baby porcupines

No, not that kind of baby porcupine. The kind you eat. Although I suppose you could eat this kind, but that would be sad. And gross.

Baby porcupines are meatballs rolled in uncooked rice and simmered in tomato soup. That cooks the rice, and the juices of the meat seep out and make tomato gravy. I am not a huge rice and gravy fan; I'll eat it if you put it in front of me, but I don't get the general Cajun obsession with it. Meh. But tomato gravy, I have to admit, is pretty yummy.

Mix 1 lb. of ground beef with half a finely chopped onion, a cup of bread crumbs, a beaten egg, and salt and pepper to taste. (The soup has salt in it, so go easy on the salt you add to the meatballs.) Make them into generously sized meatballs and flatten slightly. Roll in raw rice.

Bring a can of tomato soup and 2 cups of boiling water to a simmer in a Dutch oven, then put in the meatballs. The soup should just cover them, if it doesn't add more boiling water. Cover and simmer for about an hour.

And that's it! Very easy, very tasty, just add something green to your plate and you have a well-balanced simple meal. I made this for my grandmother last Sunday. Her brother used to make them when they were kids; judging by how quiet she was while she was eating, I think she enjoyed it.

You could probably use ground turkey if you'd rather.