Following on from my earliest post on Gut Week, which contained a delicious recipe for Oriental Tofu Kebabs, here is the second recipe suggestion – courtesy of Love your Gut

This is one of my favourite recipes, full of colour and flavour. Harissa and pickled lemons are an integral part of North African cooking and are a perfect foil for lamb in this satisfying dish.

Serve with bulgur wheat or warmed flatbread. I madfe this dish over the weekend and served it with warmed flatbread – a suggestion I heartily recommend!

Moroccan lamb stew with pumpkin and pickled lemon

SERVES 4

450g (1lb) lean leg of lamb, cut into 2.5cm (1in) cubes

11/2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 large onion, roughly diced

4 garlic cloves, crushed

4 tomatoes, skinned and diced

1 tablespoon harissa or hot pepper paste

400g (14oz) tin of chickpeas in water, drained and rinsed

350g (12oz) trimmed and peeled pumpkin, cut into 2.5cm (1in) cubes 1 pickled lemon, finely diced 2 tablespoons chopped mint 1 tablespoon chopped coriander

1  Coat the lamb in the black pepper.

2  Heat the oil in a large non-stick saucepan, add the lamb and cook until it has browned all over. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is soft and is slightly brown, adding a splash of water if necessary to prevent sticking.

3  Add the tomatoes, harissa and 425ml (3/4 pint) water. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook over a medium heat for 11/4­11/2 hours, topping up with water as necessary, until the lamb is almost tender.

4  Add the chickpeas and pumpkin and cook for a further

15 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Add the lemon, mint and coriander. Serve immediately.

Per portion: 357 kcal, 18g fat, 6.6g sat fat, 0.28g sodium

Feeling the cold this winter? Are you like thousands of Brits and completely snowed in? If so, then this is most certainly a recipe for you!

I love a lamb hotpot when the winters start to really set in. Of course my family have always traditionally served this with Yorkshire Pudding, but these days I find it far too heavy and tend not to combine the two. It is lovely with a great chunk of homemade bread. Incidentally this is also my first entry written with Windows Live Writer. I will let you know how it goes!

Ingredients:

1 lb neck of lamb
2 large onion
2 stalks of celery
1 small white turnip
2 carrots
4 medium potatoes
6 oz pearl barley
Chicken stock
Sprigs of thyme and bay leaves – place in a muslin bag
White pepper
Parsley leaves

Preparation:

Preheat an oven to 160 degrees Celsius

Peel the onions, halve and thickly slice

Peel and cut celery stalks into 4 pieces – diagonally

Peel the turnip, carrot and potatoes and cut into chunks

Place the vegetables and pearl barley into a casserole dish, put the neck of lamb on top then add the thyme and a bay leaf in a muslin bag tied with string

Pour in sufficient stock to cover the meat and vegetables then season with white pepper and salt

Bring slowly to the boil

Skim off any impurities

Cover the top of the stew with a circle of greaseproof paper, then a lid

Put into the lower part of a preheated oven for two hours

Remove the casserole lid, greaseproof paper and muslin bag

Sprinkle over the chopped parsley and gently stir

Check seasoning and adjust if necessary

Ingredients::
1 lb lean mutton, cut into 1” cubes and tossed in seasoned flour
6 oz red onion – chopped
2 large cloves garlic – finely chopped
5 oz bacon lardons
¼ bottle full bodied red wine
¾ pint chicken stock
4 oz chorizo – diced or sliced (to taste)
¼ tsp each – allspice, cinnamon, freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of cloves
1 preserved lemon – finely sliced, pips removed with a little of the preserving juice
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 oranges
Handful of finely shredded parsley leaves
3 oz lightly toasted pine nuts

Method::
Heat some olive oil in a large solid saucepan and brown the lamb in batches – put aside

Add the onion, garlic and bacon – sauté for five minutes, add the wine, bring to the boil and reduce slightly, return the lamb to the saucepan and add the stock

Bring up to a simmer, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 60 minutes, or until the meat is nearly ready

Add the chorizo, spices, preserved lemon, orange zest and juice

Cook for another 15 minutes

Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle over the parsley and pine kernels

Serve with couscous

Ingredients:
1 leg lamb, about 5 lbs

Marinade:
2 garlic cloves – peel and crush with salt
1 tbsp sea salt flakes
1 tbsp cumin seed
1 pinch sweet paprika
1 tbsp thyme leaves
2 tbsp olive oil
¼ lb melted unsalted butter
2½ fl oz each of red wine and light vegetable stock
1 pint of lamb stock

Method:
Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius

Add the garlic cloves to a mortar, crush with a little sea salt and then the spices and thyme, gradually whisk in the olive oil to form a thick paste, whisk in the melted butter.

Place the lamb in a casserole dish, rub all over with the marinade, place in the lower part of the oven and cook for 30 minutes, remove from the oven add the red wine and stock, baste and return to the oven for 2½ to 3 hours – basting occasionally – add a little more stock if the juice evaporate.

Remove from the oven and place the lamb on a serving dish, pour off the fat from the casserole and add a pint of lamb stock, deglaze the pan and cook quickly to reduce by about half, then transfer to a sauce boat and serve with mashed root vegetables

Meatballs:
8 oz minced mutton
1 onion – finely chopped
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley leaves
1 tbsp plain flour seasoned with salt and pepper

Sauce:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic – blanched, skinned then finely chopped
1 lb plum tomatoes – skinned and chopped
¼ pint chicken stock
¼ pint red wine
2 basil leaves, washed, patted dry and chopped
½ tsp of oregano
Salt and black pepper – to taste

Put the mutton, minced onion, lightly beaten egg, breadcrumbs and parsley into a bowl and knead until thoroughly mixed, shape into small balls and coat in a little seasoned flour, tap off the excess. Refrigerate until required

Place the olive oil into a deep frying pan, when hot add the garlic, sweat until translucent and softened

Blitz the tomatoes and add to the onions along with the chicken stock, red wine, basil, oregano, salt and pepper, bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer and until thickened – approximately 30 minutes

Meanwhile, place equal quantities of butter and olive oil into a frying pan and brown the meatballs in batches, as they are browned place into the pan with the tomato sauce

Serve with Linguini and grated Pecorino Cheese and crusty bread