Lamb | Adventures in Thyme

Greek Lamb Shells

March 25, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Greek Lamb Shells

Have you heard the song by Meghan Trainor “It’s All About That Bass”? I love the beat and the chorus “I’m all ’bout that bass, ’bout that bass, no treble” but I don’t sing it like that, no for me it goes something like this, “It’s all ’bout the sauce, ’bout the sauce, nothing else”. That’s why I love this recipe for Greek Lamb Shells so much, they’re delicious, but the Tzatziki sauce knocks it out of the park.

Here’s what you’ll need for the Lamb shells:

Container of Vegetable Stock
16 oz ground lamb
7 oz Feta (we use a sheep/goat combination brand by Mt. Vikos)
10 oz chopped spinach (we use the frozen option, just thaw and squeeze out the water)
1 small shallot finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
dash of granulated garlic
Box of large pasta shells

Tzatziki:
1 small container Goat Yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
3 or 4 large fresh Basil leaves, chopped fine
1/2 tablespoon Shallot, chopped fine
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 or 2 cloves of Garlic, chopped fine, if you want

For the Tzatziki, combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and let it sit in the refrigerator for an hour to a day or two to let the flavors combine.

In a skillet cook the lamb until done. Drain off most of the oil, and put the lamb into a bowl. Into the skillet cook your shallot until translucent, then add the spinach. Stir for a few minutes to separate the spinach then add the meat back into the skillet. Add all the herbs/spices/salt and stir the mixture well. Turn off the heat and set the skillet aside to cool.

While it’s cooling, heat a pot of water to boiling and add the pasta. You’ll cook the pasta to almost al dente, the shells will finish cooking in the oven. It’s also time to get your oven pre-heating to 400 degrees F.

Just before the shells are ready add your feta to the meat mixture stirring well.

Pour the shells into a strainer and run cold water over the shells. This will stop the cooking process AND you won’t burn your fingers when you stuff them with the meat.

Now for the fun part.. into a baking dish pour enough of the vegetable stock to cover the bottom, maybe 1/4 inch or so, then stuff the shells and place them (opening side up) into the dish. Cover with tin foil and bake about 30 mins.

Serve with Tzatziki Sauce and pecorino cheese.

Pasta with Lamb

October 15, 2014 by Ginger 1 Comment

Lamb Meatballs

Today’s dish was actually difficult to name. When one mentions “balls” these days, the conversation can quickly disintegrate into snickering akin to Beavis and Butthead, or be misinterpreted to a recipe involving lamb testicles, better known in Nevada as “lamb fries”. So we will simply say that this dish involves Pasta with Lamb (tho you are in fact making round balls, let’s be clear – and let the giggling begin). If you don’t like lamb, turkey would be a good substitute. Use your imagination! This is exactly what it’s for, and where our adventure begins…

Ingredients:

1lb ground lamb
1lb broccoli florets – cut into small “heads” or flowers
1 clove of garlic finely minced
1 small shallot finely minced
2 eggs
1/2 cup panko (or you could use breadcrumbs)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp basil
1/3 cup almond milk (or you could use cream)
1 cup shredded pecorino (or parmesan)
crumbled goat cheese
extra virgin olive oil
1 lb cooked pasta (we used gluten free rotini, but any small noodle will do)
Optional: red pepper flakes

To a large skilled add a couple tablespoons of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the minced garlic and shallot, stirring continually until the shallot begins to be translucent (6-8 minutes). Remove from heat and empty the skillet into a large mixing bowl (save this skillet for later, you’ll use it again). While this mixture is cooling, add the salt, rosemary, thyme and basil. Stir well. Next add the lamb, one egg and panko to the bowl. With clean hands mix this well, incorporating all the ingredients together, then begin rolling your balls. Ours are slightly bigger than bite size, whatever size you prefer is what you should aim for. Smaller will cook faster, fyi. I roll the balls and place them back into my mixing bowl. Yes, I have a large bowl and prefer fewer dirty dishes to clean up!

This next phase will require some forethought and a bit of juggling. If you have larger balls, you’ll need to finish them off in a 450 degree oven for about 20 mins, if you have smaller balls, you won’t. Depending on how you answered that question, will determine when you should begin cooking your pasta! If you are going to use the oven, have your pot boiling when you place the balls into the oven; if you aren’t using the oven, time the cooking of the lamb, with the cooking pasta. Make sense? You want everything done at the same time. So cook your pasta when you’re good n’tooting ready!

