Veal Stew with Wild Mushrooms (p. 430)

I have two soups left to cook, neither of which, unfortunately, is a chilled summer soup. Still, gotta tackle them, even in this ridiculous North Carolina heat.

This veal stew was pretty easy to put together, so I did it before work yesterday since I didn't have to be in until noon. It starts with sauteed onion, garlic, and parsley which have softened but not browned in the olive oil. Next up are the pieces of veal, which just need to be cooked until each side has browned.

Stir in the cleaned, sliced mushrooms (I used baby bellas because that's what was available to me, but it really called for porcini or chanterelles) and allow them to cook until they have released their liquids and the dish is bubbling.

Add in thyme and salt and cover the meat with a combination of wine and water.

Keep at a steady simmer until the liquid has cooked down some, then raise the heat and cook a little bit longer to make the liquid more syrupy.

Both Matt and I felt that this had way too many mushrooms in it. The flavors were good, but every bite was completely mushroom filled. I also wish that I had cut the veal into smaller pieces; they were a little tough which made the large pieces difficult to eat. 

mushrooms -- $3.00

veal -- $7.99

onion -- $1.10

parsley -- $1.99

Total Cost of Veal Stew with Wild Mushrooms: $14.08

($4.69 per serving)

Lamb Baked with Potatoes, Tomatoes, and Zucchini (p. 438)

I think I'm down to my last few lamb recipes in The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook, which means that soon I'll be moving on to rabbit -- yikes!

I made this dish on my day off this past week in hopes to have it ready for a nice lunch at home. I forgot to factor in the amount of time it needs to cook for, so it wasn't actually ready in time and I had a nice grilled cheese sandwich instead, but I've been enjoying it for leftovers this weekend.

This one requires a bit of prep work, but it's mostly just chopping up the veggies -- onion, tomatoes, zucchini, and potatoes (I used sweet, because that's what I had on hand.)

Brown the pieces of lamb thoroughly and put them into an oven proof dish.

Using the same pan (and the same meat and olive oil juices) sautee the onion  and some crushed garlic. Layer it on top of the meat.

Do the same with the potato cubes,

and then the tomatoes and zucchini, mixed with some tasty spices and allowed to simmer into a thick sauce with some water.

Bake the whole dish for about an hour and then serve.

The lamb in this was delicious -- very tender and flavorful. I do think regular potatoes would have been a better pairing that the sweet variety, but sometimes you just have to try.

lamb -- $5.12

zucchini -- $.52

onion -- $.65 (half left)

tomatoes -- $2.36 (CSA price)

sweet potatoes -- $.79 (CSA price)

Total Cost of Lamb Baked with Potatoes, Tomatoes, and Zucchini: $9.44

($2.36 per serving)

Lamb with Artichokes (p. 439)

I still can't decide if I like lamb. I think I do, but it's such a unique flavor that some preparations of it are much better than others.

Anyway, this recipe is supposed to be mostly about the veggies, with just a little meat to flavor. The problem with it is the same problem that all my other artichoke recipes have -- the artichokes they sell here just can't be eaten whole. So I made mine with more meat than artichokes.

Cook the meat first, with lamb cut into small pieces sauteed in olive oil until totally browned. Add in chopped scallions, garlic, and onions and cook until softened, then add water to cover the top of the meat and cook gently.

Put in the artichokes, halved if they're small, quartered if they're big. Stir flour into a small amount of water until blended and pour it into the stew, along with lemon juice. Cook until the sauce has been reduced and thickened, then add in chopped parsley and cilantro as well as salt and pepper. Serve over white rice.

We didn't eat this as a stew; I used a slotted spoon to ladle the meat and veggies over the white rice and we ate it like that. We both enjoyed it (and finished it off) but it was severely lacking in spices, so we doused it in hot sauce and went from there.

lamb -- $4.76

cilantro -- $1.99

scallions -- $.78

Total Cost of Lamb with Artichokes: $7.53

($3.77 per serving)

Simple Couscous with Lamb and Vegetables (p. 222)

Last night we hosted Supper Club at our house. Theme: Foods That Are Too Cute To Eat. What's cuter than lamb?

