Lamb Lentil Stew with Pomegranate Molasses

This past week has been culinarily challenging for me, mostly due to a severe case of foodblock. Sure, I cooked tasty food this week, but it hasn’t been anything new and exciting. What I really needed was inspiration.

Backtrack to a month ago when @SuperDaniela was in town and we walked down to The Spice House in Old Town, one of my favorite shopping spots. We spent a good amount of time walking around smelling the merchandise, something you can’t do just anywhere.

At one point I came across bottles of pomegranate molasses, an ingredient I’d never heard of. Daniela was familiar with it and told me it’s popular in Middle Eastern cuisine and often used as a marinade or glaze for meat or chicken. Interesting to learn, I filed that tidbit away in the my head for a later date.

Well, a later date came this weekend when I was starved for inspiration and needed an adventurous and challenging new ingredient to get me back in the kitchen. So I walked back over to The Spice House and bought a small bottle of pomegranate molasses for $3.56. Then, after much internal back-and-forth, I decided to make a stew with lamb, lentils and pomegranate molasses.

The lamb, lentils and fresh herbs create a filling and earthy stew while the pomegranate molasses gives it a tangy kick, offset by a smidgen of smoked paprika. The flavor is unique but in an appealing, exotic way.

As for me, I’m just happy I got my cooking mojo back.

Here’s the recipe for lamb lentil stew with pomegranate molasses:

Read more of this >>

Mediterranean Stuffed Ball Zucchini with Lamb

This morning I trekked to the farmer’s market in jeans, leather shoes and a rain coat. Looking at me you’d have thought it was April 1st instead of July 1st. But what I found at the market convinced me that somehow it was summer after all: zucchini, a type of summer squash!

Every summer I look forward to Green Acres Farm’s selection of vegetables (I bought these garlic scapes from them a few weeks ago), especially their summer squash. This vendor usually has a few varieties to choose from and I like them all, but today I was most inspired by the ball zucchinis.

The plan was to hollow and fill the zucchinis in a way similar to the bison-barley stuffed peppers and stuffed buttercup squash, but this time with ground lamb, eggplant, tomatoes and a lot of fresh oregano. These Mediterranean flavors remind me of foods common in Italy and Greece creating a dish that is hearty, savory and summery all at once.

To complete the meal I served the stuffed ball zucchini with bulgur, a fantastic earthy compliment to the lamb and vegetables. Another way to make this dish would be to dice regular zucchini, saute it with the rest of the ingredients and serve it as a stir-fry over cooked bulgur.

As for why I chose to stuff the ball zucchinis, the answer is because it’s fun!

Here’s the recipe:

Read more of this >>

You may or may not know this about me, but I’m highly prone to random thoughts at the most inappropriate times. For instance, last week I was in a bridal shop with a group of friends to pick up our bridesmaid dresses (mine did NOT fit – crap). In the middle of the ordeal – and going to a bridal shop is always an ordeal – I developed a sudden craving for lamb shank.

I know – what? Who craves lamb, let alone lamb shank. It’s one of the toughest, gamiest cuts of meat, it’s served on-the-bone, and it’s part of a sedar plate. But for some strange reason I really wanted a lamb shank, leaving me no other option than to buy two later that afternoon.

While I have cooked lamb many times, this was only the second time I’ve worked with the shank. I remembered that it needed to be braised, or slow-cooked in liquid, in order for the meat to become tender. I chose to use a bottle of my favorite red wine, one that I’ve long known goes well with lamb: Senorio de Valdehermoso, a 2000 Crianza from the Ribera del Duero.

Because the cooking liquid becomes the sauce, the lamb needed to be served with a starch that would sop it up, which is how I came to Israeli couscous. I prefer this larger couscous to the smaller version for the dish as it holds up against the weight of the lamb (polenta would work, too). The couscous is mixed with slightly sweet flavors, again to balance the heft and savoriness of the lamb.

In the end, this was a hearty meal with beautiful flavor contrasts – perfect for a cold, winter day in Chicago.

Read more of this >>