RECIPE: Carrot Salad with Tahini, Crisped Chickpeas, and Salted Pistachios

Believe it or not, I still have a few carrots left from last season's harvest - that's the beauty of Biodynamic Agriculture - and here's one of our favorite ways to serve them.

One of my favorite food bloggers is Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen.  Deb is funny, REAL, and she appreciates a well-seasoned recipe as much as I do.  I hack her recipes a lot!  Last week, she shared this recipe for carrot salad that sounded so yummy I couldn't wait to make it!  

The recipe comes together quickly - you can grate the carrots and mix the dressing while the chickpeas are roasting, and have dinner on the table in 30 minutes!  

It was so good my husband was mixing the leftover dressing and beans with the carrots that I slice as dippers!  As Deb says, "I don’t think I’ve ever had a bowl of grated carrots with so much complexity".

Original recipe: Carrot Salad With Tahini, Crisped Chickpeas, and Salted Pistachios

I copied her recipe below verbatim, and added my changes in red.

Carrot Salad with Tahini, Crisped Chickpeas, and Salted Pistachios

(Sorry for the crummy photo - I forgot to take one until I was almost finished eating!)

Serves 4

Chickpeas
1 3/4 cups cooked chickpeas, or 1 15-ounce can, drained and patted dry on paper towels
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt (I used 1 t. Himalayan pink salt)
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Salad
1 pound carrots, peeled and coarsely grated (We prefer a medium grate)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley (I didn't have so I used cilantro)
1/4 cup shelled, salted pistachios, coarsely chopped

Dressing
1 medium garlic clove, minced (I grated mine into the lemon juice)
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 tablespoons well-stirred tahini
2 tablespoons water, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and red pepper flakes to taste

Roast chickpeas: Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Toss chickpeas with one tablespoon olive oil, salt and cumin until they’re all coated. Spread them on a baking sheet or pan and roast them in the oven until they’re browned and crisp. This can take anywhere from 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size and firmness of your chickpeas. Toss them occasionally to make sure they’re toasting evenly. Set aside until needed. (I spread mine into one layer and then left them there for 20 minutes.  I stirred them, spread them out again, and left them for another 10 until they were really crisp!)  NOTE: the last time I made this it was raining, and the chickpeas refused to get crisp!  I had to leave them in for 40 minutes, turning them occasionally. We then had to re-crisp the leftovers!

Make dressing: Whisk all ingredients together until smooth, adding more water if needed to thin the dressing slightly. Taste and adjust seasoning; don’t worry if it tastes a little sharp on the lemon, it will marry perfectly with the sweet grated carrots. (Yes!  Anything lemony is great with raw carrots!)

Assemble salad: Place grated carrots in large bowl and toss with parsley. Mix in 2/3 of the dressing, adding more if desired. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Sprinkle with a large handful of chickpeas (you’ll have extra and if you’re like us, won’t regret it) and pistachios and dig in. (You can see the medium grate of our carrots below, before I mixed them with the cilantro.)

 

Do ahead: Salad keeps well in the fridge for two days, however, I’d add the chickpeas and pistachios right before serving, so they don’t get soft.

Any leftover chickpeas make nice 'croutons' for a green salad.

 

RECIPE: Thai-Inspired GF Meatball Soup

The original recipe was written for chicken, but I didn't have ground chicken and I did have ground pork, so that's what I used and we scarfed this down!  It's naturally gluten free, I didn't have to make adjustments, but I did double the amount of spinach.

Original recipe: Thai-Inspired Chicken Meatball Soup

Thai-Inspired GF Meatball Soup

Serves 4 

• 1 4-inch piece ginger, peeled
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 jalapeno
• 2 pounds ground chicken, turkey or pork
• 1 large bunch cilantro, leaves and stems finely chopped, a few leaves left whole for garnish
• 3 T. fish sauce, divided
• 1 t. himalayan pink salt
• 2 T. coconut oil
• 2 c. chicken broth
• 1 14-ounce can full-fat coconut milk
• 1/2 t. granulated sugar
• 10 ounces baby spinach
• 1 T. lime juice, plus lime wedges for serving

Preheat the oven to 375F. 

