Serves 5-6 as an appetizer, 3-4 as an entree
 
            In these flavorful little meatballs the slight heat of Serrano gets lifted by the acidic tang of lemon zest and tempered by the herbaceous kick of oregano. Polpettine are small versions of polpettone, Italian meatloaf filled with savory stuffing. Due to their size, polettine cannot be stuffed, but the ground meat is spiked with spices and aromatics.
            These bright and slightly spicy polpettine are the grilled appetizer for a backyard party, but you will also delight guests with these grilled meat treats at an indoor fall or winter cocktail party. Other options are to serve five polpettine together as an entrée or smashed into a meatball sandwich.
            Ground chicken thigh meat will retain more moisture than ground breast meat. While I prefer the delicate flavor of ground chicken with this recipe, ground pork or turkey thigh meat will pair well with the lemon zest, Serrano, and oregano.
            Serve the polettine with fresh Meyer lemon aioli (recipe below). If you don’t like anchovy, you can simply leave out the ¼ teaspoon of anchovy paste.
 
1 pound ground chicken thighs
1 tablespoon lemon zest, finely chopped
1½-2 teaspoons Serrano pepper (or a similar hot pepper), finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
¼ cup red onion, small diced and 1/2 tablespoon olive oil to cook the onion in)
1 egg yolk
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
 
If serving as an appetizer: 18 wooden skewers
 
1. Slowly cook the diced red onion in 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt. When it is cooked through, set aside to cool.
2. Place the oregano, lemon zest, finely chopped Serrano, ground black pepper, salt, and cooled red onion in a stainless steel bowl.
3. Add the pound of ground chicken thigh meat and 1 egg yolk*. Mix the ingredients together so that they are evenly distributed.
4. Use a stainless steel tablespoon to measure out the meat for the balls. Each ball should be roughly one overflowing tablespoon.  
5. Form the balls by hand, and place them on an oiled sheet tray. If they feel too loose, place them in the freezer for 20-30 minutes to set.
6. Rub an oiled rag over the grill grates.
7. Cook the Polpettine for about 7-8 minutes total, rolling them around on the grill so that they cook evenly.
8. When they are just cooked through, remove the polpettine and, if you are serving them as an appetizer, place each on the end of wooden skewer and serve with the aioli of your choice.
 
*If the meat is very moist (the meat varies in moisture), avoid the yolk—it most likely will not be necessary. You can place one polpettine on a pan and place it in the oven to see if it holds together without the egg yolk. If it does hold together, you are good to go, if it does not, then use the yolk.

​Meyer Lemon Aioli
 
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt, to taste
crack of black pepper
Optional, but recommended: ¼ teaspoon anchovy paste
 
1. Place the egg yolk, Meyer lemon juice, minced garlic clove, crack of black pepper, and a pinch of salt in a food processor.
2. Briefly blend the ingredients until they form an emulsion, then slowly drizzle in the extra virgin olive oil with the processor on. Start by adding the oil drop by drop as the processor blade turns. Once 40% of the oil is emulsified, you can speed up the rate at which you add the oil, but don’t go too fast or the mixture will break.
3. When all of the oil is emulsified, check the mixture for salt and acidity. Add salt as necessary. If you need more acidity, just add another splash of the lemon juice.
4. If you are up for it, add the anchovy paste and mix it into the aioli.
5. Serve with the polpettine. You can prepare the sauce a day ahead of time—if you do prepare it ahead of time, store it in the refrigerator and take it out about 40 minutes before serving to bring it up to room temperature.

Wild Salmon, Leek, and Olive Burgers
Serves 4
 
            This recipe accentuates rather than diminishes the delicate buttery flesh of wild king salmon. By pairing the salmon with lightly sautéed leeks, lemon zest, Dijon, and olives’ slight brine, the distinct but mild flavor of the salmon is brought out. While most fish burgers or cakes use breadcrumbs as binding, this ingredient just dilutes the fish’s real flavor and adds no nutritional or culinary value. The key to a complex texture and flavor profile is to process half of the amount of salmon in the recipe with aromatic seasonings and a small amount of almond flour. Medium dice the rest of the salmon and fold it in with the smooth base while adding finely chopped dill, olives, and leeks. This method results in a tender, juicy, and scrumptious burger.
            Each wild salmon, leek, and olive burger contains roughly 30 grams of protein (Oaklander 1). By lightly grilling the patty, you can create a protein-packed meal without the harmful fats created through frying or sautéing. In addition, wild salmon contains a significant amount of the healthy omega-3 fatty acids, as well high levels of selenium, magnesium, and phosphorus (Kerns 1).  
            While I am generally against freezing fish because it does impact the texture, if you have a busy life these burgers can be made ahead of time, frozen, and then defrosted and grilled for an easy weeknight dinner—just be sure to drain the burgers of any excess moisture before grilling.
 
1.5 pounds wild king salmon
1 tablespoon lemon zest, chopped
½ cup almond meal, finely ground
1 tablespoon Kalamata or Castelvetrano olives, rinsed and finely chopped
½ cup leeks, small diced and rinsed
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (2 for the salmon mixture, 1 for sautéing the leeks)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely chopped
1.5 teaspoons salt
 
1. Clean the salmon of any skin, and gently rinse the flesh under cold water. Allow the salmon to dry, and cut half of it, or ¾ pound, into large cubes. Place the cubes in a food processor with the lemon zest, almond meal, salt, two tablespoons of olive oil, and mustard. Process until just smooth.
 
2. Scrape the salmon mixture into a stainless steel bowl and set aside in the refrigerator.
 
3. Prepare the leeks by gently sautéing them in olive oil. Do not allow the leeks to brown—they key is to just cook them through. Once they are cooked, set the leeks aside to cool.
 
4. Slice the remaining salmon into 1/2-inch slices, and then dice the slices so that you have ½ inch diced pieces of salmon.
 
5. Take the salmon mixture out of the refrigerator and add the diced salmon, finely chopped dill and olives, and cooked leeks. Gently fold the ingredients together so that they are evenly mixed.
 
6. Form the salmon burgers. Aim for four burgers and a thickness of 1.5 inches for each burger.
 
8. Place the burgers in the freezer for about 25-30 minutes so that they set and become firm (you don’t want to completely freeze the burgers but just stiffen them).
 
9. Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
 
10. Brush the grill grates with a rag that is damp with olive oil.
 
11. Place the burgers on the grill and allow them to cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Do not over cook the burgers—you still want a little pinkness in the center—aim for medium doneness.
 
12. Pull the burgers from the grill and immediately serve with a generous dollop of fresh Lemon-Basil Aioli (the aioli recipe is at the end of this recipe: http://www.gabriellemyers.com/gluten-and-dairy-free-recipe-blog/-cornmeal-crusted-black-bean-zucchini-cakes-with-lemon-basil-aioli), Romesco sauce (see the second picture—recipe to come in summer 2020!), or Parsley and Olive Sauce (http://www.gabriellemyers.com/parsley-and-olive-sauce.html).
 
                                                    Works Cited
 
Kerns, Michelle. "The Health Benefits of Alaskan Salmon." SF Gate n.d.: 1. Web. 5 Jan. 2016.
Oaklander, Mandy. "Should I Eat Salmon?" Time (2015): 1. Ebscohost. Web. 5 Jan. 2016.