1 lb of cubed lamb

½ carrot, sliced in large rounds

½ onion, large dice

½ celery stalk, large chunks

Few sprigs of rosemary

Few sprigs of thyme

Pinch of hyssop

1 clove of garlic, smashed

Hard cider (about 1 cup)

A splash of oil

Salt and pepper

Season the meat generously with salt and pepper. Put in a medium-large container. Add all of the ingredients, pouring over enough cider to cover the meat and a dash of oil. Marinate for 8 hours, or overnight. If you can, turn the meat over in the marinade, to make sure it is all coated well.

For the stew:
For the vegetables that you will cook with the meat, there are no specific amounts, but be reasonable. You are including 3 different vegetables, so don’t put so much of anyone that overpowers the others, or so much of all of them, that you can no longer enjoy the meat. As for size, keep in mind that you want to eat this comfortably with a fork or spoon, so don’t cut them too big.

2 tablespoons butter or oil or a combination of the two (you will probably need more, so keep it on hand)

½ quince, peeled and cut into medium-sized chunks

½ carrot, cut into medium-sized chunks

½ sweet potato, cut into medium sized chunks

½ parsnip, same as carrots and sweet potatoes

Lamb meat, drained from marinade

1 tablespoon all purpose flour

Cider (enough to cover the stew ingredients)

Rosemary, Thyme, Bay leaf,  and black pepper (tied in a bundle or in cheesecloth)

Heat the butter/oil in a heavy-bottomed pot. I love Le Creuset pots for making stews. Every woman must have one.
Add the quince, carrot, sweet potato, and parsnip and cook stirring occasionally, until they gain some color. Transfer to a plate or bowl.
Toss the lamb meat with the flour and coat evenly.
Heat up more fat in the pot until very hot and add the meat. You only want to add enough meat to cover the bottom of the pan, so that you can brown each side well. Don’t poke at it or turn it over too soon, or it won’t create as much flavor for the stew. You might have to do this in a few different rounds. Each time, wipe out the pan and add more oil.
Once you have browned all of the meat nicely, deglaze the pot by pouring in a few tablespoons of cider, just enough to wet the bottom. Scrape up the brown solids stuck on the bottom of the pan and add all of the meat and vegetables back to the pot. Pour in enough cider to just cover the ingredients. Add the herbs. Bring the liquid to a bare boil, then let it simmer quietly for 1-1/2 hours, or until the meat is falling apart at the touch.
That is it!!!!

This salad is called the Gypsy salad because it is a melange of flavors, textures and ideas from around the world.  Blood orange, arugula, and fennel from Europe mix with jalapeno and avocado from Mexico.  Cumin, mint, and dates from the Middle East come into play as well.  Many of these ingredients, like dates, have traveled from their origin, and are now part of new cultures.  It is like us, a gypsy that never stops traveling.  The measurements are not exact, we trust that you add how much you want of each ingredient, and enjoy the journey that it takes you on.

Ingredients

1 fennel bulb, trimmed and outer layer removed (if bruised)

1 handful of baby arugula

1 handful of dates, pitted and sliced in quarters

a few kalamata or Moroccan black olives, pitted and sliced

1/4 of a jalapeno pepper, seeded and thinly sliced

1 avocado, halved and pitted

1 sprig of mint

Small handful of parsley

a handful of fresh walnuts, roughly chopped

2 blood oranges (you can substitute regular oranges or cara caras here also)

1 lime (kaffir limes welcome!)

1-2 Tablespoons sherry or rice wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons olive oil

Pinch of cumin and salt

Slice the fennel in half lengthwise, and then thinly slice each half horizontally.  Transfer to a bowl and combine with the arugula.

Add the sliced dates and olives. 

Thinly slice the jalapeno.  If you are sensitive to heat, finely mince it, but if you like more of a bite, slice it in small horizontal strips.  You only need a 1/4 of the pepper or so.

Roughly chop or tear the herbs and add to the bowl. 

Keep the avocado meat in the skin and score with a knife in long vertical slices.  Use a spoon to get under the meat and scoop out the slices over the salad bowl. 

For the dressing, zest the oranges and the limes with a zester or microplane over the salad bowl.  You will only need a little bit of the lime zest and about 1/2 of one of the orange's zest.  Slice off the top and bottom of the oranges, removing the skin and pith.  Next place the oranges, one at a time, on the cutting board and slice off the skin and pith (without going to deep!) to reveal each segment.  Working over another small bowl, slice out each orange segment carefully, allowing the juices to fall into the small bowl, and then add the segments to the larger salad bowl.  When you have finished slicing the oranges, squeeze out any excess juice into the small bowl.  Juice the lime into the bowl as well.  Stir in the cumin, vinegar, and olive oil and whisk to combine (you can just do this with a fork). 

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss well. 

Add the crumbled walnuts. 

Serves 2. 

This salad works as an appetizer, but it also goes beautifully on top of grilled fish like tuna or mahi mahi, or atop a grilled chicken breast. 

This recipe is a winner all around.  It is warming, healthy, and delicious.  We have made this on several occasions, and have always gotten requests for the recipe.  Feel free to add other vegetables and herbs as you see fit. 

2 cloves garlic

2 scallions

½ medium onion, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil or creamed coconut*

1 ½ tablespoons curry powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds, toasted and cooled

2 cans lite coconut milk

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cups fresh pumpkin, peeled and cubed

1 red bell pepper, seeds removed, medium dice

1 14-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

Garnish: fresh cilantro

Combine the garlic, scallions, onion, and ginger in a food processor. Grind until they form a smooth paste.
Heat up the coconut oil and/or creamed coconut in a medium-sized heavy bottomed pot. Add the paste to the oil and fry for a few minutes on medium-high heat, stirring well.
Add the curry powder to the frying paste and cook for a few more minutes.
Pour in the coconut milk and add the mustard seeds. When the mixture comes to a boil, turn down to a light simmer, and stir in the tomato paste.
Add the pumpkin and red pepper and simmer, covered, for about 20-30 minutes, or until the pumpkin is fork tender.
Stir in the garbanzos and let simmer for a few more minutes.
Turn off the heat and serve over rice, garnished with cilantro.

Serves 4

*Creamed coconut is a Caribbean product that can be found in some specialty markets.

This salad is a powerful cold preventer. In addition to being full of Vitamin C and keeping us healthy during the Winter, it is also beautiful and lifts the spirit. Freshly ground coriander and fresh mint leaves add some light aromatic notes reminiscent of the Middle East.

Ingredients:
1 grapefruit
1 ruby red grapefruit
1 navel orange
1 cara cara (or another navel)
1 kiwi
1 T of olive oil
½ tsp. coriander seeds, lightly toasted and ground
1 T agave nectar or honey
4 leaves of mint (from 1 sprig), finely chopped

Using a sharp paring knife cut the ends off of the grapefruits and orange, and then slice the peel and white pith off, avoiding taking out too much of the fruit flesh.
Set up two bowls; one can be the serving bowl, and the other will be the work bowl. Over the work bowl, slice around the membrane of each section of the grapefruit and fruit, gently pull out the segments, and place each them in the serving bowl.
After all of the segments have been removed, squeeze out excess juice from the membranes into the work bowl.
Peel the kiwi with a vegetable peeler or the paring knife and then slice it into long wedges and add to the serving bowl.
Pour the olive oil over the fruits and sprinkle on the ground coriander.
Strain the excess juice from the work bowl, about ½ cup, into a small sauté pan and heat it up a light simmer.
Stir in the agave nectar, and let the juice reduce slightly. Take off the heat.
Pour the warm liquid over the fruits and then stir in the chopped mint.
Gently toss and serve.