Lamb meatball soup

Put the chickpeas in a saucepan with enough water to cover, bring to the boil then reduce the heat to low and cook for 1 hour or until very tender. Drain well.

Meanwhile for the köfte, rinse the burghul, then drain well in a fine sieve, using your hands to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.

Combine in a food processor with the remaining ingredients, season to taste, then process until the mixture is smooth and elastic.

Alternatively, you can knead the mixture by hand until it is elastic and still a bit sticky.

Take scant teaspoonfuls of the mixture and roll into balls. Place on a baking paper-lined tray and refrigerate until ready to use.

Trim the silverbeet, reserving about half the stems. Finely chop the reserved stems.

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the stems, onion and garlic, then cook, stirring, for 6-7 minutes until softened.

Add the tomato and pepper pastes, oregano and bayleaf then cook, stirring, for another minute.

Add the brown lentils and chicken stock, then bring to the boil.

Reduce the heat to medium-low, then simmer for 50 minutes or until lentils are tender.

Add the chickpeas and silverbeet, and bring back to a simmer, adding a little more stock or water if necessary.

Gently stir in the köfte, then simmer for about 8 minutes or until the lamb is cooked through.

Taste, then season the soup with salt and pepper. Serve with dried chilli flakes and lemon wedges, for squeezing over.