I didn't take any photos through the cooking process since our buds were hanging out while I was cooking, so apologies for that.

The lamb requires about an hour to stew (along with EVOO, onions, chickpeas, and lots and lots of delicious spices -- cloves, cinnamon, ginger, cumin, saffron, harissa, and black pepper) and by this time it's smelling pretty fabulous.

While the lamb cooked, I also steamed carrots, turnips, sweet potatoes, and slivered cabbage. The couscous is made last, cooked along with sliced red peppers and golden raisins.

Spread the couscous along the bottom of a platter and heap on the lamb. Surround the meat and couscous with all the steamed vegetables and scatter the cabbage on top, along with toasted almonds. I didn't use a big enough platter, so I put all my veggies on a separate plate.

This was super delicious and flavorful. I loved the lamb, and the veggies were a great pairing with the sauces from it. The peppers and raisins cooked into the couscous were a really nice touch, too. Perfect food for a big dinner party.

lamb -- $18.52

onions -- $1.88

sweet potatoes -- $2.74

turnips -- $2.32

cabbage -- $1.66 (3/4 left)

red pepper -- $1.82

couscous -- $4.99 (half left)

golden raisins -- $2.99 (most left)

Total Cost of Simple Couscous with Lamb and Vegetables: $36.92

($3.08 per serving)

Stifado of Lamb (p. 425)

Stifado refers to way of preparing meats by braising or stewing them in red wine and red wine vinegar.

This is time consuming but not all that difficult, plus it used mini onions, which I pretty much never use. They're also a total pain to peel -- any tips for making it easier? I spent almost 40 minutes peeling those babies.

Sauté the whole onions and crushed garlic until starting to brown, then shove them aside and add the lamb (cut into stewing pieces) into the middle.

Cook until thoroughly browned.

I messed up on my lamb selection by purchasing lamb chops instead of the pre-cut stewing pieces, which means I definitely paid too much, and got less meat than I should have. Oh well.

Anyway, once the meat is browned, add in all of the flavorings -- chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, bay leaves, a cinnamon stick, cloves and allspice, ground cumin, and a little salt and pepper.

Pour in red wine and red wine vinegar, as well as enough water to just cover the meats and veggies.

And now for the part I didn't read before starting -- simmer this slowly on the stove for at least 2 hours. I read this at around 6:30 last night, just as Matt was walking in the door from work. So for dinner, we actually had General Tso's chicken, courtesy of Peking China, not lamb. Which was delicious, but a letdown from what I had been hoping for.

I did have this for lunch, however. It was good and the lamb was very tender and flavorful, but not worth the wait time.

lamb -- $14.69 (again, should have used the less expensive stewing lamb)

onions -- $3.49

tomato -- $.97

Total Cost of Stifado of Lamb: $19.15

($9.58 per serving)

Karni Yarik (p. 311)

Karni Yarik is Turkish Eggplant Stuffed with Meat and Rice and, although neither myself nor Matt are huge eggplant lovers, I gave it a whirl last night.

The eggplants are cooked whole in the oven (be sure to prick them with a fork though, so they don't explode) until their skins have softened.

The stuffing for the dish is pretty simple; it's just onion, sweet pepper, and ground lamb, all sauteed in olive oil. The recipe also calls for tomatoes but I had forgotten to pick some up, so I left that part out. For spices, add cumin, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Stir in cooked rice as well as chopped parsley.

Once the eggplants are cooked, slice through the top half to be able to fill them with the stuffing, but be sure not to pierce the bottom of the eggplant!

Pour boiling water into the bottom of an oven-safe dish to surround the eggplants. Top them with cheese and place back in the oven until the tops are browned.

I enjoyed this -- the stuffing is great and very flavorful and made me not mind the eggplant. Matt avoided the eggplant but really enjoyed the lamb part as well. So, next time, maybe just the stuffing as a meal?

