Cold Weather Comfort- Moroccan Lamb Stew

I made a delicious stew last night and wanted to share…This is adapted from the Nourishing Traditions book (page 349, if you have it) because, as usual, I didn’t have all the ingredients their recipe called for.

We had a nice lamb roast over the weekend, so I needed to use up the rest of it.  I also used homemade turkey stock (used our T-day carcass for this) and I don’t skim the fat off because it makes everything so much richer! Also, leftover were some roasted root vegetables from another dinner. (I’m a freak about not wasting food!)  This recipe will make dinner for 4 hungry people and enough for a second round.

lamb roast or chops-leftover or pre-cooked (I used about 1.5 pounds) cut into chunks

Carrots, Potatoes, Turnips, Parsnips…go crazy with the roots!

6 cloves of garlic, peel and chop

1 onion, chopped

1/2 cup olive oil

4 tsp ground Cumin

1 TBSP freshly grated Ginger

1 Tsp sea salt

1 Tsp ground Turmeric

1 Tsp Paprika

1 Tsp ground Cinnamon

2 Tsp black pepper

juice of 1 small lemon OR a big squirt from the plastic lemon

2 quarts stock

1 cup coconut milk (I use the kind in the can because it’s thicker)

Put olive oil, all spices, onion and garlic in a soup pot. Cook and stir until the kitchen smells like heaven and the onions are getting clear (add some water if this mixture starts to get too sticky. You want a sludgy consistency).

Add lamb and stir to coat well.  Add all vegetables and stock. Simmer on medium until the vegetables have softened, then add coconut milk and stir in well.

I served this without garnish, but the original recipe suggests Cilantro.  My girl says this stew smells like Christmas!  If you make some, I’d love to hear any variations you made or how it turned out!