Once your balls are ready to be cooked (and with clean hands), add a couple more tablespoons of olive oil to you skillet. When it’s hot (and the balls will sizzle) carefully add them to your pan. Depending on the size, you’ll need to turn them every 5-6 mins to get them uniformly brown. *If* you made larger balls, now it’s time to put them into the prepared oven, (450 degree oven for about 20 mins. I place mine into a parchment lined pan and cover with aluminum foil).

When the balls are done, return them to your original skillet (or just leave them in there) and add your broccoli. As the broccoli cooks it will turn a beautiful deep green. While this cooks whisk your egg and almond milk together in a small bowl. You don’t want to fry them crispy, just about 8 mins or so, if they begin to turn brown, it’s time to move on. Add your drained pasta, mix well remove from the heat; quickly add your egg mixture and mix constantly (yes, you will get some cooked eggie bits), then add the shredded cheese. Serve hot with crumbled goat cheese on the top and French bread with balsamic vinegar to dip in.

If you enjoy a little heat with your meal, sprinkle on red pepper flakes to taste.

Lamb Tagine with Cherries and Mint

August 27, 2014 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Lamb, Cherry Tajine by D Fenwick, http://dfenwickphotography.com

Lamb, Cherry Tagine

We recently celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary, and what better way to say “I still do” than the gift of a cooking pot. Certainly it fits in with the old saying that “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”. So here’s to many more years of good loving, and good eating!

A tagine references not only the earthenware pot the meal is cooked in, but the meal itself. Our recipe can also be cooked in a dutch oven or a crockpot, so just use whatever you have on hand.

You will need:

Fresh ginger – 1/2 inch up to 1 inch finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
pat of butter
2 cinnamon sticks
~1/4 cup of honey
~1/2 cup dried cherries
~1/2 cup fresh cherries, pitted and halved
~1/2 cup pitted dates cut into 1/2 inch pieces
~3 lbs lamb (or beef, or chicken, etc) cubed evenly; if you are using chicken pieces like thighs, just leave as is.
several sprigs fresh mint chopped coarsely
slivered almonds are optional

With a mortar and pestle, carefully grind the ginger and garlic into a paste. Once it has reached the right consistency heat the oil and butter in a fry pan (if you’re using a crockpot) or heat directly in your tagine pot. When the oil is hot, add the paste and incorporate into the oil, then add the cinnamon sticks. After a few minutes the cinnamon aroma will get stronger and the paste will begin to change color, add the meat and sear the outside.

Now add the honey and the dried cherries. Mix gently and then place your dates around the outside ring of the meat, then add enough hot water to fill the bottom of the pot but not to cover the meat. Once the pot begins to boil, turn the heat down, cover and cook approximately one and half hours or until done.

Garnish with whole dates, slivered almonds, chopped mint and pitted, halved fresh cherries.

Serve with couscous or wild rice. Enjoy!

Beefy Lamb Meatball Goodness

April 30, 2014 by Dan Leave a Comment

Meatballs with tomato sauce

Yep, another meatball recipe – they’re just so darn good! And perfectly sized to take to work the next day for lunch. So let’s get to it:

Meatballs

1 lb Ground Sirloin
1 lb Ground Lamb
2 cups Cooked Long Grain Rice (I used brown basmati rice)
2 Eggs
2 sprigs Rosemary, chopped
2 sprigs Oregano, chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Cheese
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
1 14.5oz can peeled, chopped Tomatoes

Sauce

5 8oz cans Tomato Sauce
1 sprig Rosemary, chopped
1 sprig Oregano, chopped
1 tablespoon good Balsamic Vinegar
4 tablespoons Honey
2 teaspoons baking soda
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. You’ll need two baking dishes (I used a 9” x 13” and a 9” x 9”)

Combine the ground meat, rice, eggs, chopped rosemary and oregano, grated cheese, canned tomatoes (with the juice) salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix together gently using your hands until the ingredients are well mixed.

Form the meat mixture into 2 to 2 ½ inch balls. You should end up with 12 to 14 meatballs. Place the meatballs into your baking dishes so they aren’t crammed together. Place in the oven and back for 30 minutes or until they start to brown on top.

While the meatballs are cooking, make your sauce. Combine the tomato sauce, chopped herbs, balsamic vinegar and honey in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add the baking soda a teaspoon at a time. (This will neutralize the acid in the tomato sauce.) Stir in gently. Once it has stopped foaming, add the second teaspoon and mix it in. Once the sauce is hot, taste and add salt and pepper. Turn down to low and let simmer.

Once the meatballs have started to brown, spoon about half your sauce over the meatballs and return them to the oven. Cook another 20 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meat is 160 degrees.

Serve with the remaining sauce and side dishes of your choice. (We served ours with rice and a vegetable.)

Enjoy!