I can't believe it's been this long since I've posted a new recipe! You know what they say... time flies when you're having fun. I spent the whole month of May in China; traveling around, exploring, teaching, eating great food... and I couldn't write about any of it because China has banned all social networking sites, including blogs. However, I did take lots of pictures, and will be doing a "China Flashback" soon!
After I returned I had to hit the ground running in order to get
Helping Hands Books back in order, and to start the dissertation process! Now I finally feel like I'm back into the groove of things... catching up with friends, and catching up with all my side hobbies, like this one:)
The following stew recipe is one of those dishes that just sings out with the feeling of home-style comfort. You can use pretty much any kind of herbs you have on hand. I chopped up a smorgasbord of fresh organic herbs given to us by our friends Chip and Jackie Denoyers. They are part of a farm co-op and had lots to share. Fresh herbs are like currency to me. When I get my hands on them, I just can't let them go to waste. Besides this dish, I used them in omelets and scrambled eggs, pasta, and even to spice up my typical easy-meal soft tortilla wraps.
Feel free to add as much salt and pepper as you'd like to this dish, or even a bit of cayenne pepper. Unless you like subtle, earthy flavors, because that's what this stew is all about:)
Roland Gluten Free All Natural Chicken Soup Base, 23 Servings Per 4-Ounce Jars (Pack of 6)
Ingredients
- 2 large onions (diced)
- 1/2 pound minced beef
- 3 tblsp oil
- 1 1/2 tblsp ground tumeric
- 1/2 cup yellow split peas (or Dal)
- 5 cups water or GF chicken/vegetable stock
- 3 tblsp parsley or thyme (chopped)
- 3 tblsp rosemary (chopped)
- 3 tblsp chives (chopped)
- 3 tblsp mint (chopped)
- 3 saffron strands, dissolved in 1 tblsp boiling water
- 1 tblsp butter
- 2 garlic cloves (chopped)
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
- Dice up one of the onions. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the chopped onion until golden brown. Add the tumeric, split peas (Dal) and water... bring to a boil then reduce the heat to simmer - simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile... dice up the other onion and throw it into a bowl. Add the minced beef, salt and pepper to the bowl and mix well.
- Once the 20 minute timer goes off, form the beef/onion mixture into 1-inch sized balls and carefully place into the simmering liquid. Once all the little meatballs are in the pot, set the timer for another 10 minutes.
- After the timer rings, add the rice, parsley, rosemary, and chives. Simmer for 30 more minutes, or until rice is tender, stirring frequently.
- Melt the butter in a small pan and fry up the chopped garlic. Stir in the mint and the saffron. Add the garlic butter mixture to the soup and stir well.
- Ladle into soup bowls and garnish with mint if you have any left.
- ENJOY!
