Lamb Stew

One of my husbands most often requested meals. : )  Just in time for fall... The flavor in this is strong and intense. If you like more mild (blander) food, tone down the seasonings and vinegar. 

Lamb Stew
2 T. olive oil
1 T. butter
1/4 c. flour (corn starch or wheat)
1 pound (1/2 kg) lamb stew meat
1 t. salt
1 box tomato puree
4 c. chicken broth
3 T. apple cider vinegar
3 T. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 c. plus 1 T. of water
2-3 chopped onions
1 c. sliced carrots
3/4 c. chopped turnips
3/4 c. chopped potatoes
1 T. raisins
1 t. cumin seed
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 t. cinnamon powder
1 t. dried parsley

You can use either lamb or mutton meat for this, but it needs to be good cuts of boneless, lean meat.  I don't care for the flavor of mutton, and you can ask butcher to provide you with lamb meat.  Some will have it, some will not.  It will be more expensive than chicken, for sure, but just consider this a special treat.  Even for a half kg, here it's only about $4, which is definitely affordable for a great (RED MEAT!) meal for our whole family. : )

1.  Heat oil in a Dutch oven with the butter.  Place flour in a shallow dish.  Sprinkle lamb pieces with black pepper and salt.  Dredge lamb meat in flour to coat.  Place lamb in the hot oil and melted butter.  Cook 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides.  Remove lamb from pan with a slotted spoon.  

2.  If needed add a bit more olive oil.  Add cumin seed and onions to pan.  Cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.  Add tomato puree and cook for one minute, stirring frequently.  Stir in broth and apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire and water, scraping down to loosen browned bits.   Return meat to the pan, and add ½ t. salt, raisins, and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and cover, cook 1 hour.  

3.  Remove lid and add the vegetables.  Cook on a medium heat for 30-45 minutes. The juice should be reduced and thick.
This serves 6 people (two adults and four kids).  

Baked Applesauce

I apologize for being so absent from this blog the past four months. I have been going through a difficult season with my health.  In July, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease and thyroid disfunction.  They are both connected, and in order to heal both, doctors recommended that I avoid eating wheat and gluten, anything processed or refined, all sugar, and as much dairy as possible.  There were other recommendations, but those are the big ones.  It's been a challenging, depressing time for me!  I obviously love food, and always pitied people who had to eat like that.  And now I'm one of those pitiable people! :)  I am feeling better now and usually function well throughout the day.  I'm also on medication to control my thyroid function.

The bad news is, I haven't had too much success with all my experiments of replacing foods I love.  I've tried cauliflower crust pizza.  Will not do that again. I'd just rather not eat pizza. : ) It's taken me some time to figure out how to cook... whether we all eat like this crazy diet I'm on, or if I cook normally for everyone else and make something separate for me once or twice a week and eat it over and over.  It's been a challenge, and taken every spare ounce of concentration I've had.

This week, since we're getting into Autumn, we began to start cooking like it.  One thing I can eat is applesauce. : )  I have tried all kinds of different methods for making applesauce, but this is by far my favorite! So rich, smooth, and delicious!

Baked Applesauce
2 kg apples, halved and cored
2-4 T. butter
6 T. brown sugar (Indian brown sugar works great!
2-4 t. cinnamon

First, cut each apple in half and remove the core.  Preheat the oven to about 175 celsius.  Melt the butter in the bottom of a 9x13 or other large baking dish.  Sprinkle the brown sugar  and cinnamon over the melted butter and place the apples, cut side down on top.  The skin should still be on them, so they look like red domes in the pan.

Bake then until the skin is wrinkly and they are really soft.

After they've cooled, with a spoon, scoop out the apple flesh from the skin.  Scrape it really good to remove as much as you can.  Put the flesh into a mixee/mixer.  Then, scrape all the juice left on the bottom of the pan into the mixer.  Blend until it's the right consistency. You may want to add more cinnamon!

I absolutely love this applesauce. And my kids do too... I can't stop eating it! It should last in the fridge for up to 5 days, but it's hardly ever there the day after I make it! :)

Chicken with Roasted Pears and Rice

This dish calls for wild rice, something I've never been able to find here.  So I just used a plain short grain rice. This would be really nice served with some sauteed green beans or steamed broccoli.  You will need some craisins/cranberries that we can't typically find here.  I wasn't sure how I would like this, because I normally go for more savory main dishes, but this was really good, and the whole family loved it, especially the kids!  Also, I labeled it 40 minutes or Less, because it's less than 40 minutes of prep time, but 30 minutes of inactive baking time.  From start to ready, it's more than 40 minutes.

Chicken with Roasted Pears and Rice
3 pears, cored and cut length-wise into 1/2" slices
1 1/4 c. apple juice
3/4 c. water
1 cube chicken bullion
1 c. uncooked rice
1 lb chicken breast, cubed into 1 inch pieces
1/2 c. dried cranberries, or dried tart cherries
2 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 450F/220C.  Arrange pear slices in a single layer on a greased baking sheet. Bake for ten minutes, or until tender.  Remove from oven, and reduce oven tempt to 400F/190C.

Combine apple juice, water, and chicken bullion in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Add rice, cover, reduce heat, and cook until rice is tender, 15-20 minutes.  Fluff rice with a fork.

Combine rice, chicken, cranberries, sugar, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl.  Spoon mixture in a a large baking dish.  Arrange roasted pear slices over chicken mixture.  Cover and bake at 190C for about 30 minutes or until chicken is done.  5-6 servings.

Luke liked this so much, he had a very clean plat.  And he wanted a pear slice with cranberries he dug out of the leftover neatly perched on top for dessert. : )