Lamb and Lentil Stew

Lamb and lentil stew is a staple around my house.  I prefer semi boneless lamb, so I can easily bone the lamb and trim generously, leaving lots of meat on the trimmings.  I then use the bone and trimmings for this stew.  You can use a full bone-in leg of lamb, but you better have a big enough pot to house that bone.  The bone and trimmings really form the flavor base for this rich stew, but you also could do a variation of this stew with a combination of lamb meat and chicken broth, if that's what you've got on hand..
1 lamb bone
¼ lb meaty lamb trimmings
1 carrot, diced
1/2 large onion, diced
6 cups water

2 stalks celery, diced
1 carrot, diced
1/2 large onion, diced
8 oz mushrooms, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp powdered cumin
½ tsp powdered coriander
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp rosemary leaves, crushed
1 cup Puy lentils

1 potato, peeled and diced
1 can diced tomatoes, drained, or 3 plum tomatoes, diced
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar

Toss the lamb bone and trimmings along with the carrot and onion into a soup pot with a dash of olive oil. Cook over medium high heat for about 10-15 minutes, to allow the meat and veggies to brown up and caramelize very, very well.

This will form the flavor base for the stock. Add the water and bring to a boil. Skim of any foam that might float to the surface, reduce to a simmer and cover. Simmer for about 45 minutes.

Let stock cool and then strain into a bowl. Remove and dice any meat from the bone and trimmings and set aside.

Sauté the next batch of carrot, onion and celery in a dash of olive oil in a soup pot. Simmer for about 10 minutes to allow the veggies to caramelize a bit. Add the mushrooms and continue cooking on high heat until the mushrooms release what water they will.

Turn heat to medium and allow the mushrooms to brown up a bit. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes and rosemary, and cook another 2-3 minutes.

 Return the stock to the soup pot and add the lentils. Bring to a gentle boil, stir, and reduce to a simmer. Cook covered for about 45-60 minutes, depending on the age (hardness) of the lentils (you can soak the lentils the night before, and that can reduce the cooking time).

Meanwhile, heat a dash of olive oil in a small skillet to shimmering hot. Carefully add the tomatoes and allow them to cook for about 5-8 minutes to darken in color and enrich their flavor.

Once the lentils are just becoming soft and toothsome, like slightly undercooked rice, add the potato and tomatoes to the soup. Salt and pepper to taste (better to salt and add tomatoes [acid] later when cooking lentils because salt and acid can slow the cooking process). If you used canned diced tomatoes, you can certainly add the reserved tomato liquid, or save for another use.

Cook stew until potatoes are only just soft, and the lentils are soft enough to eat, but still have body. Stir in the vinegar.

Garnish with fresh parsley. Serves 6.

Cook’s Note: You can use whatever vinegar you have, or lemon or lime. A dash of acid brightens up this very rich dish.

Sriracha Minestrone

This is a go-to Master Recipe I use for using up leftovers - meat and veggies - and make a rich soup really very quickly.  There are myriad variations on this theme depending on what you have hanging around that needs to be used up.  You certainly have flexibility with the name Minestrone, which comes from the Italian root minestra, and apparently ultimately means 'that which is served'.  No constraints...
1 carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 small yellow onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 quart chicken broth
1/4 cup barley

1 can Sriracha chili beans with sauce (I used Bush Beans)
1/3 lb chicken meat (I used leftover grilled chicken)
1 large potato, peeled and diced

2 cups fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

Sauté the carrot, celery and onion in a dash of olive oil in a soup pot. Allow the veggies to soften and caramelize a bit, cooking for about 8-10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another 2-3 minutes.

Add the chicken broth and the barley and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook about 20 minutes until the barley is just about softened. Add the beans, chicken and potato and return to a gentle boil. Reduce to a simmer and stir. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add the green beans. Cook until the potato and the green beans are just soft enough to eat.

Serve 4-6.

Cook’s Note: If you don’t have prepared Sriracha chili beans, you could use a regular can of chili beans (pinto beans in a chili sauce) and add Sriracha to your taste.  Alternatively, you can use a whole (undrained) can of pinto beans and add a dash of cumin and chili powder, and again, Sriracha to taste.

