Parsnip Kefta

This is a root vegetable and herb filled dish that was inspired one evening after having some Moroccan food. I love eating Kefta because it's a flavorful way to eat meat with the added benefit of chlorophyll herbs. The main difference between this version and more traditional version is that I added carrots and parsnip to give the dish more vitamins and mineral. I eat these meat patties with a yogurt sauce wrapped in lettuce leaf. The lettuce leaves reminds me of the way that we typically eat nem nuong except yogurt instead of nuoc mam.

Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 onion, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, grated
1 parsnip, grated
2 cup loose parsley leaves
2 cup loose cilantro leaves
1 cup loose mint leaves
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne peppers
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to high heat at 550C.
2.Coarsely chop the onion, garlic, and herbs leaves. Grate the carrots and parsnip.
3. In a food processor, blend the ground beef to get a smoother texture.
4. Start adding the rest of the ingredients in the food processor until you get a smooth paste.
5. Transfer the meat mixture to a bowl. Add cumin, paprika, caynenne peppers, salt, and black pepper to the meat and mix.
6. Using metal skewer, wrap the meat around the skewer.
7. Place the skewer in the oven and cook for 20 minutes.
8. Remove and let the meat skewer rest for 5 minutes.
9. Serve. I make my yogurt sauce with 1 cup greek yogurt, 3 Tbs minced onion, 1 garlic clove minced, 2 Tbs lemon juice and a pinch of salt.