Nerf Kebabs with Nerfsteak Seasoning

William earned a reward for his work doing summer chores and he got to pick his own meal for me to make. One part of the meal were these Nerf Kebabs, which actually turned out pretty darn cute! I am documenting the recipe here so we can do it again sometime if we want to.

Nerfsteak Seasoning

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbl paprika
• 1 Tbl salt
• 1 Tbl brown sugar
• 1 Tbl ground cumin
• 1 Tbl granulated garlic
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1 tsp. dried savory, crush or thyme

Directions:

Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Nerf Kebabs

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 tsp instant dry yeast
• 1 Tbl sugar
• 1 Tbl olive oil
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• pinch of salt
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 3 Tbl Nerfsteak seasoning
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Combine the water, yeast and sugar in a large bowl and let sit until you can see that the yeast is working and foaming up. Then add olive oil, flour and salt. Mix until a dough pulls together. Knead for a minute or two on a lightly floured surface, adding more flour if needed, Then place in a clean, oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel, and let rise for about 1 hour, until roughly doubled in size.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together beef, breadcrumbs, egg, parmesan cheese and Nerfsteak seasoning. Form into 15 equal meatballs, roughly 1-inch across. Place on a baking sheet lined with a non-stick mat or parchment paper. Set aside while the dough finished rising.
3. Once the dough has risen, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Divide dough into 5 equal parts and roll each of these into ropes about 10 inches long.
4. Start with one end of the dough rope, thread it onto a 10- to 12-inch wooden skewer, follow it with a meatball, then wrap dough up around and skewer again. Repeat with another 2 meatballs, alternating with the dough. Set on prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough and meatballs.
5. Let skewers rest (dough rise) for another 15 minutes, then bake for 20 minutes, until the dough is light golden brown and the meatballs are cooked though (170 degrees internal temp). Cover with foil if bread is browning too quickly.
6. When the kebabs are cooked, remove from oven, sprinkle with cheddar cheese and return to oven to melt for about 2 minutes.

You could also make something similar to these with premade freezer meatballs and a can of store-bought dough. It won't be exactly the same, but similar.