Spicy Shrimp and Cod Chowder

Cooking the shrimp separately with paprika and cayenne pepper is optional, but adds a layer of flavor to an otherwise quite mild dish.
1 leek, cleaned and diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 carrot, finely diced
2 Tbsp better and 2 Tbsp canola oil
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp fresh (1/4 tsp dried) thyme
4 cups milk
2 small potatoes, diced 1/2-inch, about 1-1/2 to 2 cups
1 lb cod, cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2-lb shrimp, shelled
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp Spanish pimenton, smoked paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Sauté leek, celery and carrot in butter and oil in a soup pot. Cook the veggies for 10 minutes. Add the flour and thyme and cook the roux for about 3-4 minutes. Add the milk and bring to a boil. Add the potatoes and allow soup to simmer for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are just becoming tender. Add the fish and heat on low until the cod is heated through. Salt and pepper to taste.

While the soup is warming, add the shrimp, oil, pimenton and cayenne to a small non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook only until the shrimp turns pink and is heated through.  Serve chowder in bowls, topped with a few shrimp.

Serves 4.

Cook's note: I used about 4-5 small assorted gold, redskin and purple potatoes.

Tico’s Deconstructed Pan-seared Cod Chowder

Having lived in New England so many years, I have become quite accustomed to the thick creamy white chowder New England is famous for.  There are contests to see whose is the best.  And the best I can guess, is that it is those that use clam juice in its preparation.  The best have a slightly lobster/shellfish aroma to them which is not lost on the backdrop of a velvety light white creamy soup base.  Manhattan red chowders can't come close to capturing that in a subtle way.

We recently joined our daughter and friends at Tico in Washington DC after an exciting Georgetown basketball game at the Verizon center.  Tico is a fun, festive fairly casual restaurant founded by chef Michael Schlow.  Its a great place for post game eating, especially with their hibiscus margaritas, which are simply outstanding.  They should be when the restaurant boasts 88 different types of tequilla!

My wife had the Cod dish, in which chef Schlow deconstructed the New England fish chowder into its fundamental parts.  Each element shone so well because it was separately roasted and flavored.  It was so good, I reverse engineered it at home as best I could.  Thanks for the inspiration, chef Schlow!
2 Russet potatoes, peeled and cut lengthwise into 1/2x1/2-inch wide wedges
3 carrots, cut the same size as the potatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp rosemary leaves, crushed or chopped
2 Tbsp olive oil

1/4 lb bacon, diced
2 leeks, trimmed, cleaned and sliced in half lengthwise, and then into 4-inch long pieces
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

2 Tbsp butter
1-1/2 lb cod fillet

Chowder Sauce:
2 Tbsp butter plus 1 Tbsp canola oil
1/4 cup flour
1 bottle clam juice
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 tsp chopped dill weed

Preheat oven to 425F. Cut the cod into four serving portions.

Toss the potatoes, carrots and the garlic together with the rosemary and olive oil in a large bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.

 Tip veggies out onto a rimmed baking sheet. Shake to form a single layer.

Roast veggies for about 30 minutes, turning once, until golden brown.

Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a large non-stick skillet until just crisp. Remove bacon to a paper towel with a slotted spoon. Add leeks to skillet with 2 tablespoons water.

Cook over medium heat until the water evaporates, about 5-8 minutes, turning leeks over once or twice. Continue cooking another 5-8 minutes until the leeks are soft and tender and beginning to brown. Season with the red pepper flakes and remove to a plate.

Cover to keep warm.

While the leeks are cooking, make the sauce by melting the butter in the oil in a saucepan. Add the flour and whisk together for about 3-4 minutes, until the mixture emits a nutty aroma. Then whisk in the clam juice, broth and wine. Whisk together and bring to a gentle boil. Season with the dill and salt and pepper to taste. Allow the sauce to thicken - you should achieve a thickness of a nice New England clam chowder. If it is still too thick, thin as needed with a dash more of chicken broth.

