Lamb Flatbread with Pine Nuts

Every year my husband and I buy ourselves some new cookbooks at Christmas. This year we bought The Big Book of Breakfast and Jerusalem. While The Big Book of Breakfast is delightful and has some great ideas to spice up your breakfast routine, Jerusalem blows it away.

Written by two men from different parts of the city, Jerusalem is packed with lovely stories, rich history, and stunning photos. In fact, the first time I cracked it open I sat and read it like a normal book. It is full of colorful stories that provide a peek into two very different cultures and all of the ways those cultures combine in a kaleidoscope of culinary joy.

It was impossibly difficult to choose which recipe to try first. So I just chose based on what ingredients were readily available. The great thing is that so many of the ingredients were already in my pantry - chickpeas, paprika, couscous. Once I got started, inspiration swept through me. The flavors and textures were just fantastic.

Now my goal is to make every recipe in this book before the year is over (it's a big book). This recipe is a variation on the Stuffed Eggplant recipe in the book. We didn't have eggplant but we did have some delicious flatbread. We made the stuffing, with a few little tweaks, and piled it on top of the flatbread which had been smeared with tahini. I served it with some chopped cucumber that I tossed with a little salt, lemon and parsley. I could eat this every day. Seriously.

In a large, deep skillet heat oil and saute onion, garlic, a pinch of salt, cumin, paprika, and cinnamon until onion is soft and spices are fragrant. Add lamb, parsley, tomato paste, pine nuts, lemon juice and sugar. Cook until lamb is browned. Serve on flatbread with tahini. You could also add some rice or couscous for some extra texture.

Italian Wedding Soup

Today’s post is a Guest Post by the lovely and talented Jennifer Currie. Jennifer lives in Maryland with her husband and their daughter. She is a true food enthusiast in many ways. Welcome the crisp Fall weather by enjoy her amazing soup and remember to share the love. ~ Jennifer Griffith

I could eat soup every day and at any time of day. And sometimes I do! There's just nothing like a steaming hot bowl of savory, soulful, comforting love! So as this time of year approaches, I can't wait to bust out my big red pot and go to town on whatever ingredients happen to be swirling around in my head to make my all time favorite comfort food: SOUP!

One of my absolute favorite soups is Italian Wedding; it's so hearty and flavorful. It's also versatile and super simple to make. You can make it with turkey, beef, pasta or beans. This recipe has two of my favorite ingredients; meatballs and dark greens. I have been on a really big Bison kick lately, so I chose to make these meatballs with this delicious meat.

Bison is much leaner than beef and has a full flavor that will add a little richness to your broth. My favorite greens to use in this soup are Kale, preferably Dino Kale, but you could certainly use whatever green you like. Try Escarole, Swiss Chard, or Spinach. Dark greens are a great source of antioxidants, so you can't go wrong.

I think most people who have had this soup before have had it with some kind of small pasta like Ditalini or a pearl pasta like Israeli Cous cous. I like to use Cannellini Beans. I just think beans and greens go hand in hand.

Editor’s note: Wouldn’t Beans & Greens be a great name for a restaurant? J

I guarantee after you make this soup, you'll love it and whoever you feed it to will love you for it. And man, is it a great cure for a cold, blustery day! Enjoy!

Italian Wedding Soup

Ingredients

64 ounces chicken broth
1 1/2 cups carrot, diced
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 cup celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
28 ounces cannellini beans (2, 14 ounce cans)
1 pound kale, chopped
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 parmesan or romano cheese rind
1 large bay leaf
salt & pepper to taste

For meatballs:

1 pound ground bison
1 egg
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 - 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 - 1/2 cup parmesan or romano cheese

Coat a large pot with extra virgin olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add onion, crushed red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and cook until translucent. Next add garlic, celery, and carrots and saute for about 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and bay leaf and bring to a boil. And the Parmesan/Romano rind,  basil, & another pinch of both salt and pepper, reduce to a simmer and put the lid on.

While all those flavors are combining  in your pot, you're going to make your meatballs.
In a large bowl, combine bison, egg, parsley, garlic, and salt and pepper. While combining, add the cheese and breadcrumbs a little at a time. You want to make sure everything is well-combined, but still moist. Make sure you don't work the meat too much or it will become tough. The meatballs should be the size that you would achieve by using a melon-baller. If you have one, great. If not, that's fine. Just use a small spoon to help you measure out the melon-ball-sized meatballs.

Once the meatballs are all rolled out, give that soup a good stir and take out the cheese rind and bay leaf. Then, add the cannellini beans. Bring the soup back up to a boil and start adding the meatballs into the broth. Let the meatballs cook for about 5 minutes (they'll start to float). This is when youre going to add the kale and cook for just another couple of minutes. When the kale begins to wilt into the soup and all of your delicious little meatballs are floating around, the soup is done...well, just about. Turn off the heat. Ladle your servings into bowls and garnish w/freshly chopped Italian parsley and grated parmesan or romano cheese.



Shrimp and Asparagus Fettucine

Time to tackle shellfish my friends. Shrimp and pasta always play nice together.

So let's talk ingredients. As with other seafood, shrimp is high in calcium, iodine and protein but low in food energy. A shrimp-based meal is also a significant source of cholesterol. Shrimp consumption, however, is considered healthy for the circulatory system because the lack of significant levels of saturated fat in shrimp means that the high cholesterol content in shrimp actually improves the ratio of LDL to HDL cholesterol and lowers triglycerides.

Your choice of olive oil is especially important. When you are making an olive oil based pasta dish, there is nothing worse than a bland, oily taste. So choose an olive oil with a rich green color for the most robust flavor.

Now on to the yummy stuff! The key to a great dish is uniformity. Make sure your veggies are all cut to similar size to make for easy bites.

Shrimp & Asparagus Fettucine

Ingredients

1 pound shrimp, cleaned and deveined
1/2 pound asparagus, cut into 1/2" pieces
1/2 cup yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan
Salt & pepper to taste

Prepare pasta according to package directions. Be sure to salt the water before it begins to boil. This will add a subtle flavor to your pasta and make for a better texture.

In a large skillet, heat 2 tbsps of olive oil on medium heat. Saute onion and asparagus until onion becomes translucent. Add 2 more tbsp olive oil, garlic and shrimp. Cook until shrimp becomes pink throughout. Lower heat and add remaining olive oil. Add pasta and, using tongs or two wooden forks, combine all ingredients in the pan and let cook another 3-4 minutes stirring occassionally. Salt and pepper to taste during this time.

Remove from heat and toss with fresh parsley. Top with grated parmesan and serve with a light, flaky bread and some good wine. Mmmm!