Minted Lamb with Green Lentils and Shaved Asparagus Salad

Decadent springtime bliss as far as I'm concerned....

Time: 1 hour (+1 or 2 days for marinating)
Yield: dinner for 2

Ingredients:

1 lb lamb shoulder blade steaks (or any cut of lamb you like)
6 oz plain greek yogurt
1/2 c chopped fresh mint leaves
2 clove garlic, 1 minced, 1 smashed
1 T lemon juice
2 t lemon zest
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup dried green lentils
1 c water
1 large sprig fresh rosemary, minced or 1 t dried & crushed
8 spears of fresh fresh fresh asparagus, super thinly sliced on the bias (diagonal) tender tips reserved
2 canned or frozen marinated artichoke hearts, chiffonaded or julienned (sliced in thin ribbons)
1/2 T liquid from arty hearts
2 T minced crazy fresh ripe sweet tomato...if its not crazy fresh ripe and sweet, skip it

Method:

• For the meat, whip together the yogurt, mint, minced garlic, a little s&p, lemon juice and 1.5 t zest.  Depending on the cut of the lamb, poke it a bit with a fork and coat in the yogurt mix.  Place this in a shallow, non-reactive (pyrex, glass, porcelain) dish and cover everything with plastic wrap. You want the wrap touching all the food with no air gaps - you don't want it tight across the top of the container.  Refrigerate and let marinate 24-48 hours.
• Combine lentils, water, bonked garlic, sp and rosemary in a small sauce pan.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook covered for about 35 min.  Remove the cover and let reduce another 10 min until most liquid is absorbed and the lentils are a little tender.
• In the mean time...retrieve the lamb, wipe it off somewhat (it will be super gross looking), heat the grill to high, oil the grate and grill mark the lamb.  Once marked (about 90 seconds per side), turn off the center burner, reduce the side burners to medium low and cook indirectly about 7 minutes on each side.  Remove from heat, tent with foil for about 5 min, then serve.  You're not going for rare or mid rare here - you're looking for lightly pink and crazy tender.
• If you don't have a grill, pre-heat your oven to 350*.  Then heat an oven proof sautee, cast iron pan or dutch oven with some oil and quickly brown the lamb on both sides.  Finish in the low oven for about 15 minutes and then rest per above.
• Once your lentils are on and your lamb is working, toss together the shaved asparagus and chiffonade of arty heart with the extra arty juice, lemon zest, a LITTLE salt and a healthy crack of pepper.  Set aside to come together at room temp.  Top with tomato at when plating... this salad WILL blow your mind.
• To plate: use a spoon to drain off the liquid from your lentils and spread them on the plate.  Top with the lamb (the lentils and lamb jus will do something magical) and then either top the lamb with the salad, serve to the side or as a first course. 

Pairings: Chateau Ste Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 is killer with this, even in springtime.  If you're feeling crazy, top the lamb with a little creamy feta or goat, but its really kind of over the top.  Serve with some naan or lavosh or pocketless pita - something nice an soft.

Plain yogurt with honey, lemon sorbet, fresh berries with cream and mint leaves, or dark chocolate with strawberries and mint would be great endings.

Sweet and Salty Steamed Rockfish with Green Beans

This meal took me back to my kismet wheelhouse....


At the market this weekend I was perusing the fish case and the weighing the guilt labels against the price tags when figured I'd just ask the guy in orange waders what was good today (sidebar...are the waders really necessary inside of the grocery store? are there water hazards behind the scenes in Whole Foods?).  He went straight for the Rockfish which he had filleted himself that morning from a very noble beast, as his story goes.  The guilt meter to price point worked in my favor and I went in for a beautiful skin on fillet.


Over in produce, the green beans looked spectacular so I grabbed a fistful.  There was a lovely exotic garlic with a red tinge to it, so I grabbed that along with some ginger root, as I do most weeks.  Leaving the area, I snagged a nice hefty navel orange, since I needed the zest for the Banana Power Muffins and off I went.


Today, like most others, I was working on dinner in the back of my head all day long.  By the time I got home, I was about 90% there....