Using the small holes of a box grater or microplane, grate the ginger, garlic and jalapeno (or finely chop them by hand). Transfer half to a large bowl and set the rest aside.  To the large bowl, add the meat, chopped cilantro, 2 T. fish sauce and 1 t. salt.  Use your hands to fully combine but do not overmix.

Form into 1-inch meatballs (I use a 25mm disher) and arrange them on a baking pan.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until bottoms are browned.

While the meatballs are cooking, heat 2 T. oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add the reserved ginger mixture and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, sugar, and the remaining 1 T. fish sauce.  Bring to a simmer.

When the meatballs are cooked, transfer them to the broth and simmer 5-8 minutes to meld flavors.  

Remove from heat, add the spinach and lime juice, and stir until spinach is wilted. Garnish with cilantro.

Serve with lime wedges.   

RECIPE: GF Meatloaf with Caramelized Cabbage

I decided to make this recipe because the title sounded delicious - caramelized anything sounds delicious -  but, as I was pulling it together, and leaving out all the sweet ingredients because we don't like sweet with meat, I wondered whether it would be bland because there is NO seasoning.  Surprisingly, it was DELICIOUS!  We still can't figure out why***, but easy and delicious is a winner in my book!

The original recipe is linked below, even though I left all the sweet ingredients out.

Original recipe: Kalpudding (Meatloaf with Caramelized Cabbage)  

(My Swedish friend thinks this is probably KOHL pudding, even though he has never heard of it...)

GF Meatloaf with Caramelized Cabbage

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 2 T plus 1 t. unsalted butter, divided
  
• 1 head green cabbage (1.5-2 pounds*) cored and shredded
• 3 t himalayan pink salt
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 large yellow onion, peeled and minced
• 1.25 c. heavy cream  
• 5 T chia seeds, preferably ground
• 1/2 cup homemade low-salt chicken, beef, or vegetable stock, or water**. 

Heat the oven to 350F.  I used our toaster oven.

In a large pan over medium-high heat, melt 2 T. butter.  When it starts to foam, add the cabbage, lower the heat to medium, and add 1 t. salt.  Cook slowly, stirring often, until all the liquid has evaporated and the cabbage is caramelized, approximately 20-25 minutes.

While the cabbage is cooking, add the chia and remaining 2 t. salt to the cream and mix well.  Let it sit until the chia is hydrated, about 10 minutes.  Lightly stir in the meats, then add the onion and mix to combine.

When the cabbage is done, add about one third of it to the meat mixture and mix to combine.  

Use the remaining 1 t. butter to grease an 10" square baking pan (I used the 8 x 12 pan that fit in our toaster oven) and transfer the meat mixture to it, spreading it out to cover the whole surface evenly.  

Spread the remaining cabbage over the meat, pour the stock or water over the top, and place in the oven.  Cook for approximately 40-45 minutes or until the cabbage is very, very caramelized, almost dry and crunchy at the edges.  Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

*I prefer a higher percentage of cabbage to meat, so I use 2 pounds of cabbage.  

*I have also made this with 1.5 pounds of canned (i.e cooked) ground beef, half a pound of raw ground pork, and 3 pounds of cabbage (a mix of chinese and savoy), and it was tender and tasty, but it didn't fit in my 8x12 pan so I made the extra into 1" meatballs and cooked them for 12 minutes.  Yum!!  I will definitely be making it that way again!  

*And, I have made it with 1.5 pounds of cooked ground beef and 1/2 pound of raw veal mixed with 1.5 pounds of cabbage (that was all I had on hand) and it was still good!  My husband - raving about it - had it for lunch and dinner, and he rarely eats the same meal twice in a row.  

