Rosemary skewered lamb koftas

My oh-so-creative-and-overly-loaded-with-rosemary Mams brought round some huge stalks of rosemary that she had dried to use as skewers on the barbie. The smell instantly filled the kitchen and I was excited. Lamb was the first thought and in her infinite wisdom, Mams suggested lamb mince may be cheaper and koftas could be the go.

Good ol Pak n Save had lamb mince on special so koftas it was. While being a kofta virgin, I had seen enough Masterchef and My Kitchen Rules episodes where the kofta is done to death to know what to basically put in them. Plus being someone who uses recipes more as a guide than a bible, I figured I could wing it (the tricky thing about mince mixtures is you can't taste as you add or season without frying a bit off and trying it so it really is a bit of a guessing game).

The first thing I did was strip most of the rosemary leaves from the stalks (leaving a few at the top - mainly for aesthetics). While I prepared the kofta mixture, I soaked the stalks in cold water so they wouldn't burn on the BBQ. I found a vase which was the perfect height so soaked them in that.

For the kofta mixture I used:

• About 350g lamb mince
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped (parsley is one herb I am not growing so very stubbornly had to buy a bunch from the supermarket - it was a tad limp and sad but did the trick)

Now there are many variations to koftas - some add breadcrumbs, some onion, some egg. I really don't think they need onion or breadcrumbs - was dreading them turning out more like rissoles (can't write that without smiling thinking about The Castle). And all the ingredients bound well enough together without needing egg.

There is only one way to mix stuff into mince - your hands. Once thoroughly mixed, place a patty type disc in your hand and then shape around the skewer. Should make about four skewers with two koftas on each - perfect for two people. Brush a little bit of oil on them to stop them sticking to the barbie.

Elliot then stepped in and BBQed them to absolute perfection along with a Marconi pepper (just cos it needed using).

I was ill-prepared for the rest of this meal so just teamed it with a salad, the charred pepper, hummus and a wrap on the side (pita would probably have been better - but you've gotta make do) and a raita type sauce thing except had no plain yoghurt so mixed lite sour cream with lemon juice, grated cucumber, chives and salt and pepper.

The lamb was sensational. The smell of rosemary on the BBQ was divine and all in all a recipe I will definitely make again!

Oh and if you haven't seen The Castle - make it happen. You will never hear the word rissoles again without smiling.