The Kitchen Journal 1

Welcome to The Kitchen Journal, an occasional series revealing life in the kitchen of Beth Fish Reads.

Snapshot: I developed three new recipes this week: (1) a lamb dish inspired by a Russian soup my grandmother used to make, (2) curried lentils with Swiss chard, and (3) a quick veal stew/one-dish meal. I developed a whole wheat sesame bread based on a recipe from Ken Haedrich's Country Baking book. I tried three new recipes, all from The Crabby Cook by Jessica Harper (featured as yesterday's Weekend Cooking post). We tried one new wine: Bogle's 2008 Cab (yum!).

In My Market Basket: I do not make a shopping list; instead I always buy salad ingredients, breakfast supplies, and whatever staples need to be replenished. Then I buy the fresh fruits and vegetables that look the best. In my basket this week were cabbage, rutabagas, Swiss chard, and mushrooms. I made a second run to the store to buy ingredients for the Crabby Cook Cookbook recipes.

Pick of the week: The lamb dinner, which you could easily make with ground beef if that suits your taste better. Note that I forgot to carefully measure my herbs and spices. I promise to do a better job with accuracy next time.

Not Really Russian Lamb
© cbl for www. BethFishReads.com

4 servings

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (or as needed)
• 1 pound ground lamb
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon smoky paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• black pepper and/or red pepper flakes to taste
• pinch sour salt and/or sea salt to taste
  
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1/2 small cabbage, shredded
• 1 medium rutabaga, cut in half and then into 1/4-inch slices
• 8 ounces low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 (14-ounce can) diced tomatoes with juice
• © cbl for www. BethFishReads.com
  

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Adjust the amount of oil by how lean or fatty your meat is. Add the lamb and cook, stirring to break up any lumps, until it is no longer pink. Add the onion and garlic and cook just until the onion begins to soften, 3 to 5 minutes.

Stir in the caraway seeds, paprika, oregano, peppers, and salt and cook, stirring, until well mixed. Add the remaining ingredients, and let simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes (depending on how you cut your vegetables). If the mixture begins to look dry, add more broth or a little water, cover, and continue to let it simmer until done. Taste the broth and adjust the seasonings as needed.
© cbl for www. BethFishReads.com

From left: Sesame Bread, Quick Veal Stew (click to enlarge). I forgot to photograph the lentils.