Ground American Lamb Kebabs with Dried Fruit-Mint Quinoa "Couscous"

Courtesy of American Lamb Board 6 Servings • 30 Min. Prep Time • 15 Min. Cook Time

Ingredients
For Lamb:
Add 2 lb. ground American lamb
Add 1/2 c. finely minced onion
Add 6 cloves minced garlic
Add 3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
Add 3 Tbsp. chopped parsley
Add 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
Add 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
Add 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
Add salt and pepper to taste

For Quinoa:
Add 2 c. quinoa
Add 1/3 c. chopped dried apricots (about 6 apricots)
Add 1/3 c. chopped medjool dates (about 3 large dates)
Add 4 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint
Add 3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
Add 2 tsp. freshly grated lemon zest
Add 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Add 1/2 tsp. salt
Add 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. For Lamb: In a large bowl combine lamb, onion, garlic, cilantro,parsley, cumin, coriander and cinnamon and mix until well incorporated.

2. Form into 24 equal-sized oblong patties and thread 2 patties each onto 12 metal or soaked wooden skewers; reserve.

3. For Quinoa; Place quinoa in a 4-qt. saucepan and rinse with cold water three times, changing water each time. After third rinsing, add 3 c. water to the quinoa, bring to a boil and cook quinoa, stirring occasionally, until water is absorbed, 10-12 min. (quinoa should be mostly dry and slightly al dente). Remove from heat, fluff and cover to keep warm.

4. Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Grill skewers until just cooked through 2 min. per side (meat will be pink on the inside). * Remove from heat and rest for 3 min.

5. While meat is resting, toss quinoa with apricots, dates, mint, cilantro, lemon zest and juice and salt and pepper to taste. Serve with skewers.

* Instead of grilling, skewers can also be cooked under the broiler for 3-4 min. until med. rare.

* Recipe and image provided by the American Lamb Board