**When I make this with canned ground beef, I don't add the liquid because there is usually liquid in the jar.

***Well....Now I know what makes it taste so good!  I made it today with 1.5 pounds cooked beef and 1/2 pound of raw veal but replaced the cream with veal broth.  The first thing my husband said was, "Did you change something?  It's not as rich!"  I had to agree, it wasn't as good, even though I had increased the amount of butter to compensate for the fat in the cream.

So...it appears that you can play around with the meat types and proportions, and the cabbage types and proportions, but replace the cream at your risk!  I thought about using coconut cream, but felt it would compromise the flavor, as would nut milk.  If you use either one of those successfully, please let me know.

Recipe: Spicy Chicken Vegetable Soup Stew

Here's a recipe using winter farm produce that's unbelievably tasty without any spices!  I was astonished.  I know it doesn't look very good, but it was - we both had seconds.

The original used potatoes and corn, but we're eating low-carb these days so I substituted turnips (the large ones are sweet!) and used extra cabbage and extra peppers (we like spicy!). Next time I'll use more carrots.  In other words...the vegetable proportions are flexible - use what you like.

I had roasted peppers in the freezer from last season (learn how to roast them HERE).  I also had frozen green bell peppers, so all the vegetables in this recipe were from the farm.

Unbelievably, I had dinner on the table in just over one hour and it was delicious!  The hardest part was chopping all those vegetables....

Original recipe: Spicy Chicken Vegetable Soup

Spicy Chicken Vegetable Soup Stew 

serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• ½ large onion, chopped
• ½ large bell pepper, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 large turnip, cut into ½” cubes
• 7-8 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 t. Chinese hot mustard powder or to taste 
• 1 t. crushed dried oregano
• himalayan salt to taste (I used 4 t.)
  
• 6 small or 4 large roasted poblano chile or roasted NM green chile, chopped
• 3 generous cups of chopped green cabbage
• 4 cups leftover chicken meat, shredded
  

To serve

• Monterey Jack cheese or medium sharp cheddar cheese, grated (a little for each serving)
• Corn chips or fried tortilla strips

Instructions

 

In a soup pot, heat the olive oil. When hot, add the onion, pepper and garlic and sauté on medium low until onion is translucent, about 4 – 5 minutes.

 

Add the carrot and turnips and cook for 2 minutes.

 

Pour 7 cups of broth into the soup pot with the sautéed vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the chicken, cabbage and roasted chile. If soup is too thick, add the last cup of broth to get the consistency you prefer. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and taste for desired seasoning. Adjust if needed.

If you have time, let the soup cool then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. We all know that soup is better the next day. When ready to serve, reheat.

To serve, top each bowl of soup with a bit of cheese and some crumbled chips or fried tortilla strips.  ( I didn't do this and it was still delicious).

RECIPE: Spanish Spice-Crusted Pork Tenderloin Bites

Every now and then The Boston Globe prints a recipe that piques my interest.  Last month, their recipe for pork tenderloin sounded so delicious - and easy - I couldn't wait to make it!  It was indeed easy, the hardest part was waiting for the tenderloin to defrost!

Original recipe: Spanish Spice-Crusted Pork Tenderloin Bites (Pinchos Morunus)

Spanish Spice-Crusted Pork Tenderloin Bites

serves 3-4 depending on whether you serve a starch

• 1-pound pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 1-1.5" slices
• 1.5 t. ground coriander
• 1.5 t. ground cumin
• 1.5 t. smoked paprika
• Himalayan pink salt and ground black pepper
  
• 1 T. lemon juice plus lemon wedges for serving
• 1 T. honey
• 1 large garlic clove, finely grated
• 2 T. EVOO
• 1 T. chopped fresh oregano, or 1 t. dried (I used dried) 

In a medium bowl, combine the spices and 1 t. each of salt and pepper.  Mix well.  Add the pork and toss to coat evenly, massaging the spices into the meat until no dry rub remains.  Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.

 

Mix lemon juice, honey, and garlic.  If you're using dried oregano, add it here.  Set aside.

 

In a large skillet over high heat, add 1 T. oil and heat until just smoking.  Add the pork in one layer and cook without moving until deeply browned on one side, about 3 minutes.  Using tongs,  flip the pork and cook, turning occasionally, until cooked through and browned all over, another 2-3 minutes.

Remove from heat and pour the lemon-honey-garlic mixture over, then toss until evenly coated.  Transfer to a platter.

Sprinkle fresh oregano over and drizzle with the remaining 1 T. oil.  Serve with lemon wedges.

We served it with roasted broccoli - which was wonderful with the extra sauce.  It served 3 this way.

,

RECIPE: Meatball-Croquettes made with cooked or leftover meat

For most of my life, I made meatballs with raw meat.

When I started pressure canning meat to free up room in the freezer, I started using 1 part canned (cooked) meat to 1 part raw, and the resulting meatballs were indistinguishable from those made with all raw meat.

Last week, when I forgot to defrost some raw meat to mix with the canned, I decided to see what would happen if I used all canned (i.e. cooked) meat and I'm happy to report that they were edible!  I was in a hurry and didn't want to bother with sauteing the onions so I used scallions and chopped them finely.  The whole thing, including baking, came together in 30 minutes!

They were different than meatballs made with raw meat - much more tender, to the point where my husband asked if they were cooked all the way.  I knew they were cooked, but to prove it I made another batch which I cooked for longer and they were dry and unappetizing.

I started with my gluten-free master recipe and just used all canned meat.  If you don't have canned, you can use leftover meat, finely chopped or ground.  I used canned ground beef but you can use any kind of meat - beef, veal, pork, lamb, chicken, or turkey.

Original recipe: Gluten free meatballs

Meatball-croquettes Made with Cooked/Leftover Meat 

Makes about thirty 1" meatballs

For each pound of cooked, chopped or ground meat:

• 1 large or 2 small eggs
• 1/3 c chia meal (or potato flakes*)
• 1/4 c. cream
• 1-1.5 t. salt
• 3-4 green onions, minced
• seasonings (use your favorite recipe - I have made Italian, French, Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese, Moroccan, Tunesian, Russian, Cajun, Belgian, and Greek )

Preheat oven to 350.

Beat the eggs and cream together, then stir in the chia meal (or potato flakes) and the salt.  Let this sit for at least 10 minutes to develop the panade (binder).

Meanwhile, mince the onions and measure out whatever seasonings you're using.

When the panade has thickened, stir in the onions and seasoning.  Add the meat and mix well.  Fry a small piece and correct seasoning.

Form into 1-1.5" meatballs (I use a size 60, 1.5" disher).

Place the meatballs close together on baking pan lined with Silpat, parchment, or parchment backed foil. .

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.  Do not overcook or they'll be dry and tough!  

I served them on a bed of arugula with a dollop of sour cream.  Here's what the inside looks like:

 The leftovers were good cold, dipped into leftover bearnaise sauce....

 

RECIPE: Easy Bearnaise Sauce

Here's another alternative to mayonnaise, flavored with tarragon and shallots.

Bearnaise sauce is a variation on hollandaise, which is notoriously difficult to prepare, but this version is easy, foolproof, and fail-proof!  The technique is similar to the one I use to make mayonnaise.

I combined two recipes: Serious Eat's recipe for immersion blender hollandaise, and James Peterson's recipe for bearnaise.  The Serious Eats recipe made one cup, Peterson's made one quart.  I split the difference and made one pint.  

Original recipe: Foolproof Hollandaise in 2 Minutes

If you don't have an immersion blender, here is another foolproof way to make hollandaise  

For New Year's Eve dinner, we had beef chateaubriande with green beans and bearnaise.  The chateaubriande roasts at 375F for 20 minutes, and then rests for 10 minutes.  I made the shallot-herb extract while the beef was cooking, and made the bearnaise emulsion while it was resting.  

EASY Immersion Blender Bearnaise Sauce

Makes 2 cups (one pint)

INGREDIENTS

• 3 medium shallots, minced
• 2 t. dried tarragon (if you use fresh, use 1/4 cup of the leaves stripped from the stems)
  
• 1 t. dried chervil
• 1 t. cracked peppercorns
  
• 3/4 c white wine
• 3/4 c. white vinegar
• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
• 3 egg yolks, from medium or large eggs
  
• 3 t. cold water
  
• 1/2 t. himalayan pink salt
  

INSTRUCTIONS

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine shallots, tarragon, chervil, peppercorns, white wine and white vinegar.  Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered and stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 20 minutes. 

Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a small heat-proof pitcher. 

Wipe out saucepan and add butter.  Over medium heat, melt butter until foam subsides, about 5 minutes.

While the butter is melting, add the egg yolks, water and salt to a pint jar and get out your immersion blender.

When the foam has subsided on the butter, pour it into the pitcher with the shallot extract.

Insert the head of the immersion blender into the pint jar and turn it on.  With the motor running, slowly pour the hot butter mixture into the yolks.  The acid and heat will perfectly cook the yolks!

Taste and adjust seasoning.

Serve immediately.

 

Store any leftovers in the fridge.  

If you try and reheat bearnaise, the emulsion will break, but you CAN use it as a spread instead of mayonnaise. Here's what it looks like right out of the fridge - as you can see, it IS spreadable!

 

On New Year's Day, my husband rolled the leftover beans in some sliced ham, reheated them in the oven, and then spooned the cold bearnaise over top.  It melted slightly but didn't break, and he says it was delicious.

RECIPE: Super Smooth Hummus with Multiple Seasoning Options

Ugh.  We've given up mayonnaise.  

Or, rather, we've greatly reduced our consumption, so we needed to find an alternative.  Hummus doesn't work as an alternative for ALL the places we use mayo, but it can be used on hard boiled eggs, as a dip for veggies, and thinned with water or EVOO as a salad dressing.  

There are several recipes on this site for hummus made withOUT chickpeas, so I thought I'd post a recipe for traditional hummus.  The best hummus I've ever had was made by our farmer's son, but I haven't tested that recipe yet so I can't post it.  His recipe is made with dried chickpeas, and I needed something faster, using canned chickpeas.

I've researched the cost of dried organic chickpeas vs Eden Foods canned chickpeas and the price is nearly the same so why not let someone else do the work?  This recipe uses the large 28oz can so I can split one batch into two and season both halves differently.  I will often double the recipe and make 4 flavors at once.

The recipe I started with (link below) recommends using freshly squeezed lemon juice, which would obviously be best.  When I don't have fresh lemons on hand I use bottled juice but I DON'T SHAKE THE BOTTLE BEFORE MEASURING.  The stuff on the bottom of the jar is what's harshly flavored.  

I also used half the amount of tahini she called for - the organic tahini I prefer is too expensive to use a whole jar for one recipe! Feel free to use more if you can afford to.

Hummus a wonderful dip for carrots, which are abundant in our farm store during the winter....

Original recipe: Best hummus recipe

Super Smooth Hummus with Multiple Seasoning Options

makes 4 cups

INGREDIENTS

• 1 28oz can chickpeas
• 1 t. baking soda 
• 1/2 c. lemon juice
• 2 large cloves garlic, chopped
  
• 1 t. himalayan pink salt
• 1/2 c. - 3/4 c. tahini (I used 1/2 cup, you can use more if you like)
  
• 2-4 T. ice water
• 1 t. ground cumin
• 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
• Za'atar, sumac, or paprika
  

SEASONING (one or more of the following):

• 1/4 c. roasted red peppers
• 1 T. harissa  plus 1 T. lemon juice
• 5 t. berbere seasoning plus 2 T. lemon juice
  
• 1/4 c. minced fresh jalapeno or 1 t. dried and ground
• 1/4 c. sun dried tomatoes
• 1/4 c. kalamata olives
• 1/4 c. cilantro plus 1 T. lemon juice 
• 1/4 c. roasted garlic

INSTRUCTIONS

In a medium saucepan, add the chickpeas (I don't drain them), enough water to cover them by 2-3 inches, and the baking soda.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 10-20 minutes until they're easy to crush against the side of the pot.  Don't overcook them - when they start to fall apart they'll be impossible to drain! 

Drain them in a fine mesh strainer and then briefly rinse them under cold water.  Set aside to cool.

While the chickpeas are cooking, combine the lemon juice, garlic and salt in a food processor or high-powered blender.  Process until the garlic is finely minced and then let the mixture marinate for at least 10 minutes.   

While the chickpeas are cooling, add the tahini to the lemon juice mixture and blend until thick and creamy.  Scrape the sides as necessary.  

Drizzle in 2 T. ice water and process.  The mixture should turn several shades lighter.  You may need to add an additional 2 T. water if your tahini is very thick.  Scrape the sides as necessary.  I used 4 T. water.

Add the chickpeas and cumin and process until super smooth, 2-3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape the sides.  If you are NOT going to add additional seasoning, add the olive oil and process briefly - too much processing will damage the olive oil and make it bitter so you always want to add it last.

Taste and adjust seasoning - you may need additional salt or lemon juice.

Sprinkle with za'atar, sumac or paprika and serve!

 

If you are going to add additional seasoning, don't add the EVOO yet, you always want to add that last.

I divide the hummus into 2 batches and season each one differently.  Our favorites are harissa, berbere and roasted red pepper.  The photo above is harissa AND roasted red pepper!  Be creative...

Add your seasoning, process to blend, then taste and adjust salt and lemon.  

Add the olive oil last and process briefly - too much processing will damage the oil and make it bitter.

RECIPE: Deconstructed Chicken Kiev-ish

I had planned to make Chicken Kiev for Christmas Eve dinner this year but ran out of time so I skipped the breading and deep frying and turned the filling into a sauce.  My husband was disappointed - he loves breaded deep fried food - but he appreciated that this version was much healthier, and he enjoyed it so much he had seconds!

This recipe is similar to the Chicken Meunière recipe I posted earlier.

Chicken Kiev-ish

serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts (two halves, or one pair)
• 2 T. rice flour (you can use wheat flour if you aren't avoiding gluten)
  
• 2 T. ghee
  
• 4 T. butter, room temperature
  
• 4 small cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
  
• 1 t. salt
  
• 2 T. minced Italian parsley
• 2 T. minced fresh chives
  

Instructions

In a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic with the salt until it forms a paste.

Add the parsley and pound that to a paste.

Add the butter and pound it into the garlic and parsley.  Stir in the chopped chives and mix well.  Set aside.

If the breasts are very thick, cut the thick portion in half horizontally creating two thinner slabs. I also remove the tendon that runs down one side.  Gently pound each slab between two sheets of parchment to 1/4" thick*.  Season them with salt and pepper, then dredge them lightly with the rice flour.

In a frying pan large enough to hold both breasts, heat 2 T. ghee on medium-high.  Add the breasts and fry, turning once, until lightly browned on both sides and juices run clear when pricked with a fork (timing will depend on how thin your cutlets are).  

Remove to a warm plate and tent with parchment while you prepare the sauce.

Reduce heat to medium, add the butter mixture to the pan and stir until it melts and the garlic warms enough to take the raw taste away, 1-2 minutes. 

Pour the sauce over the breasts and serve them immediately.

I served them with mashed celeriac (seasoned with brown butter rather than garlic and thyme), and roasted vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, and asparagus).   I prepared the sides first and kept them warm while I prepared the chicken because the chicken comes together so quickly.

*I have read that the giant chicken breasts sold these days have long fibers that separate when you pound them, and I noticed that parts of my breasts DID fall apart, which would have made it impossible to make traditional chicken kiev anyway.  By cutting the thick part of the breast in half horizontally into thinner slabs, the pieces should cook evenly even without pounding.

