemon

1 small clove of garlic, minced

salt and pepper, to taste

Combine yogurt, cucumber, dill, lemon juice and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste.