elly says opa!

Ile de France Camembert

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 20:27:48 -0500

To know me is to know I love cheese. In fact, my friend Renea sent me this mug a while back and it pretty much sums up my daily life:

So, when I got an email regarding sampling Ile de France cheese, I was all over it. I had my choice between camembert, brie, and goat. Now, even though goat is my favorite of the bunch, I decided to go with the camembert because it's a cheese I don't really eat all that often and, come to think of it, I don't think I have ever bought.

Camembert

Camembert is a very mild cheese and it has some nuttiness to it. I would say it is similar to brie in taste and texture (though it has some more punch than brie). It's creamy and, while it's probably "better" to just eat it at room temperature and not necessarily cook with it, there are few things I like better than a nice, melty cheese. Mmm. So, I decided to use it in one uncooked application and 2 cooked dishes (and, of course, I ate some on its own).

Camembert (3)

This Ile de France camembert was delicious! It's got a fabulous texture and just enough flavor that it lends itself to many pairings, but can stand on its own, too. I'm hoping to order some of the goat cheese next!

Now, onto the dishes!

First, I used it in a porcini risotto. I think the slight nutiness of the cheese pairs well with the earthiness of the mushrooms. Plus, I will take any chance I get to make risotto since we don't eat it all that often. This was so good that I think I may make it again next week!

Porcini and camembert risotto

Porcini and Camembert Risotto
Serves 2 as a main dish

1 (1.5 oz.) package dried porcini mushrooms
1.25 cups boiling water
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup arborio rice
2 sprigs thyme
1/3 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth, kept warm on the stove
2 oz. Camembert
1 Tbsp butter
salt and pepper

Place the porcini mushrooms in a bowl and then add the boiling water. Allow the porcinis to reconstitute for about 15 minutes. Strain them, reserving the water you used, and chop the mushrooms.

Heat a large, heavy bottomed pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Once shimmering, add the shallot and cook until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds before stirring in the rice, chopped porcini, and thyme. Stir the mixture so that the rice is coated with the oil and begins to toast slightly.

Add the wine and deglaze, allowing nearly all the wine to evaporate. A ladel or so at a time, add the porcini liquid and the broth, alternately, stirring continuously and allowing the rice to absorb most of the liquid before adding the next ladel.

Continue adding the porcini liquid and broth a ladel or so at a time, stirring, until the rice is cooked al dente. It should still be slightly firm to the bite, and it should be a little "loose." You're not looking for a rice type dish that has absorbed ALL its liquid. There should be some liquid still in the pan.

Remove the pan from heat and stir in the camembert and the butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper if necessary and serve immediately (as if you could wait!).

Next, I made a simple salad. This is an endive salad with toasted walnuts, room-temp camembert, sliced apples (use your favorite kind) and cider vinaigrette. I like my dressings more acid-y than most, so I do equal parts apple cider vinegar & olive oil. (I also added pressed garlic and salt and pepper, of course.) As you know, I am working on having the love for fruits with savory dishes and this one won me over. Delicious! To let the apples absorb the flavor, and to keep them from browning, add the sliced apples to the dressing as you prep the rest of the salad.

Endive salad

And, finally, I made some camembert and maple bacon cups because the only thing better than cheese is cheese and bacon. For this I just chopped and cooked some bacon. I mixed just a tiny bit of maple syrup into the cooked/drained bacon and filled pre-made phyllo cups with that and the camembert. Easy and delicious!

Camembert and bacon phyllo cups

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Tupperware Shrimp

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:40:15 -0500

If you cook for two frequently, you may be able to pull a bunch of things out of your fridge that look a little like this:

Leftovers

Yep, that would be a random assortment of things leftover from meals this week. There's some chicken broth, about a half can of diced tomatoes, half an onion, half a can of black beans and 2 bell pepper halves--red and green--which I had the smarts to dice the first time I used them so that the next meal they went into would become even easier.

I really hate wasting food. I used to be a card-carrying member of the Oops-I-forgot-to-use-this-so-I-guess-I'll-just-pitch-it Club, but that was when I didn't cook as often and it was definitely before groceries were so damn expensive.

So about once a week or so, I end up peering into my fridge and making use of what's in those little tupperware containers. Tonight, with the help of some shrimp that I always keep in the freezer, this dish came about. I'm not really sure what to call it, so I'll just call it Tupperware Shrimp. It's reminiscent of a jambalaya but it's missing some key ingredients and it has the addition of a few others. Whatever you call it, it's a tasty, healthy way to use up leftovers. Now, I am mindful of the fact that most people don't have this exact combination of ingredients sitting in their fridge, nor do they want to end up with this random assortment of ingredients in their fridge by making a recipe using odd halved measurements. So, in the interest of a cleaner recipe, I have doubled what we ate for dinner below.

Tupperware shrimp

Tupperware Shrimp
Serves 4

1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 sprigs of thyme
a few good dashes of hot sauce
2/3 cup rice
1-1/3 cup chicken broth
1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined

In a large saute pan with a lid, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add the onions, peppers, & garlic and saute until the onions are translucent. Add the diced tomatoes and spices and simmer for a couple of minutes to combine the flavors. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil before stirring in the rice. Cover and simmer until the rice is almost done. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. About 2 minutes before the rice is done, stir in the shrimp and simmer until shrimp and rice are cooked.

Tupperware shrimp (2)

Nutritional Info Per Serving: Calories: 405 / Fat: 5.7g / Saturated Fat: .8g / Carbs: 55g / Fiber: 9g / Protein: 31g

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Zucchini Rice Gratin

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 09:43:50 -0500

I saw this recipe for zucchini rice gratin a couple weeks ago and it sounded so good. How can you go wrong with roasted vegetables, cheese, and rice? Answer: you can't.

I'm always looking for new sides and if they do double-duty (starch and veg), even better. I stayed pretty true to the recipe, but cut the amount of oil. I felt like 6.5 Tbsp. was just unecessary so I basically ended up using less than 1/3 of the oil and it was still great and tasty. I modified a few other ingredients slightly, and the process a little, too, to make for a little less pots/cleanup.

The eggs make this really creamy and also set really well. If I weren't so excited to eat it, I might have actually been able to remove something that resembled more of a slice than a pile of rice and vegetables. :) Tom and I both loved this. The roasted vegetables are so flavorful and the rice is full of creamy, cheesy goodness.

This claims to serve 4-6 but I would definitely lean toward 4. Six would be pushing it. I made this in a round 2 qt. casserole but as you can see I should have used a shallower pan. I think a deep dish pie plate would be a perfect size for something like this. It's also a little time-consuming for a side, but in my opinion, it's worth it, especially since most of the time is inactive.

I served this with a simply seasoned pan-fried pork chop. Gourmet says you can eat this as a main course, and I would tend to agree. I did have the leftovers (and only the leftovers) for lunch the next day. But, if I were serving this as a vegetarian main, I'd probably increase both the amount of rice and maybe add some roasted eggplant.

zucchini rice gratin

Zucchini Rice Gratin
adapted from Gourmet
Serves 4 as a side

2 large zucchinis, sliced
2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 onion, cut in half and then sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup uncooked rice
2/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 large eggs
1/2 cup pecorino romano, divided
2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
salt and pepper

roasted zucchini and tomatoes

Preheat the oven to 450. In a large bowl, toss the sliced zucchini with 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Place the slices on a baking sheet. Then, in the same bowl (why not?), toss the sliced tomatoes with 1 tsp. olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast the zucchini on the upper rack in the oven for about 20 minutes and the tomatoes on the lower rack for 10 minutes. Flip them once during roasting. Leave the oven on.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tsp. olive oil in a saucepan. Add the onions and some salt and cook over low heat for a couple minutes before adding the minced garlic. Cover and cook on low heat for about 20 minutes until the onions are soft and slightly caramelized.

Add the rice to the onion mixture and stir a few times. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until the rice is cooked.

Beat your 2 eggs lightly (hey, why not use the same bowl as before?) and then add the rice. Be sure the rice has cooled slightly so you don't get scrambled eggs. Stir in 1/4 cup of the romano, 1.5 tsp. oil, and the thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place half the rice mixture in a shallow baking dish or pie pan. Place half of the roasted zucchini over the rice. Top with the remaining rice and then finish off with the remaning zuchini, the roasted tomatoes, and the remaining parmesan cheese. Bake until set and cheese has melted, about 20 minutes.

zucchini rice gratin (2)

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 248 / Fat: 13g / Saturated Fat: 4g / Carbs: 22g / Fiber: 2.8g / Protein: 11g

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Pineapple and Black Bean Rice

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Thu, 22 May 2008 19:19:03 -0500

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am not terribly big on fruit in my dinners. I like salty-sweet combos but something about cooked fruit, especially, turns me off. But, I'm trying to ease my way into more dishes that incorporate fruit and I've been successful a few times so far. I'm still not a pork and cinnamon apples kinda gal, but who knows? Maybe one day I will be.

What better way to include fruit in a dish than with Jamaican jerk shrimp we had last week? Island food often has fruit flavors fused into everything from the main course to the dessert. I decided that pineapples would complement the meal nicely and, as a bonus, pineapples are one of my favorite fruits. I thought the pineapples, spice, and black beans went nicely with this rice side, and paired well with the shrimp. The pineapples definitely don't stay as sweet as they would be if you were eating them alone, even with the addition of the brown sugar. But, I like that because it's more of a mellow sweetness than an overpowering acidic taste. I think I can add this to the fruit-in-a-dish success pile.

Now, the problem with not using a recipe and then not updating your blog for a few days after the meal is that you tend to forget what actually went into the dish. So, in other words, I make no guarantees that these are the exact ingredients and amounts that I used on that fateful fruity day, but they are close enough and of course you can play around with the ingredients and amounts to your liking.

Pineapple black bean rice (2)

Pineapple and Black Bean Rice
Serves 2

2 tsp. canola or olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup long grain white rice
2/3 cup water
1/3 cup black beans
1/3 cup diced pineapple, and a couple Tbsp. pineapple juice
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 lime, juiced

Heat the oil in a saucepan until shimmering and then saute the onion until translucent. Stir in the garlic, just until fragrant, and then add the rice, stirring it to coat it in the oil and toast it up a bit.

Add the water, black beans, pineapples and juice, cloves, chili powder and brown sugar and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until rice is cooked. Off the heat, stir in the lime juice.

Pineapple black bean rice

Nutritional Information: Calories: 152.5 / Fat: 4.9g / Carbs: 24g / Fiber: 3.7g / Protein: 3.6g

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Spanakorizo

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Wed, 07 May 2008 20:02:06 -0500

Or, a fancy schmancy Greek way of saying spinach-'n-rice. In Greek, "spanaki" is spinach and "rizi" is rice. I hope you're paying attention to some of the Greek tidbits you're learning from my blog because you never know when you may need them. Maybe your next Cranium question is going to ask what a spanakophobe is, and of course you're going to know right away that, obviously, it's someone who fears spinach.

[Okay, I just did about 20 seconds of googling and was not able to confirm that a person who is scared of spinach is called a spanakophobe or anything remotely close to that. So let's not use that example, but it could come into play somewhere, I promise. Maybe not with spanakophobe or rizophile, but some time.]

At any rate, spanakorizo is a very common Greek side dish. The flavors are very typical of other Greek dishes and they taste great when combined. The bonus is that this can double as your vegetable and your starch side. Normally, I am not one to do that (veggies are important and most veggies incorporated into starches tend to be in very small quantities), but here I am giving you the go ahead. About 1.5-2 lbs. of spinach are put into this rice, and the amount of rice you eat is actually less than the serving (how often can you say that about a starch?) but don't worry, the portion is still plenty.

Traditionally, spanakorizo has quite a bit more olive oil to start, but I like to make a healthier version. I suppose using brown rice would make it even healthier but for some things, even I just say no to brown rice. Some Greeks add tomato paste or fresh tomatoes to their spanakorizo but I am not one of them. I don't believe that there's anything wrong with that, but I like the combo of the dill, spinach and lemon as it stands.

In case you're wondering, we had this with a very Greek-flavored pork tenderloin that I quick marinated in fresh lemon juice, garlic, olive oil and oregano and then seared and roasted.

Spanakorizo

Spanakorizo
Serves 4

1.5 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2/3 cup long grain white rice
1-1/3 cup water
Juice of 1 large lemon
2 bunches or about 1.5-2 lbs. fresh spinach, chopped (and remove any stems that don't seem very tender)
1/3 cup fresh dill, chopped (or about 1 T dried)
salt and pepper

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil. Once heated, add the onions and saute until tender. Add the rice and stir to coat it in the olive oil, "toasting" it for a minute or two. Add the water and lemon juice and bring to a boil.

Add the spinach, dill and some salt and pepper to taste. Bring the mixture down to a simmer. Cover tightly and simmer about 15 minutes or until rice is cooked.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 205 / Fat: 6g / Carbs: 33g / Fiber: 4.5g / Protein: 7.3g

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Cuckoo for Kashi

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 19:07:30 -0500

I'm a bit of a Kashi fanatic. At about 10:50 nearly every weekday morning, I eat a Kashi granola bar. I love the TLC crackers and I especially love the party crackers. Go Lean Crunch with fruit and Greek yogurt is a fantasic snack. Even the frozen dinners are good, and I hate most frozen dinners (though it's rare for me to buy a Kashi dinner because they are really expensive). The only thing I haven't really been enamored with are the cookies, but then, who wants a healthy cookie? If I am going to eat a packaged cookie, sign me up for Oreos or Girl Scout cookies.

I'm sure you already know, but Kashi products all contain their 7 whole grain blend, plus sesame seeds. One of my favorite Kashi products is the pilaf--the 7 grains in their simplest form. "Pilaf" is a little misleading because you'd think it had some sort of flavoring in it, but it doesn't. It's just the grains. I love it but for some reason, I have a really hard time finding it. It's been ages since we've had it and when I finally saw it in the store the other day, I knew I had to pick up a box.

Like rice or any other grain, you can jazz Kashi pilaf up any way you want, of course. I will say that I increase both the cooking time and the amount of liquid slightly from the box instructions. I don't think brown rice can cook in 25 minutes. At any rate, this application of the pilaf was basically just to use up some swiss chard and mushrooms that were on the verge of going bad. Combined with the sage and the nuttiness of the pilaf, this is a really earthy, yummy side.

Kashi pilaf

Kashi Pilaf
Serves 4

1 Tbsp. butter
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 envelope (1 cup) Kashi pilaf
2.5 cups (scant) chicken broth or vegetable broth
2 cups swiss chard, coarsely chopped
3 Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook until translucent. Stir in the garlic and mushrooms and cook an aditional 2 minutes or so, so they mushrooms begin to lose their moisture. Stir in the pilaf and coat it with the butter.

Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes or until the grains are just about cooked. Stir in the swiss chard and finish cooking, uncovered, an additional couple minutes until the grains are tender and the chard has wilted. Stir in the sage and salt & pepper to taste, if necessary.

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Gettin' Down and Dirty (with risotto)

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 19:44:06 -0600

Dirty risotto (2)

I love risotto but I don't make it too often because I try to limit my intake of "whites" and, well, I'm pretty sure that whole wheat risotto doesn't exist. Even if it did, it would be an abomination! I've been wanting to try Giada's dirty risotto for a while now because it's a very hearty risotto, fit for a main course serving. Since it has a protein, veggies and a starch it's pretty much a meal in itself...but I did pair our dinner tonight with a baby spinach salad.

I did adapt the recipe (of course). I bulked up the veggies and the sausage a little bit, but used chicken sausage to lighten it up. I'm pretty certain you can find leaner chicken sausage but the spicy Italian from Trader Joe's I had on hand (which is SO good) was 190 calories a link. I added garlic, too (a Giada recipe without garlic? Almost as preposterous as an Elly recipe without it!). I was a little nervous about adding this into SparkPeople. Even with my modifications I thought it was going to be a calorie bomb. But, it's really not that bad at around 450 calories. It is slightly high in fat, but you can modify that by using leaner sausage, something in place of the pancetta, etc.

Tom and I both really liked this dish. I mean, what's not to like about a creamy, comforting meal like this? Definitely one to make again.

Dirty Risotto
adapted from Giada De Laurentiis
Serves 2

2 cups chicken broth
2 tsp. butter
1 link (4 oz.) spicy Italian chicken sausage, casing removed
1 oz. pancetta, chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 red pepper, chopped
4 oz. mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup pecorino romano

Add the chicken broth to a small saucepan and bring to a light simmer. Keep it on the stove, simmering, as you prepare the risotto.

Over medium heat, melt the butter in a large pan. Add the chicken sausage, crumbling it as you stir it in, and the pancetta and cook for a few minutes until browned. Add the onions, red pepper and mushrooms. Saute for a few minutes before adding the minced garlic. Continue cooking until the vegetables are tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the rice and stir to coat, "toasting" it a little. Add the wine and cook it off until it's almost completely evaporated.

Add a ladel of the simmering chicken broth to the pan and stir continiously until almost absorbed. Continue adding chicken broth by the ladel, every time the rice has nearly absorbed it, until the rice is tender but still firm to the bite. Remove from heat and stir in the romano.

Dirty risotto

Nutritional Information, Per Serving, using Trader Joe's Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage: Calories: 451.5 / Fat: 19.5g / Carbs: 39.5g / Dietary Fiber: 2g / Protein: 24.8g

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Lickity Split Lebanese

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 20:11:22 -0600

Zaatar chicken

Tonight's dinner came together in no time. In fact, if I hadn't marinated the chicken (which honestly isn't really necessary, but does help), dinner would have been on the table in well under 20 minutes.

A while back I made some za'atar mix, a popular Lebanese spice mixture made of thyme, sumac and sesame seeds. I decided to use the leftovers on some chicken thighs. I always have chicken thighs in my freezer. I LOVE dark meat chicken. It is so much more moist and flavorful than white meat and it holds up so well in braising and in broiling. And, if you skin the chicken, it's really not a whole lot worse for you than chicken breasts, just a little higher in fat.

I was planning on serving this with couscous until I realized right before dinner that we were out of couscous. D'oh! Luckily, I did have some quinoa on hand so I used that instead. Quinoa is a very healthy seed, though it's treated as a grain in cooking. It's a little larger than couscous in size with a nutty flavor somewhat similar to brown rice. Thankfully, it takes a lot less time to cook than brown rice, too, so I wasn't scrambling TOO much when I realized we were out of couscous. Plus, Tom prefers quinoa to couscous, so that's a bonus.

In addition to the quinoa, I served these with a simple cucumber and feta salad. This was a really simple, easy meal that turned out great. The chicken was so moist and flavorful, especially considering the extremely short list of ingredients.

Zaatar chicken 2

Broiled Za'atar Chicken Thighs
Serves 2

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 lemon, juiced
1 heaping Tbsp. za'atar
salt and pepper (optional)

Mix lemon juice with za'atar mix. Rub the mixture onto the chicken thighs and refrigerate for half an hour.

Preheat the broiler and spray the broiler pan with some cooking spray. Sprinkle the chicken with a little salt and pepper if desired. Broil for approximately 6 minutes per side, or until done.

Nutritional Information per serving (2 thighs); note: I found a few different calorie counts for boneless/skinless chicken thighs. I went with the higher amount, just to be on the safe side. Calories: 233 / Fat: 11g / Carbs: 2g / Protein: 27.5g

Simple Quinoa with Pine Nuts
Serves 2

1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
1 cup chicken broth
2 Tbsp. pine nuts, toasted

Heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until tender. Stir in the garlic and cook for about one minute. Add the quinoa and the broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer until all the liquid is absorbed and the couscous is cooked, about 12-15 minutes. Top with toasted pine nuts.

You can make this with couscous the same way but of course couscous only takes a couple minutes to cook.

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Courgette & Lemon Risotto

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:01:59 -0600

Courgette risotto

Nicole at For the Love of Food hosts this really great blogging event called Taste&Create. She pairs up bloggers and then they each make a recipe from the other's blog and...what else? Blog about it!

