Lamb, Spinach & Sweet Potato Curry

Love a good Curry! 

This is one is very subtle so my daughter would eat it. 

You could easily double of spices in this recipe! (Which I would have done had I only have been making it for myself)  I have thrown this one together with left over roast lamb!

Great for lazy days and to use up leftovers. I usually use left over Roasts in pies but wanted to do something different so I used the curry recipe I generally use adding the cooked meat  at the end. If you want to make this curry with fresh meat, marinate the Lamb in the yoghurt and spices for 2 - 4 hours or overnight. Heat a non stick pan and cook the brown the meat first, then simply add the rest of the ingredients and cook until tender.  To make it with leftovers follow my recipe below.

Ingredients:

350 Diced Cooked Lamb

50 Grams of Baby Spinach

1 Teas Ground Coriander

1 Teas Ground Cummin

1 Tablespoon of Lemon Juice

100g No Fat Greek Yoghurt

1 Onion diced

1 Clove of Garlic Crushed

1 Tin of diced Tomatoes

2 Tablespoons of Tomato Paste

200 Grams of Sweet Potato diced

What to do:

Heat a non stick pan and add a splash of olive oil. Add the diced onion, garlic and spices. Saute until the onion is tender. Add the yoghurt and lemon juice and give it a good stir to combine. Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, cooked lamb and diced sweet potato. Simmer until the sweet potato is tender. By this stage the meat will also be tender. Add the baby spinach just before serving, it will take only moments to wilt. Serve with steamed rice or Naan Bread.

 I made Garlic Naan Bread... YUM! ENJOY!

Lj's Lamb & Baby Spinach Rissoles

um! Lamb, baby spinach and toasted pine nut rissoles... Going to make awesome hamburgers!

Really simple, quick and healthy if cooked in a non stick frying pan..

Ingredients:
500g Lean Lamb Mince
1 Bag Baby Spinach (I think it's 500g.. the large one)
1 Sm bag of Pinenuts toasted
1 Finely diced Onion (Saute first and let it cool)
1 Free Range Egg
Cracked Pepper and Sea Salt

Put everything in a bowl besides the spinach and mix well to combine. Pour boiling water over the spinach to wilt and squeeze out the excess water, then give it a good chop and add to the mix. Roll and cook until golden in a preheated non stick frying pan sprayed with cooking spray. Serve with fresh garden salad :-)

Slow Oven Cooked Roast Lamb with a delicious roast rub

I'm a huge fan of cooking Lamb in my Slow Cooker, stuffing it with fresh Rosemary and Garlic, always browning the meat first to seal in the juices.....

  I decided to do something different and cook it in the oven for a change. I grabbed some fresh Rosemary & Thyme from the garden. I took the herb leaves off the stems and gave it a quick chop, along with a few bulbs of fresh garlic. Popped it into the Mortar & Pestle, added a few tablespoons of Olive Oil, cracked Sea 

Salt & Pepper, a teaspoon of  Smoked Paprika and a teaspoon of Cumin. Gave it a good pounding and then rubbed it all over the roast.

I cooked it for the first half an hour in a preheated oven at  180 - 200 degrees and then dropped the temperature to 160 - 170 for remainder of the cooking which was approx 3 hours all up. Popped the veges in about an hour before the Lamb was ready. 

The veges soaked up the juices and the rest of the pan juices made the BEST gravy!

Lj's Lamb Hot Pot Pie

Ingredients for the Pie Filling:

6 Lamb Forquarter Chops

6 Slices of Shortcut Bacon diced

3 large Potatoes peeled and diced

3 Carrots peeled and diced

1 Large Onion diced

6 Button Mushrooms sliced

2 Cloves of Garlic finely diced

2 Fresh Tomatoes (you can substitute with tinned)

2 Cups of Beef Stock

2 Tbs Tomato Paste

Fresh Sprigs of Oregano & Thyme 

(You could used dried if that's all you have )

2 tbs Cornflour mixed with 1 Cup of Water

Salt and Pepper

1 Sheet of Puff Pastry and an egg to glaze

Ingredients for the Pastry:

1 1/2 Cups of Plain Flour

90g Cold Butter Chopped

Approx 1/3 cup Cold Water

2 Sprigs of fresh Thyme

What to do:

Turn the oven on low (100). Take the leaves off the sprigs of the herbs by running your fingers down the center of the sprigs and place on a baking tray. Pop in the oven for approx 10 mins until they are dry and will crumble a little in your fingers.