CSA eggplants -- $3.67

CSA red pepper -- $1.84 (half leftover)

onion -- $.94 (half leftover)

lamb -- $3.43

parsley -- $1.69 (lots remaining)

Total Cost of Karni Yarik: $11.57

($5.79 per serving)

Souvlakia or Kebab (p. 426) and Provencal Stuffed Tomatoes (p. 338)

We've been loving the slightly cooler weather and have started getting back into grilling out. Matt made a  killer steak earlier this week and we continued the grilling tradition with some skewered lamb with grilled vegetables.

Cut your lamb into cubes and mix the pieces into a marinade of olive oil, lemon juice, chopped parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes, and black pepper. Leave this in the fridge, covered, for at least an hour.

While the meat is in the fridge, prepare the veggies -- I used red and green peppers as well as red onions. Thread these on to skewers and set aside.

Do the same with the lamb, once it is done marinating.

The veggies need a little more time on the grill than the meat, so put them on 3 or 4 minutes ahead of the meat skewers. Cook the lamb until they are crisp on the outside but still a little pink inside.

These were really really yummy. I wish I had made some tzatziki or some sort of sauce to dip these in, but they were really good without as well. I warmed some pitas to go with this, and we stuffed the veggies and meats into the warm bread and ate it all up.

With this, I made Provencal Stuffed Tomatoes, which is kind of a dangerous recipe choice for two people that don't really like tomatoes. I just used one tomato to make this, so it was straight up two servings instead of the six the recipe actually calls for.

Slice the tomato in half and place the two sides onto a lightly oiled baking sheet. Grind together salt, garlic, anchovies and parsley into a thick paste. Add in toasted bread crumbs and olive oil, and continue to mix together. Smear this mixture on top of each tomato half and bake them for about 20 minutes.

For a tomato, this wasn't bad. You know, for a tomato.

lamb -- $8.45

red pepper -- $2.89

green pepper -- $1.43

red onion -- $1.55

Total Cost of Souvlakia: $14.32

tomato -- $1.44

Total Cost of Provencal Stuffed Tomatoes: $1.44

Lamb Meatballs with Pine Nuts in a Lemony Tomato Sauce (p. 100) and Catalan Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Toasted Almonds (p. 256)

I was in Asheville for the long weekend where I ate lots of tasty foods, including a delicious breakfast apple granola crisp made my fellow food blogger (and friend.) Yum! So, it had been a few days since I'd made anything and my fridge was almost completely empty.

I did a quick grocery run on my lunch yesterday, and was surprised and happy that I didn't need to buy too many things to make these lamb meatballs.

First, toast your pine nuts in olive oil until they are golden brown. Remove them from the pan using a slotted spoon -- you'll still use the rest of the olive oil later in the recipe.

In a bowl, combine the pine nuts, ground lamb (the recipe specifies that the lamb be ground twice, but I couldn't bring myself to ask the Fresh Market guy how many times it had been ground), minced onion, chopped parsley, allspice, cumin, and salt and pepper. It took a little while to mix them all together so that they stuck -- in the past when I've made meatballs there has generally been an egg involved that kind of held everything in.

Form your meatballs and set them aside for half an hour to dry.

Cook the meatballs in the same skillet as before until they are browned on all sides. Remove them from the skillet again and add in chopped tomatoes, tomato concentrate, and some water. Cook these down to a thick sauce and then add in lemon zest and juice. Cook for several more minutes and then add the meatballs back into the sauce to finish cooking.

Side note: after months of searching, I found tomato concentrate in a tube.

These had a lovely sweet-tart flavor and would be nice either as a main course (as we ate them) or as mezze for a party. They fell apart a little bit on the plate, but not so much that it was a problem. I liked the flavors of everything in them, and they had a great texture from the pine nuts and onions. Overall, this recipe was a win.

With the meatballs, I served Catalan Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Toasted Almonds.  I had everything I needed for it except for saffron, but I decided to do without -- it makes for an expensive meal!