I was paired with Abby over at Eat the Right Stuff. This was great for many reasons, including the fact that I had never visited Abby's blog before and now I have a great new blog to add to my reader. As a bonus, Abby tends to eat pretty healthfully as I also (try to) do. Not that I picked an overly healthy recipe, because I didn't :)

I had a lot of fun poring over all of Abby's great recipes and while it was tough to pick just one, I landed on her courgette and lemon risotto. I definitely enjoyed this dish. I love the combination of lemon and basil so I knew I would like this. I would probably add more lemon next time around (the zest from the whole lemon, perhaps) as I tend to like things pretty lemony. I admit I don't use zucchini IN things terribly often and tend to have them as a veggie side, instead. It was nice to put them in something so hearty. In summary: a fresh, light take on a comfort classic!

Courgette and Lemon Risotto
serves 2

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. butter
1 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, crushed/minced
1/2 cup arborio rice
1/3 cup white wine (I used pinot grigio)
2 cups hot vegetable stock (I used chicken stock since that's what I had)
juice and zest of half a lemon
2-3 courgettes/zucchinis, grated
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
handful of shredded basil
salt and pepper

Wrap the grated zucchini in a clean towel and squeeze out all the extra liquid. A lot will come out and that's important so don't skip this step!

Heat the oil and butter in a medium pan. Add the onion and cook until it has softened. Add the garlic and cook an additional minute. Stir in the rice and make sure it is coated with the butter/oil. "Toast" it for a bit. Increase the heat and add the wine, stirring while it reduces.

Add a ladle of the vegetable (or chicken) stock to the rice and stir continuously until the liquid has almost all been absorbed. Continue adding the stock by the ladle until the rice is cooked (risotto should still have a little bite to it, just like al dente pasta).

When the rice is done, add the zucchini, basil, lemon, lemon zest, parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

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Lamb and Barley Stew

nobody@vox.com(Elly) — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 20:52:31 -0500

Lamb

I get truly, dorkishly excited about coming home from the butcher. I get almost as excited opening that thick, white paper as I do opening gifts on Christmas morning.

And plus, I love this particular meat market. The staff is so knowledgeable, and in addition to all the great meat, they have lots of different cheeses (I picked up some grana padano today, in fact), fresh pastas and sauces, some produce. It's great (though I do wish they sold veal & lamb stock--that would be tops).

Lamb 2

I always see no less than a dozen things I want when I'm there. I was really eyeing the veal shanks today, big time. But I figured those could wait for another day.

Today, I went for the lamb. I asked for some stew meat, and 10 minutes later I was home, tearing open the white paper. Mmmmm.

As much as I love lamb, I've never made a lamb stew (unless you count manestra--which is lamb and orzo cooked on the stovetop). I debated what kind to make. Do I use white wine and chicken broth for liquids or red wine and beef broth? Do I make an Irish stew or a Moroccan one? Should I stick with the Greek flavors I know and love so well?

In the end, I went for a really simplistic lamb stew with barley, made with white wine and chicken broth. It was so hearty and comforting. And now I am stuffed to the gills (OK, you got me, I *did* still have room for those 2 fun sized Almond Joys. Stupid Halloween).

Lamb stew

Lamb and Barley Stew

1 lb. lamb (shoulder or leg, cut into 1-2" pieces)
flour, for dredging
olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 cup carrots, sliced
1 cup celery, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
5 cups chicken broth
8 oz. crimini mushrooms, halved or quartered
1/4 lb. green beans or haricots vertes
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. ground marjoram
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 cup pearl barley
salt and pepper.

Season lamb with salt and pepper and then dredge in flour, shaking off excess.

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven. Add the lamb in batches, if necessary, and brown on all sides (not cooking through). Remove.

To the dutch oven, add the onion (and more oil if necessary) and saute until just tender. Add the carrots, celery and garlic and saute for another minute or so.

Add the chicken broth and deglaze the pan, scraping up all the browned bits. Reduce slightly before adding the broth, bay leaf, marjoram, green beans and mushrooms. Bring to a boil and then add the lamb and the barley. Cover, cooking for about 45 minutes until barley is cooked and lamb is tender. (I took the lid off for about 5 additional minutes at the end to thicken the stew slightly). Season to taste.

Lamb stew 2

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