In the base of your slow cooker (if its stove top proof) or a fry pan sauté the Onions, Garlic, Bacon and Mushrooms. Remove any  excess fat from the chops and season well with cracked salt and pepper. Brown them in the same pan as the onions etc.

Peel the skin from the tomatoes by emerging them in boiling water for a few minutes and then into cool water. The skin will peel off easily. Chop the tomatoes and add to the pan. You could use tin tomatoes if you wish but fresh is best.

Throw in your chopped carrots and potatoes. Sprinkle the herbs over the top and pour in the Beef Stock. Mix together the Cornflour and water with the Tomato paste and pour in. Give all of the ingredients a good stir. Pop into your slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours.

 By this stage the meat will be falling off the bone. Take out the meat and remove the bones and any cooked fat. The meat will easily fall apart as you do this. Return the meat to the pan and combine. Remove from the slow cooker into a dish and set aside to cool while you make your pastry.

To make the pastry I use a food processor although you could make it by hand. Add the flour, butter and thyme leaves to the food processor. Pulse for around 30 seconds until it looks like fine bread crumbs. With the motor running add the water, combine until the dough begins to form. Remove from the processor and shape into a ball. Glad wrap and rest in the fridge for half an hour.

Roll out your pastry and place into your pie dish. Prick with a fork and  top with baking paper 

using Rice or pie beads Blind Bake for approx 20 minutes at 180 degrees.

Let it cool and fill with your pie filling. Top with your puff pastry and egg wash using a pastry brush.

Cook until golden :-)

Lj's Slow Cooked Rosemary & Mint Lamb Chops

Slow Cooked Rosemary & Mint Lamb Chops.... Delicious comfort food!

served with steamed fresh Carrots, Yellow Button Squash and Peas

Make a marinade out of Apple Mint Jelly.. (I have an abundance of my Mum's..Lucky ME!)

freshly chopped rosemary and olive oil. Smother the chops in your marinade and leave for at least a few hours or if you can overnight like I did to really infuse those flavours.

Heat some olive oil in a large dutch oven. Add a sliced onion and saute,

 then your lamb chops and brown on each side. Season with Sea Salt and Cracked Pepper.

Add a few tablespoons of plain flour and stir into the juices from the marinade. Cook for a few minutes to cook off the flour.

Add some some water, just enough to cover the chops. No need for stock in the recipe as you get all teh delicious flavours from the meat and the marinade. Cover with the lid and simmer on low heat for a few hours (3 - 4 depending on how many chops you have in the pan) or until the meat is falling off the bone and the sauce is thick. Check every half hour or so and stir. I removed the bones and the fat from the meat before serving so it isn't as messy to each but you don't have to.... that is entirely up to you. I leave that fat on while browning the meat for the extra flavour it gives off while cooking, but you can trim off all the fat before cooking if you wish.

Serve with mash and whatever steamed veges you like :-)



Italian Style Lamb Shanks

Italian Style Lamb Shanks

Italian Style Lamb Shanks in the Slow Cooker with whole baby potatoes and carrot, sweet potato and mushrooms, enough Study and Work for one day. This delicious marinade is a pressie from my Local Butcher. Time for some Melon Madness and Lemonade. 

Slow Cooked Lamb Chops

Omg so good! Slow cooked Lamb Chops Potato/Kumara mash and veges.. Yum yum yum 

Flour the chops and cook in a splash of olive oil with chopped onion and garlic. Add beef stock, tomato paste, sea salt and cracked pepper and Italian herbs. Slow cook for about 2 1/2 hours on high, the sauce will thicken and the meat will fall off the bone and be melt in your mouth. :-)

Lamb & Vege Cottage Pies

Waste not want not I say! I'm mixing up a brew of left over roast lamb and veg, going to make a pie with pastry on the bottom, lamb and veg filling and mash on top!

Blind bake some pastry cases.. I made these in Mexican sized Muffin Tins

Let the cases cool and add your pie filling, top with mashed potato and grated cheese

Bake until Golden! These pies are great with any filling. Especially delicious with left over

Corn Meat mixed with Cheesy white Sauce!

Lamb Shanks mmmm.. Yummy!

Quick and easy Lamb shanks seasoned with Cracked sea salt and pepper with some paprika. Brown on medium to high heat to seal, put the lid on and turn down the heat until tender. I take out the veg when almost cooked through and put in a hot oven to crisp up. Remove the lamb when cooked and leave to rest while you make gravy from the pan juices ♥