This recipe takes a little bit of planning because the chickpeas need to be soaked overnight. I forgot until yesterday morning and then started soaking them before work, to no obviously detrimental effects.

Drain the chickpeas and put them in a pot covered in about an inch of boiling water. Cook the peas for 30 minutes to an hour, until they are tender.

While they are cooking, sauté onion (I used red because that's what I had) in olive oil until it is very soft. Add peeled and finely chopped tomatoes and cook for about 20 minutes, until all the liquid has been absorbed.

Toast the almonds in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown.

Once they are ready, make a paste using the almonds, chopped parsley and garlic cloves, and salt. Pound all these ingredients together (or use your food processor) adding a little of the water from the cooking chickpeas. This mixture will smell amazing.

As soon as the chickpeas are tender, add in the tomato onion sauce as well as the almond paste. Stir well and serve topped with crumbled hard boiled egg.

This was totally delicious and I would definitely make it again. The toasted almonds added a great crunch, and the egg was a nice addition. I'm looking forward to having leftovers for lunch.

lamb -- $2.80

CSA tomato -- $1.05

tomato paste -- $2.99 (lots left)

lemon -- $.89 (used half)

onion -- $.94 (used half)

Total Cost of Lamb Meatballs with Pine Nuts in a Lemony Tomato Sauce: $8.67

almonds -- 1.28

CSA tomato -- $1.05

Total Cost of Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Toasted Almonds: $2.33

Chickpea Dip with a Lamb Garnish (p. 34) and Baked Chicken Breasts with a Pomegranate Glaze (p. 410)

I made hummus (chickpea dip) over the weekend, but we waited to dive into it until I had the chance to make the lamb garnish to go on it. This is the same hummus I've made before; using the lamb garnish is just another variation on it. And an easy one at that.

Toast pine nuts in a dry skillet until they are golden and then set aside. In the same pan, caramelize onions in olive oil by slowly cooking them until they are golden. Once the onions are fully cooked, add cinnamon and ground lamb and lots of salt and pepper. Cook until the lamb is completely done, breaking the meat apart while stirring.

Once the meat is done, pour the onion/lamb mixture over the hummus, top with the pine nuts, and sprinkle with chili powder.

I served the hummus well before dinner as a meze and we ate it with warmed tortillas. This was delicious. I didn't love the cinnamon but Matt really did, and the dish was flavorful and surprising. I'd definitely make it again for a party.

I've had some chicken breasts in my freezer for a month or so, waiting to be cooked and eaten and tonight was their special night. First, I made a marinade for the chicken using ground cumin, salt and pepper, olive oil, garlic, and unsweetened pomegranate juice concentrate. I brushed the breasts in this and let it sit in the fridge for about an hour.

Meanwhile, I boiled down more pomegranate juice along with sugar and mustard to make a syrup. The recipe said this would take about 10 minutes but mine was closer to 30. I might not have let it cook rapidly enough -- I was worried the juice on the bottom of the pan would burn.

Once the chicken was ready to be baked, I put it in an oven-proof dish. The recipe actually calls for a baking dish with a rack but the only one I have like that is for my Thanksgiving turkey and it's huge, so I just used a  glass dish. I added the juices that were left from the chicken breasts in with the syrupy liquid and heated them up, then brushed this mixture over the tops of the chicken.

The dish went into the oven for about 10 minutes, and then I re-basted and turned the heat down. After another 10 minutes of cooking I basted again and then popped the chicken back in for five more minutes. The chicken was then done, so I cut the breasts on a diagonal and poured some of the remaining sauce over the pieces.

I served this with corn on the cob, which was kind of a weird pairing but it came in my CSA box last week and I didn't want it to go to waste.

The chicken was very flavorful and juicy, though also a little sweet for my taste. Still, we both enjoyed the chicken a lot, and the fresh NC corn was divine.

onion -- $1.25

lamb -- $2.16

Total Cost of Chickpea Dip with a Lamb Garnish: $3.41

pomegranate juice -- $3.99

Total Cost of Baked Chicken Breasts with a Pomegranate Glaze: $3.99