RECIPE: Curried Lamb with Turnips and Arugula

There isn't much in the farm store these days, so I've been looking for creative ways to use turnips, cabbage, and carrots.  I pulled out my Indian cookbooks to see if any of them had a turnip recipe and found this one!  It was a bit more work than I wanted to do, so I simplified it.  It was so good, I made again a week later!  

This is a Kashmiri dish and the seasoning was unusual for me - it included fennel powder which I don't often see in a curry recipe.

The first time I made this, I had a small amount of arugula languishing in the fridge and I was craving something green so I chopped it up and added it to my bowl.  My husband saw what I did and wanted some, too!  We liked it so much I add arugula ever time I make this now even though it wasn't part of the original recipe. You could use baby spinach instead.

I have made this with beef instead of lamb and the seasoning works with both proteins.  My husband prefers lamb because it's tenderer (is that a word?).  

Original recipe is from Great Curries of India by Camellia Panjabi

Curried Lamb with Turnips (and arugula) 

Serves 4

The original recipe calls for salting the turnips to remove some of the bitterness, but I've found that if you use large turnips they are naturally sweeter and you can skip this step.  

She included instructions for making a quick lamb broth seasoned with garlic and bay, but I had some traditionally-seasoned lamb broth from the last time I bought half a lamb, and used that instead.  You can can get away with using water in a pinch but the flavor won't be as complex.  

The other change I made was to use black cardamom seeds rather than the pods, because I didn't have any pods, and I really liked the occasional burst of flavor when I bit into a seed.  I wish I had replaced the green cardamom pods, too, because biting into one of them was unpleasant.

Ingredients

• 11oz small turnips (larger turnips will be sweeter), cut into 3/4" cubes or slices
  
• 2 medium onions, chopped
  
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 1.5" fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 1.5 pounds stewing lamb
  
• 1.5 medium tomatoes, peeled, halved and grated, or 1/4 c. tomato puree, or 1 T. tomato paste
  
• 2 c. lamb broth or water
  
• 5 T. ghee

SPICE MIXTURE:

• 1 t. cayenne pepper
• 1.5 t. paprika powder
• 1 t. turmeric powder
• 3/4 t. fennel powder
• 1.5 t. coriander powder
• 2 black cardamoms (OR 1/4 t. cardamom seeds, OR 1/4 t. ground cardamom)
• 4 green cardamoms (OR 1/2 t. cardamom seeds, OR 1/2 t. ground cardamom)
• 1.5" cinnamon stick
• 1 bay leaf
  

 OPT: one 5oz container baby arugula or baby spinach cut into 1" pieces 

Instructions

In a frying pan, heat 3 T. ghee and fry the turnips for about 20 minutes until they're pale gold and begin to get a crispy skin.  Remove to a plate.  (If you want, you can skip this step and add the turnips to the pan when you add the tomato and stock but they will not hold their shape as well once they're cooked - the crispy skin holds them together!)

Add 1 T. oil and saute the chopped onions for 20-25 minutes over low to moderate heat until uniformly golden brown.  If the heat is too high, they will brown unevenly.

Add the minced garlic and ginger and saute for 5 minutes.

Add the remaining 1 T. oil, all the spices, the lamb and 2 T. water and saute for 2-3 minutes.  Cover and simmer for 10 minutes until the lamb releases moisture which is then reabsorbed.    

Remove the lid when the meat is almost dry.  With a cooking spoon, stir and turn the meat for 5 minutes.  Continuous stirring allows the spices to come in contact with the heat at the bottom of the pot and develop their flavor.  This is known as the bhuna process.

Season with 2 t. salt, add the tomato, and stir in the stock.  Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Five minutes before the meat is tender, add the reserved turnips.

When both the meat and turnips are tender, taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary.  Turn off the heat, stir in the arugula and serve.  The turnips will absorb some of the liquid as they sit so add more water as required.