Now add butter to skillet and melt throughly. Season the fish with salt and pepper. Add fish fillets and cook over medium-high heat on first side for about 4-5 minutes, until nicely browned.

Cod is a delicate fish that flakes apart easily, so do not move the fish around much at all. Gently flip the fish with a thin fish spatula and cook the second side for about 3-4 minutes, or just until the fish is just cooked through.

Plate the dish by evenly distributing roasted veggies on the bottom of four wide, shallow bowls. Top with leeks, again, evenly distributed. Place a fish portion on top of each bowl, and garnish with bacon.

Now carefully pour the sauce around the edges of the dish and serve immediately.

Serves 4.

Pumpkin Apple Soup Over Savory White Beans

There's a reason they call it winter squash.  My smaller pumpkins from Halloween, kept in the cool, dark basement were still beautiful right after New Year's.  OK, they may not have been so sweet as at harvest, but let's not forget what our forefathers had, as they stored their harvest for winter feeding.

If you don't have a nice medium-small sweet pumpkin, stored from fall and still ''rooking mawh-velous" (a shoutout to Saturday Night Live) in January, then you can simply use a nice butternut squash that you find in the market.  Really, any winter squash would work wonders here.  But don't fret about how sweet your pumpkin or squash might be (so long as it looks unblemished, beautiful and smells absolutely fresh), because this soup is sweetened by apple and sweet potato.

This soup becomes a full meal when coupled with savory beans, stewed with tomatoes and fennel and rich herbs like rosemary.  This is a warm, hearty winter dish, probably not unlike those eaten many decades ago in a simpler time.
1 medium pumpkin, about 8-inch diameter (or 1 large butternut squash)
1 lb carrots, peeled and thickly sliced, about 5-6
1 apple, peeled, cored and diced (I used Honey Crisp - choose something sweet)
1 sweet potato, peeled and coarsely diced
1 quart vegetable (or chicken) broth
about 2 cups water, more or less as needed
1 cup half and half

1 fennel bulb, finely diced
1 medium onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp rosemary, crushed or minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 cans white beans, lightly drained
1 cup water
1 Tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 400F. Cut the top off the pumpkin and scoop out and discard all the seeds and wet internals. Carefully slice the pumpkin (or squash) into 1-2 inch slices. Lay the slices on rimmed baking sheets and sprinkle with oil, salt and pepper.

Roast for about 40 minutes, or until they brown at the edges and smell very aromatic. Check the pumpkin every once in a while and turn pans if necessary to assure even heating.

While the pumpkin roasts, sauté the onion, carrot and apple in a dash of olive oil in large soup pot. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, until the veggies begin to brown and caramelize a bit. Remove from heat.

When the pumpkin is roasted, remove from oven and carefully slice the meat from the peel and add the meat to the carrots and onions in the pot. Add the broth and enough water just to cover the veggies. Bring to a boil, and stir. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring several times. Add the sweet potato and cook another 20-30 minutes, stirring often.

While the soup cooks, sauté the fennel and onion in a medium pot with a dash of olive oil.

Cook for about 15 minutes, until the veggies soften and begin to caramelize. Add the garlic, rosemary, red pepper flakes and coriander.

Cook another 2-3 minutes.  Add the tomatoes and cook for another 8-10 minutes.

Add the beans and water and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, stir, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring often. Then add the butter to the beans and stir to incorporate.

Purée the soup with an emersion blender. Pour soup into shallow serving bowls. Mound a cohesive mound of beans, about 3/4 cup, into the center of each bowl protruding from the soup.

Serve with crusty bread. Serves 6.

Navy Bean and Leek Soup

A simple vegetarian bean soup to balance the indulgences of the holidays.
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 leeks, trimmed, cleaned and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can Navy or Great Northern Beans
1 quart vegetable (or chicken) broth
1 dozen grape tomatoes, halved
1 tsp herbes de Provence, or Italian herbs
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
generous palmful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Sauté the carrot and onion in a soup pot in a dash of olive oil for about 10 minutes.

