By Suzanna Leigh and Marj Watkins
“I am getting to be an old lady all wrinkled up,” Marj frowned, as I handed her a cup of tea.
It was the day after Easter Sunday, traditionally a day our extended family gathers together for feasting and visiting. Mom loves having her family around, but only my brother Steve and I joined her for Easter Dinner this year. Missing the usual larger gathering made her face crinkle up as she remembered loved ones who were not there.
“After all, you are a hundred years old,” I told her. “You are entitled to a few wrinkles.”
“Well, yes,” she smiled, “there is that. And I’m not ready to quit yet,” she added fiercely.
When she smiled, her wrinkles disappeared. I told her so. “Remember you used to tell me, ‘smile for your public’?’”
Her smile broadened. “I am so lucky to have my family!” she beamed. “And good people to help take care of me.”
Kathleen, fixing dinner in the kitchen, overheard and let out a happy chuckle. These days, Marj has passed the role of cook on to Steve and to caregivers such as Kathleen, who come for a few hours to do many of the tasks Steve’s chronic pain keeps him from. He could not, for example, cut up the meat for the lamb stew in this archived column from the “Island Epicure.”
A Mideastern Dinner
By Marj Watkins
It’s still the season of lambs as I write this on May Day 2011. But lamb meat is somewhat expensive. The logical, and mouth-watering aromatic solution is to convert those expensive sirloin pieces into stew and serve it with a Mideastern-style lentil side dish. Brown rice and a vegetable salad complete the meal.
Though it is a stew, it cooks fairly fast. Lamb is a meat you could actually eat raw, as the Mideastern people sometimes do. Our western palates prefer it cooked. Simply cut it into bite-size pieces, dredge it in flour, and brown on all sides, sprinkling with salt, pepper, thyme, and garlic powder.
Combine it with separately sauteed and braised onions, carrots, and celery. Voila! A stew in less than an hour.
Lamb Stew
4-6 servings
1 to 1½ pounds lamb sirloin, cut into bite-sized pieces
Dredging flour (see below)
⅓ to ½ cup olive oil
1 large yellow onion
5 long carrots, sliced
½ tsp thyme
¼ tsp crumbled sage
2 garlic cloves, sliced, or ½ tsp garlic salt
Salt and pepper to taste
Dredging Flour:
1 cup sorghum flour (gluten-free and high-protein) or barley flour (low-gluten and low on the glycemic index)
1 tsp salt
½ tsp coarsely ground pepper
2 tsp paprika (optional)
You can make the dredging flour ahead and store in a small, tightly covered jar
Dredge the lamb in the flour mixture. Shake off the extra flour. I put the floured meat into a sieve and shake the excess flour into a bowl. Then I return that flour to my Dredging Flour. (note from Suzanna: I would use ¼ to ½ cup of the flour mixture to dredge the lamb, and use some of it to thicken the stew instead of returning it to the Dredging Flour.)
Heat ¼ cup of oil in a wide skillet. Brown the meat on all sides. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a large bowl and reserve. Add remaining oil to the skillet. Add the onion and carrots. Stirring occasionally, lightly brown. Add water to cover. (From Suzanna: I like to use chicken stock I have made earlier and stored in the freezer).
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low. Cook and cover 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender. Return the meat to the pan. Cover and cook just long enough to reheat the meat. Transfer to a serving bowl or serve from the skillet.
