Hungry with a Chance of Meatballs

One entire week ago, Deb over at Smitten Kitchen posted her recipe for scallion meatballs with a soy-ginger glaze.  For one entire week since I have been thinking about it.  I thought about it while packing to return to London.  I thought about it while waiting in the airport.  I thought about it while eating "chicken" on the airplane.  I thought about it when my entertainment console went kaput and I couldn't fall asleep during the flight.  And as I downed a pick-me-up coffee and parfait after landing, I was wondering how many hours still lay between me and dinner.  My sole objective for this day (aside from making it back to the flat in one piece and with all my luggage) was to make, and consume with relish, those meatballs.

Pre-assembly.

Post-assembly, ready to fry.

I write from the other side of dinner and can report that the meatballs were everything I'd hoped for, and the perfect lean-yet-savory dinner with which to kick off my final few months here in London.  The title suggests that the scallions are the star, but I really loved the surprise bursts of cilantro in every few bites.

I'm not sure if I can really call these meatballs because they didn't exactly hold their round shape...but I guess the main point is flavor.  I might try my friend Jacqueline's technique of broiling meatballs next time to see how the results differ.

I took Deb's recommendation to reduce the glaze even longer than the recipe instructs; I found that it took about 40 minutes to reach a consistency I was happy with.  While I liked the sauce, I found myself wanting something a little acidic/citrusy to counter its sweetness.  I squeezed some lime juice over the whole dish, and it made me happy.

I'll definitely make these again -- It would be handy to have a bunch in the freezer, ready to go on a weeknight!  They'd also make great party finger-foods. 

Grab a toothpick and dig in!