Time: 1 hr
Yield: dinner for 2


Ingredients:


Juice of 1 heavy navel orange
2 inches ginger, grated*
1 long thin dried asian chili or 0.5 t red pepper flakes
2 large cloves of pungent garlic, mashed thru a press
1-2 cups inexpensive white wine
3 T low sodium dark soy sauce
3 T mirin
2 t rice vinegar
8-10 oz Rockfish fillet*, skin on (or any fish you like, with or without skin...would work great with tofu too)
green beans for 2, trimmed (or snow peas, or sugar snaps, or sticks of zucchini and carrots or spinach for wilting....)
0.5 c wheat berries*
1.5 c short grain brown rice*
2 c water


Method:

• bring water to a boil in a small sauce pan, season with salt and stir in wheat berries and rice.  Cover, reduce to a simmer and cook 45 minutes or until done.  Let rest covered for 5-10 min, fluff with for and serve.
• In a small sauce pan or fry pan, combine oj, chili, 1 t rice vinegar and 1/2 of the ginger, simmer until reduced to nearly a syrup.  You can add water and let it reduce again if you're not ready when it is.
• In a small bowl, stir together 1 T soy, 1 t vinegar and 2 T mirin - set aside.
• In a large fry pan or wok, combine wine, remaining mirin, soy, ginger, garlic and black pepper, bring to a low steamy boil.  (If you don't have a bamboo steamer, use a dutch oven that a wire rack will set in for steaming or even just simmer the fish right in the liquid)
• Place fish, skin side down in the 'high basket' of a bamboo steamer, set right in the pan or wok and cover with the steamer lid.  Steam the fish covered until just done....this is highly variable.  It can take a 1/2 inch fillet with no skin about 5 minutes or a 1.5 inch fillet with skin about 20 min - either way, its really hard to 'over steam' especially if you have the skin on.  Feel free to open up the steamer every 5 min or so to poke or cut the fish to test for doneness...its going to be great no matter how much you bother it.
• Just before done, pop your beans in the microwave or use the stackable other basket to steam them on top of the fish until tender crisp - maybe 2 min.
• Meanwhile, pop the soy mix in the micro for 1-2 minutes to heat and thicken a bit.
• To serve, remove the top tier of the basket and leave the lid on.  Plate the fish, sauce with the orange reduction.  Add your beans to the plate and drizzle with the soy mix.  Finally, plop some grains on the plate and maybe sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds...make sure the grains are between the fish and beans so salty sweet soy and the sweet tart orange reduction meet up on your starch...oh so good.

*Helpful Hints:

Ginger - select ginger that is big enough around for easy peeling, use a carrot peeler or a small sharp knife to get the tough skin off.  There is a device called a ginger grater with is worth the couple of bucks if you cook with fresh ginger a lot.  Otherwise you can squish it thru a garlic press, slice into thin disks and mince or use a micro-plane.
Fish - any fish you like, with or without skin...would work great with tofu too
Wheat berries - these are a nice chewy hearty grain, they're about the size of rice and look like this. You can find them in the bulk section or in the grains.  If you can't find em, try Israeli couscous or more rice.
Short grain brown rice - just a different variety of brown rice, its plump and chewy and just lovely.  If you can't find it at your store, just go with whatever floats your boat.

Banana Carrot Power Muffins

These gluten-free babies are nutrient dense, packed with power and completely irresistible.  The recipe is fairly flexible, so play with the flavors and textures you like best.


Time: 1 hour
Yield: 24-30 smallish muffins


Ingredients:

2 c blanched almond flour
2 t baking soda
1 t sea salt* 
1 T cinnamon
1 c dates, pitted
3 ripe bananas
3 eggs
1 t  apple cider vinegar*
¼ cup coconut oil*
1 ½ cups carrots, shredded
¾ cup walnuts, finely chopped
1 T orange zest
1 t fresh ground cardamom or 2 t store bought ground
1 t grated fresh ginger
Muffin paper liners


Method:

• In a small bowl, combine almond flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon
• In a food processor, combine chopped dates, bananas, eggs, vinegar, oil, zest, cardamom and ginger. NOTE, be sure to chop the dates first or your processor blade will create a giant date-ball.
• Transfer mixture to a large bowl and blend dry mixture into wet until thoroughly combined
• Fold in carrots and walnuts (or include them in the food processor - mine's not big enuf for all)
• Spoon mixture into paper lined muffin tins
• Bake at 350° for 25 - 35 min.  

Because these are so full of good stuff, they don't keep terribly long.  Try freezing half the batch if you don't think you'll be having them often.  I'll have 2 for breakfast with a greek yogurt after a run - comes to about 400 cal.  Depending on the size, these guys are about 120-150 cal each.


Hate bananas? Try subbing apple sauce or pureed pear.  Not into exotic spices? Just stick with the cinnamon.  Ready to kick it up a bit - throw in a pinch of cayenne.  Looking to totally go over-board, fold in some chocolate morsels.... mmm.


*Helpful Hints:
Sea Salt - if you are not using SEA SALT, use about half as much. Sea salt has much lower sodium and more subtle 'saltiness' than kosher or table salt.
Apple Cider Vinegar - don't leave this out, it makes a big impact.  If you need to buy some, go for high quality like Bragg.
Coconut Oil - coconut oil comes in a jar, its like shortening only harder.  Spetrum makes a good one.