Meatballs alla Norma

After all the salads, cakes and drinks, it is time to post again a more consistent recipe. So today we have meatballs alla Norma. The last time so I visited my friend Geta, she showed me a couple of recipes that she wanted to cook/ bake. Among them there was this recipe. When I saw the recipe I told her that she is not allowed to cook it because I am going to. And so this dish was cooked last Saturday. Of course, my girlfriends were also invited for dinner. We liked it, and now it is your turn to try out the recipe.

You need:

For the meatballs:	For the polenta:
400 g minced beef	350 g Polenta
1 eggplant	700 ml water
1 x 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes	1 tbsp butter
½ bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley	30 g Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp sesame seeds	½ tsp salt
2 cloves of garlic	:
2 tbsp sweet chili sauce
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
olive oil for frying

How do we proceed?

Dice the eggplant into 1cm cubes, season with salt and leave aside for 15 minutes. Heat some olive oil in a pen over medium heat, than add the eggplant (but first squeeze out the excess salty liquid) and cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Squash in the garlic through a garlic crusher; add the sweet chili sauce and the balsamic vinegar. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, finely chop the parsley. Put into a bowl with the beef and mix together by hand.

Roll the meat into balls. Scatter the sesame seeds on a plate and roll the meatballs in them so they stick nicely. Give into the fridge for 10 Minutes. Brown the meatballs in a separate pan on a medium heat with 1 tbsp oil for until golden all over and cooked through.

 
Add water and salt in a pan and bring to a boil. Pour cornmeal slowly into water, stirring with a whisk. Continue stirring as mixture thickens, 2-3 minutes over medium heat. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. At the end stir in the butter and the grated Parmesan cheese.

Toss the meatballs through the sauce and serve on top of the polenta. Garnish with parsley leaves.