Guinness Lamb Stew with Vegetables

Guinness Lamb Stew with Vegetables

Servings: 4-6

Ingredients

• 3 pounds lamb shoulder, well-trimmed and cut into 1-1/2-inch pieces
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
• 2 medium yellow onions, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup Guinness
• 3 cups beef broth
• 2 cups water, plus 2 tablespoons more for cooking onions and garlic
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 small sprig fresh rosemary
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks on diagonal
• 1 pound small white boiling potatoes (baby yukons), cut in half
• 1 cup frozen green peas

Instructions

1. Pat the lamb dry and season with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat one tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Brown the lamb in three batches, adding one more tablespoon of oil for each batch. Do not crowd the pan and let the meat develop a brown crust before turning with tongs. It should take 5-8 minutes per batch. Transfer the browned meat to large bowl and set aside.
2. Add the onions, garlic and 2 tablespoons of water to the pot. Cook until the onions are soft, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of pan, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the tomato paste and cook a few minutes more.
4. Add the lamb with its juices back to the pan and sprinkle with flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until the flour is dissolved, 1-2 minutes.
5. Add the Guinness, beef broth, water, bay leaf, rosemary sprig and sugar. Stir with a wooden spoon to loosen any brown bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a boil. Cover the pot with a lid, turn the heat down to low and simmer for one hour and twenty minutes.
6. Add the carrots and potatoes to the stew, then cover and continue simmering until the vegetables are cooked and the meat is very tender, 30-40 minutes. (Be sure to stir a few times to prevent vegetables from sticking to bottom.)
7. Remove the bay leaf and rosemary sprig, and then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. If serving right away, add the frozen peas and cook until the peas are warmed through. Otherwise, let the stew cool, then cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Reheat gently on the stovetop and add the peas right before serving.
8. Note: This stew can be made a day or two ahead of time and reheated gently on the stovetop. Just be sure to add the peas right before serving so they stay fresh. Also, the broth will thicken in the fridge so it may be necessary to thin it with a bit of water (add it little by little).

Baked Gooey Camembert

Ingredients  

• camembert in a wooden box (Rustique is the best!)
• fresh thyme
• salt crystals and freshly ground pepper
• pink peppercorns
• a little sweet Muscat wine, sherry or kirsch

Preheat the oven to 210’C. Remove the paper from the cheese, thinly slice off some of the top rind and put the cheese (rind down) back into its little wooden box. Sprinkle with a touch of fresh thyme, salt crystals and a grind of black pepper. Drizzle with a little alcohol (or olive oil) and bake for about 10 minutes in a very hot oven.  Serve immediately with plenty of crusty French bread!

Boozy Vegan Bean Burritos

Recipe on La Salsa Inglesa

Colombian Tomato Salsa

Colombian Tomato Salsa

Featured on my new food blog La Salsa Inglesa

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Sorry for the lack of recipes recently. I've been developing a new Latin American food blog: La Salsa Inglesa

Take a look and tell me what you think!

Chicken with mushrooms, thyme and balsamic vinegar

This was simple, fairly quick and super heart-warming dish

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 1 chopped onion
• 2 cups of mushrooms, sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, diced
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• ½ of red chili, diced
• 1 teaspoon chopped thyme, fresh or dried
• ½ cup water
• 1 tablespoons fresh chopped  parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the olive oil on medium high heat in a frying pan. Add the chicken breasts, and begin to brown. Once browned on both sides (after aprox 3 minutes each side) sprinkle a little salt, pepper and the thyme on both sides
2. Add the chopped onion to the pan and fry for a couple of minutes before adding the chilli and garlic, fry for one more minute then add the mushrooms
3. Add the balsamic vinegar, cook for 2-3 minutes before adding the water. Cover and cook for aprox 15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through (turning over once). Take the lid off and cook for a further 5 minutes to reduce the sauce a little
4. Adjust the seasonings to taste. Serve warm with parsley on a top of a bed of rice.

Adapted from: http://www.littlespicejar.com/balsamic-chicken-with-mushrooms-and-thyme/

Salsa Hogao Colombiano

Salsa Hogao is an essential condiment that can be found on the table of most homes in Colombia. Accompanying dishes like arepas, grilled meat, and papas criollos, this simple salsa can also used as a base for making tomato sauce to go with pasta or beans.

There are many versions of the sauce and over time you can adapt it to your preferred taste, some add white onions, grated carrots, peppers and cilantro for example). Here’s a basic version that’s easy to make and tastes fantastic, and you know the saying, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it!

Ingredients

Makes one large bowl of salsa that should last a couple of sittings


· 6 tablespoons vegetable oil

· 2 cups of finely chopped scallions (spring onions)

· 4 cups ripe, fresh and chopped tomatoes

· 2 clove garlic, minced or finely chopped

· 2 teaspoons of ground cumin

· 1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground pepper



Directions

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the scallions and begin to fry, after a couple of minutes add the tomato, garlic, ground cumin and cook gently for 10 minutes, stirring until softened.



2. Turn down the heat to low and add the salt, cooking for another 10 minutes more until the sauce has thickened. Check and adjust the seasoning.




Inspiration and source: http://www.mycolombianrecipes.com/colombian-tomato-and-onion-sauce-hogao