Lamb Stew

The first time I remember eating mutton was when I lived in New Zealand.  Since there is an overwhelming number of sheep there, it is pretty certain that people there would be raising and eating them.  Most of the lamb is exported which leaves the less desirable mutton in New Zealand.  However, like most things, you can figure out a way to make it delicious.  While this recipe uses lamb, you can use any kind of stew meat you would like.  That being said this is a simple recipe with a ton of good tasting vegetables which combined with the meat add all the flavor to this stew without much work on the part of the cook other than cutting everything up.  You can increase or decrease the size of this stew easily as well.  Since this was part of my Scandinavian brunch, the idea is from Scandinavian Christmas.

Lamb Stew (for about 6 servings)
1.5 pounds lamb cut into stew sized pieces (about 1.5 x 1.5 inches)  (You can substitute for any other stew meat)
Olive oil (for searing)
1 leek (you can use a small onion if you don't have a leek), well washed and cut into thick pieces
About a pound of potatoes, peeled and cut into similar sized cuts as the carrots and parnips
2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
1 large parsnip, peeled and cut into chunks
4 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 red chiles, roughly chopped
1/3 cup diced dried apricots
2 tablespoons tomato paste
salt
black pepper

Heat olive oil in a pan (or into a large stock pot) and sear the lamb until brown on all sides.  Add the vegetables and garlic to the lamb and saute for about 4-5 minutes.  Add the chiles, apricots and tomato paste.  Season with salt and pepper; then pour in 1-2 cups of water.  Cover and simmer for at least an hour.  Taste for seasonings again and adjust as needed.  You can simmer this for several hours, but at least for an hour.  I made mine a day in advance, then cooled and refrigerated it over night.  The next morning I brought simmered it until it was hot throughout and then served.

New Year, New Food - White Bean Stew with Rosemary, Garlic and Farro

The New Year brings new things to do and try for the upcoming year.  Plans are made, and fresh starts are started.  In December I came across a cookbook that I decided I could not live without, and so I have purchased Cook This Now by Melissa Clark.  Not only have I fallen in love with the recipes in this cookbook, but I have decided like many others, to try and cook every recipe in the cookbook.  I love how it is divided into months.  Each month has a focus on foods which are available at that time of the year.  Not only will this widen my horizons with foods I would not have tried before now, but it is a challenge to see if I can attain the delicious flavors which come together in ways I have not tried.  So in reference to this so far wonderful cookbook, I will not be posting the recipes in this cookbook.  If you like what you see, I encourage you to also get the cookbook.  Happy New Year!  Happy Cooking!

Cook This Now 

White Bean Stew with Rosemary, Garlic and Farro

 

This recipe is a simple stew with tremendous flavors, which you might not think when you read the recipe or even if you taste it while it is cooking.  The key to this is not the stew itself, but the finishing pieces of olive oil, flaky salt, red pepper and parsley.  These finishing ingredients make the stew what it is.

This recipe does take a while to cook, so prepare for it when you have a lot of time at home.  However, it does not require a lot of attention, so you do not have to be in the kitchen the entire time.  Plus, as it is simmering away it send delicious smells of garlic, onion, rosemary and thyme through the kitchen.  I let the stew simmer through the day as I intended to eat it for dinner instead of lunch, though it would have been ready earlier.  The only consequence was that the rosemary and thyme cooked off of their stems, but did not diminish from the flavor.  Also, note make sure if you are going to simmer all day that you will need to remove the onion, celery and garlic before they disappear into a mush that used to resemble what you put in the pot.