It’s three in a row for us from Quick From Scratch Herbs & Spices. We were out of town this past weekend so all our dinners this week have been either improvised or planned at the last minute. This book has been great for quick, easy to prepare meals. We’ve made a seafood albondigas soup previously, and I’ve been looking forward to making a beef version. Normally I’d avoid making hot soups like this in the summer months, but Seattle has been in refrigerator-mode recently, and it’s seemed more like late fall than early summer!

Lisa says:

Jeanette’s going to love this — three in a row from the book she got us.

Chris says:

Yay for mini-meatballs! How do you like it?

Lisa says:

Yum, I like this soup — and this one seems more filling than the seafood version.

Chris says:

I was worried you’d complain about it not being hearty enough. You don’t always like these broth-based soups.

Lisa says:

It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s that I think of them as snacks. Plus, I had a bunch of chips beforehand just in case.

Chris says:

Well, I’m definitely a fan.

Mexican Meatball Soup
1 tbsp canola oil
1 small red onion, chopped
2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
1 zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch slices and quartered
2 tbsp fresh oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1 15-oz can diced fire-roasted tomatoes, drained
1 3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
1/2 lb ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 1/2 tbsp breadcrumbs
1 egg, beaten
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 tbsp lime juice

In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion and half the jalapeños and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon of the cumin and cook, stirring, until the zucchini starts to soften, about 3 minutes.
Add the broth, water, tomatoes, 1 1/4 teaspoons of the salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of the black pepper; bring to a simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, garlic, the remaining jalapeño, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1 tablespoon of the fresh oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, the bread crumbs, and the egg. Shape the mixture into 24 meatballs, about 1 inch in diameter.
Add the meatballs and corn to the soup and simmer until the meatballs are just done, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and the remaining 1 tablespoon fresh oregano.

4 Servings

From Fitness Food comes this lower-fat version of an old favorite. Ground beef, vegetables, and herbs are baked in a casserole with a mashed potato “crust”. Delicious!

Chris says:

We should have invited Damon over for this; he loves Shepherd’s Pie.

Lisa says:

You’re right, we should have! This is good, I like that you can taste all the herbs and spices.

Chris says:

Awesome job; this is one of my favorite meals that you’ve made. And you can definitely taste that rosemary — hooray for the only plant we seem to be able to keep alive!

Lisa says:

I’m happy that we’re not cutting the recipes in half anymore… I can’t wait to have this for dinner tomorrow night.

Chris says:

Assuming it lasts that long. Most of the time we cut recipes in half so I don’t eat 17 servings in one sitting!

Shepherd’s Pie
————–
2 lb 4 oz russet potatoes
6 large cloves garlic, peeled
4 tbsp skim milk
oil spray
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 large cloves garlic, crushed
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
2 carrots, diced
1 lb 10 oz ground beef
1 1/2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tsp chopped thyme
2 tsp chopped rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 1/4 cups beef stock
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
pinch ground nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350F. Cut the potatoes into chunks and cook in a large sauce pan of boiling water with the whole garlic cloves for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain well and return to the saucepan. Mash the potatoes and garlic until smooth. Stir in the milk and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Meanwhile, lightly spray a large nonstick pan with the oil and heat over medium. Add the onion, crushed garlic, celery, and carrot and cook for 5 minutes, or until softened. Remove from pan.
Add the ground beef and cook over high heat until well browned, breaking up any lumps with the back of a spoon. Add the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Return the vegetables to the pan with the tomato paste, herbs, bay leaf, stock, sauce, and nutmeg and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, or until thickened.
Pour the beef mixture into a 2 liter ovenproof dish. Spoon the potatoes over the top, smoothing the surface, then fluff with a fork. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until lightly golden and crusty. You may want to finish the last few minutes under the broiler.

6 Servings.

This evening Lisa successfully tackled an all-time favorite dish, lahmajoun (also, lahm bi ajeen, s’fiha). These little flatbread “pizzas” feature a crispy crust and ground beef mixed with tomatoes and a delicious mix of various herbs and spices. This is the first recipe we’ve made from Recipes and Remembrances from an Eastern Mediterranean Kitchen, which we received as a wedding present from Megan. We served it with a cucumber and yogurt salad.

Chris says:

Wow, I can’t believe how good this turned out, especially considering you’ve never made it solo before… the dough was perfect!

Lisa says:

Neither can I — these are *so* good. The flavors in the meat are fantastic. I love that we have nine pies left to freeze, too.

Chris says:

Oops, better make that eight. Mmmm… this cucumber stuff is good.

Lisa says:

I’m not sure why they call it “salad”; it’s very similar to a cucumber yogurt soup I’ve had. So cool and refreshing!

