Braised Lamb Shanks with Lentils
In the last few days, we’ve been experiencing the type of weather that I didn’t know existed until I moved to Boston- weather that I am beginning to think of as “Hell Freezing Over” because it’s certainly cold, and most definitely hellish!
On Monday, it was the kind of cold that freezes any moisture in your nose into instant boogers that impair your breathing. Not that you really want to suck in 15 degree air and freeze your body from the inside out, however, NOT breathing is, unfortunately, not a viable survival option.On Tuesday we were rewarded with a 10 degree rise in temperature, but what came with it was more snow (big fluffy flakes the size of golf balls- fun!) that later turned to rain. When I lived in California and didn’t know better, I thought snow was the worst weather: it’s cold and inconvenient. Having experienced half a dozen winters in Boston, I’ve learned that I would much rather have snow over the dreaded WINTRY MIX (freezing rain, sleet, rain rain, snow, and cold air in any possible combination or ALL AT ONCE). It is just miserable to be get wet when it’s so cold, crossing the street becomes treacherous as the melted snow re-freezes into slippery slides on the sidewalks, and street corners are unavoidably huge lakes of slush and dirty melted snow. AND tonight and tomorrow we’re in for even MORE snow, and all I can say is… I’m tired of Winter, please bring Spring now.
One of my ways to combat serious winter weather is to warm your home and your body with braised meats and stews. It’s hearty and filling to warm your body, and slowly cooks for a couple hours on your stove, warming your home. I braised lamb shanks and lamb stew meat in beer and chicken stock until the meat fell apart when prodded with a fork, and added lots of vegetables and lentils at the end for a most satisfying stew.
Lamb Chops with Pistachio Tapenade
Recently I’ve been having some trouble sleeping. I have no problem falling asleep, in fact, often I’m ready to drop my head into my dinner, but I have been waking up in the middle of the night, but despite feeling exhausted, I am unable to fall back asleep. I’ve ramped up work in lab and also re-established some routine of physical exercise (so much for not making resolutions for the New Year?), and then battled a mild cold, but it hasn’t left much time or energy to clean the apartment or run some much needed errands (I only have one elastic hair tie left in my possession and am running dangerously low on clean underwear), or post about recent deliciousness on my Tumblr! This has contributed to my inability to fall back asleep when I wake in the middle of the night/ungodly early in the morning because I can’t stop worrying about all the things left undone at lab and at home… and an unplanned wedding (eek).
So here I am… it’s 3 am, I have failed for the last hour to fall back asleep, and since I don’t think my neighbors (or Andreas) would appreciate me vacuuming the apartment (even though it is in desperate need) at this hour, instead, I will take advantage of the extra time to share these fabulous lamb chops and catch up on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills!
I didn’t always like lamb chops, but have slowly acquired a love for them (as I have for coffee and tofu), though this love has certainly been accelerated by living with and loving a lamb-loving Greek. Some may complain that lamb is too “game-y”- to which I would argue makes it almost tastier than beef (I say “almost” because I could never choose between lamb and beef if I could only bring one meat to eat for the rest of my life on a desert island) because it’s distinct and tastes like.. well, an animal. But even if you think that lamb is not your favorite type of meat, this recipe is not just for lamb but also for a tasty pistachio and olive tapenade. Roasted pistachios, briney green olives, capers, fresh parsley and oregano, and lemon makes a unique, fresh-tasting and light tapenade. The lamb chops are seared first to get nice and caramelized, then finished in the oven topped with the briney and nutty mixture to make a truly mouth-watering combination. Man, I think I just made myself hungry.
The recipe makes more than enough tapenade for more than one rack of lamb, which you can then enjoy the next day in a toasted sandwich! Or on a second rack of lamb…
Lamb Burgers with Halloumi Cheese
The last few days in Boston have been absolutely GORGEOUS, and though I am hesitant to believe that 40-50 degree weather is totally behind us (because if there is anything I have learned from living here is that once you THINK it is spring/summer, you could be rewarded with a freak snowstorm!), I was excited to break out the skirts and flip flops! Much to my delight, I am beginning to see the faint outline of flip flop straps on my feet; these tan lines remind me of San Diego and how those lines stubbornly persisted year-round, much to my frustration back then. Living in Boston requires being shielded from the elements (including the sun) for half of the year, and once it gets warm, it is often too hot and humid (read: sweaty) for me to comfortably bask in the sunshine as I did in California. As a result, I have been the pale-est I have ever been in my life, and my parents tease me every time I return home. On the upside, my grandma, who still upholds the traditional Chinese view that pale is beautiful and tan is working class, gushes endlessly over my light complexion!
I’ve posted before about burgers in celebration of warm weather, and although there were no home-made burger buns this time around, this burger with its Mediterranean flair may well be one of my favorites. Ground lamb is flavored with fresh parsley and cilantro, diced onions, toasted pinenuts, and cinnamon, allspice, garlic powder, and a bit of cayenne. The burger was served on toasted onion focaccia with a light salad of kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, shredded romaine and a squeeze of lemon juice. What really brings this burger to the next level was the fried halloumi cheese!
Halloumi is a delicious sheep and goat’s milk cheese made traditionally in Cyprus. Perhaps its most significant characteristic is its high melting point, which allows it to be grilled (or pan-fried) to carmelized crispy perfection- without turning into an ooze-y mess. I remember fondly the day that Andreas’s family introduced me to grilled halloumi; we had it for breakfast with slightly sauteed tomatoes and warm pitas, and it just completely blew my mind! The cheese itself is salty (in a really good way), and when grilled or fried the cheese becomes toasty and crispy on the outside, yet still soft on the inside- and I have really never tasted anything like it! I picked up some halloumi at Whole Foods this weekend, and basically planned the burger around the concept of the delicious grilled cheese… and ended up with one AMAZING burger!
Lamb Burgers
adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Kefta kabob recipe
makes 5-6 burger patties
1 pound ground lamb
2 slices of white bread, torn into tiny pieces
1/2 medium red onion, finely diced
1/4 cup parsley, finely minced
1/4 cup cilantro, finely minced
1/3 cup toasted pinenuts, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Place bread in a bowl, cover in water. Let soak for about 10 minutes. Squeeze out as much liquid as possible, then transfer bread to a bowl with the meat.
- Combine the lamb meat, bread, onions, herbs, and spices. Use your hands to mix.
- Divide the meat into 5 or 6 equal portions. Pat the meat into patties, pushing indentations in the center so that the burgers will cook flat.
- Heat up grill, grill pan, or skillet. Cook the burgers about 4-5 minutes on each side, until nicely browned. Transfer to a plate and allow the patties to rest, covered, for a few minutes.
Going Greek.
Since I had an almost full day at lab last Saturday, Andreas planned our afternoon snack/early dinner/playoff game meal. I came home to a grilled lamb burger with goat cheese, greek salad, on toasted onion foccaccia.
Um, hello most awesome little burger, where have you been all my life??
