Month: March 2013

Slow-Roasted Mechoui (Moroccan-Spiced Leg of Lamb)

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I was lucky enough to nab a leg of organic, sustainably-raised lamb from Montana’s Willow Spring Ranch at Shelton’s Market for this and was rewarded with succulent, juicy meat spiked through with Moroccan spice. To find a source for grass-fed lamb (and other meats) near you for your Easter meal, check out Eat Wild. Serve this with quinoa, mixed greens, sliced black olives, thick slices of orange, thinly sliced fennel and red onion tossed with the dressing from this salad here.

Slow Roasted Mechoui Lamb

5 garlic cloves
1/2 medium onion
1 small lemon, trimmed of top and bottom, quartered and seeded
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup pomegranate syrup (or 1/2 orange juice and 1/2 honey)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
5-6 pound boneless leg of lamb, trimmed of excess fat

Puree garlic through olive oil in a blender or food processor. Stir in salt. Lay lamb in a shallow dish or roasting pan and carefully pierce deeply all over with a paring knife. Slather on the marinade, pushing into the holes, then coat all over with any remaining marinade. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 325. Transfer lamb to a Dutch oven, cover and roast for 3-1/2 to 4 hours, until lamb is fork tender. Let rest for 20 minutes, then pull apart into large chunks to serve.

Serves 8

 

Make Corned Beef From Scratch … On Sunday

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You have to promise not to laugh when I tell you this, about how many years this corned beef recipe was in the making. I’d always wanted to make corned beef from scratch, but I have a tendency to forget about St. Paddy’s day until the day of, despite all the leprechauns and clovers sprouting up in every store. So given the grueling three-day rigamarole that’s normally involved in making corned beef, I missed out year after year.

And then I got really into my pressure cooker. One night, I was experimenting with pressure cooking spare ribs in the marinade I’d normally soak them in to see if the flavors permeated the meat (they did), and I thought … “hmmmm, I wonder if this would work for corned beef too …” So I jotted down a note to give it a try the following March.

Did I remember? No.

But I did the next year. The light bulb went off, and I got all excited and scurried off to the store on St. Patrick’s Day to buy myself a beef brisket. I enthusiastically rattled off to my butcher what I planned to do with the brisket, and he nodded knowingly and handed me a shrink-wrapped piece of meat. I eyed it suspiciously. “This is a brisket?” I asked. “Are you sure?” He nodded that same knowing nod. “Yep. That’s what you want.” So I went home, put my little experiment into action and pulled the meat out less than two hours later. It was succulent, it was flavorful … it was like sucking on a salt lick. He’d sold me a pre-brined brisket. So I missed out that year too.

Absolutely determined to get the bottom of my “hypothesis” (6-year old Noemi is throwing that word around a lot lately, with a science fair coming up), I marched back to that butcher the next day and made him sell me a straight-up, unadulterated brisket wrapped in good-ole butcher paper. And guess what? My little experiment turned out splendidly. Now, umpteen years later, I can finally state that you can forget St. Patrick’s Day until the day of and still have your corned beef too.

Carrots with Coconut, Lime and Cashews

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Deborah Madison’s Vegetable Literacy came in the mail yesterday and I had about 40 recipes tagged within the first 40 minutes. This dish featuring carrots was one of them. I’ve been on the lookout for seasonal vegetable recipes that take a different direction than I might, while keeping everything short and simple for busy nights. This one from Deborah Madison hit that spot perfectly. I’ve embellished a bit to make it into vegan main dish, but you could pull back to the basic carrots, coconut oil and lime and serve it as a side dish. Either way, I cannot recommend  heartily enough.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:138]

Ribollita

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Ribollita is a classic Italian recipe that puts day-old bread to delicious use. Not only is this soup easy and flavorful and light and hearty all at the same time … it’s even better made the day before and reheated.

ribollita

2-½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 cup carrots, sliced
1 cup onion, chopped
½ cup celery, sliced
3 sprigs thyme
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chipped Swiss chard
3 cups chopped kale
3 cups water
3 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
¼ cup tomato puree
1 teaspoon sugar
sea salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (19-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
12 ounces day-old Italian or French bread, torn into 1-inch pieces

Heat 1-1/2 teaspoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add carrots and next 4 ingredients (through garlic) and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until onion is tender. Add chard and next 8 ingredients (through tomatoes) and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes.

Place 1/3 cup beans in a bowl and mash with a fork until fairly smooth. Add mashed beans, remaining beans, and bread to soup. Cook 5 minutes until heated through. Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons oil over top of soup.

Serves 8