Lahmajoun
———
(Dough)
1 cup warm water
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 tsp sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil

(Meat Topping)
2 tbsp olive oil
3 medium onions, finely chopped
1 1/2 lbs lean ground lamb or beef
2 large tomatoes, peeled seeded, chopped, and drained
3 tbsp tomato paste
1/3 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp finely chopped mint
1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
1 tbsp Pomegranate Molasses (reduce unsweetened pomegranate juice to by two-thirds)
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp mixed spices (2 parts allspice, 1 part cinnamon, coriander, cloves, and cumin)
salt, pepper, and red pepper to taste

To make the dough pour 1/2 cup of the water into a small bowl and sprinkle it with the yeast and sugar. Let the mixture stand about 3 minutes, then stir to dissolve the yeast completely. Place the bowl in a warm, draft-free place for 5 minutes or until the mixture becomes foamy.
In a large bowl combine the flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add the remaining 1/2 cup water, the yeast mixture, and the oil. Blend the mixture until it forms a dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead about 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic, sprinkling with just enough additional flour, if necessary, to keep it from sticking. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning to coat with the oil. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let stand in a warm, draft-free place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size.
Meanwhile, prepare the meat topping. In a medium heavy skillet heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until soft but not browned. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a large mixing bowl combine the lamb/beef, tomatoes, and tomato paste and mix well. Add the parsley, mint, and pine nuts, Pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, mixed spices, and salt, black pepper, and red pepper. Drain the onions of oil and add to the meat mixture. Knead the mixture until it is thoroughly blended. Divide into 16 equal portions and set aside.
Punch down the dough and divide into 16 equal pieces. Form each piece into a smooth ball and arrange the balls 2 inches apart on a lightly floured board. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface roll out each of the balls into a circle that is no more than 1/8″ thick. Arrange the circles slightly apart on large, lightly greased baking sheets. Top each circle with a portion of the meat mixture, spreading evenly to the edge. Bake the pies in a preheated 450 degree oven for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve hot.

Makes 16

Cucumber and Yogurt Salad
————————-
2 cups low-fat plain yogurt, drained to 1 1/2 cups
2 garlic cloves, crushed to a paste with a pinch of salt
1 tsp crushed dried spearmint
1/2 tsp crushed tarragon
1/2 tsp dried dill
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp olive oil
2 small cucumbers, peeled and seeded
2 tbsp lemon juice

Mix together all ingredients and refrigerate to cool and let flavors combine.

Makes approx. 2 cups

We’ve been looking forward to making manti again (okay, I’ve been looking forward to Lisa making manti again), and the first day of fall sounded like a perfect excuse to make this Armenian favorite: Crispy little canoe-shaped dumplings stuffed with ground beef, onion, and allspice, in a bowl of chicken broth, topped with a dollop of garlic-yogurt.

Chris says:

Holy mackeral, I love this stuff. My favorite part is taking some of the leftover manti and just dipping it right into the garlic-yogurt. I could eat that every day and never tire of it. And I like that new side dish with the swiss chard. I’m glad we’re finding more things to do with the bulgur in the pantry.

Lisa says:

I love it too, but how about next time you spend an hour putting the manti together, and I’ll play on the computer. Also, that side dish ruled, but needed more garlic.

Chris says:

I don’t want to ruin perfection, so I think you should continue to be the designated manti-maker. Hey, haven’t we already featured this on the blog?

Lisa says:

Yeah, the very first post — but that’s back when you were lazy and weren’t listing the recipes. Besides, we made a new side dish with it, and have this picture of the manti before it went in the oven. I want to show off my hard work.

Manti
(from The Complete Armenian Cookbook)
—–
1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, minced
salt, pepper, and allspice to taste
won ton wrappers
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups plain yogurt
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp butter
sumac

To prepare the filling, combine the ground beef, onion, salt, pepper, and allspice in a large bowl and mix well. Set aside. Cut each sheet of won ton wrappers into four squares. Place a teaspoon of the filling in the center of each square. Pinch the two ends with your fingers to form a canoe-shaped pastry. Arrange the manti close together, meat-side up, in a well-buttered pan. Dot each with a bit of the butter. Bake at 350 degrees about 20-30 minute, or until the manti are golden brown. Keep warm. Heat the chicken broth. Combine the yogurt and garlic in a mixing bowl. To serve, place the manti into individual bowls, add the hot chicken broth and the garlic-yogurt. Sprinkle with the sumac, and serve.

4 Servings

Swiss Chard with Bulgur
(from Secrets of Healthy Middle Eastern Cuisine)
———————–
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, mashed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb Swiss chard, chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup #3 bulgur
1 cup water
pepper

Saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil until translucent. Add the swiss chard to the onion and let them cook, over medium heat, for 6 to 10 minutes or until the Swiss chard has reduced in bulk. Make a hole in the center of the Swiss chard, add the bulgur, then cover it with the chard. Cook for 5 more minutes. Season with pepper. Add water and cook over low heat until the water has evaporated.

Serves 4

Lisa was browsing through Fitness Food and found this pretty odd recipe: a baked sweet potato covered with ground beef and salsa. Bizarre? Yep! We liked all the ingredients separately, however, so there was a pretty good chance it’d taste good together… and it did. The sweet of the potatoes was a nice contrast to the spicy salsa, and the corn on the cob we had on the side was well worth the flossing effort later on.

Baked Sweet Potatoes Mexicana
—————————–
4 7-oz orange sweet potatoes
oil spray
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 onion, finely chopped
9 oz lean ground beef
10 1/2 oz can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbs tomato paste
11 1/2 oz jar salsa
light sour cream

Preheat the oven to 400. Prick the sweet potatoes a few times with a skewer. Bake on the oven rack for 40 minutes or until cooked through.
Meanwhile, heat a nonstick pan to medium. Lightly spray with the oil. Add the garlic and onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until softened. Add the beef and cook, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon, for 5 minutes or until browned. Drain off any excess fat. Stir in the kidney beans, tomato paste, and salsa. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until slightly thickened.
Make a deep cut along the top of each cooked sweet potato. Divide the mixture among them and top with a dollop of sour cream.

4 Servings.