Add the leek along with 2 tablespoons water. Cook the leak, allowing the water to evaporate.

Continue sautéing until the leek is just wilted and aromatic. Add the garlic and cook another 2-3 minutes.

Add the beans, broth and parsley and bring to a gentle boil.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to a simmer, stir and allow to cook about 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, sauté the tomatoes in a skillet over high heat in a dash of olive oil.

Let the tomatoes sizzle and caramelize as they break apart and deepen their flavor. Add the potatoes and the tomatoes to the soup and bring to a simmer. Cook for another 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are just cooked through.

Serves 4-6.

Beef and Chorizo Soup

Here's a soup with the richness of beef and whole grain of wheat and rice. Like a good beef and barley soup, this one is very much balanced with veggie and grain.  A weekend soup to last the whole week.
2 lb chuck roast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tsp crushed dried red chili flakes

4 carrots, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch lengths (about 4 cups)
2 medium onions, peeled and diced, about 2 cups
4 stalks celery, sliced, about 2 cups

3 links fresh chorizo, about 2/3 lb, cut up into 1/2-inch pieces
1 Tbsp rosemary, crushed
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, drained, liquid reserved
2 quarts water
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup whole wheat (soft)
1/2 cup sweet black rice
2 Russet potatoes, peeled and diced 3/4-inch
1 5-oz bag collard greens, or baby kale

Heat a dash of canola oil in a large soup pot until just about smoking. Add half the beef cubes and brown the first batch on all sides, about 5-8 minutes.

Season lightly with salt and pepper. Set first batch aside and repeat for the second batch. Set beef aside.

Add the carrots, onions and celery to the pot with a dash olive oil. Sauté the veggies for about 8-10 minutes, until slightly softened and caramelized.

Add the red pepper flakes and cook another 1-2 minutes. Remove veggies to bowl with beef.

Add the chorizo to the pot with a dash of olive oil, if necessary. Brown the chorizo on all sides.

Add the rosemary and garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes. Add the drained tomatoes and increase the heat to high.

Bring the mixture to an active sizzle and let the tomatoes darken and caramelize a bit - this really adds flavor. Cook about 3-5 minutes.

Return the beef and veggies to the pot along with the water and Worcestershire, reserved tomato liquid and any bits of reserved beef pan drippings you might have frozen for soups. Bring to a gentle boil, and reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook about 45 minutes, stirring every once in a while.

Now add the wheat and the rice and return to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook about 30 minutes.

Finally, add the potatoes and the greens and cook another 15-20 minutes.

Check for seasoning and doneness.

Serves 8.

Cook's Note:  I used soft whole wheat, which cooks faster than darker brown hard whole wheat by about 2X.  I am sure you could use the latter, just extend the cooking times.

Minestrone with Lamb and Sausage

Soups are feeling so much better as fall sets in.  Save any leftover of roasted joints of lamb or beef, and make a wonderful soup with the leftovers.
1 lb leftover lamb, cubed 1/2-inch
2 Tbsp minced mint leaves
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 leek, trimmed, cleaned and diced1 15-oz can diced tomatoes

1 quart chicken broth
2 cups water

1/4 cup pearl barley
1/2 lb polish kielbasa, diced 1/2-inch
1/2 lb small waxy potatoes, diced 1/2-inch
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 cups green beans, cut 1-inch
2 cups green cabbage, cut 1-inch
1 can chick peas, rinsed and drained
1 can dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Heat a dash of olive oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot. Add the lamb and brown nicely on all sides. Add the mint leaves and garlic and cook another 2-3 minutes.

Add the celery and carrots to the lamb and cook about another 5 minutes.

Then add the leek and cook another 5 minutes.

Then add the tomatoes.

Add the broth and water and bring to a gentle boil. Add the barley and simmer about 15 minutes.  Add the sausage, potatoes and the green beans and simmer another 5 minutes.

Then add the cabbage, peas and beans, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Simmer another 10 minutes until all the veggies are crisp tender.

Serves 6-8.