May 14, 2013

Fig and Almond Lamb Stew with Oven Baked Turnip Fries

You know what I like most about roasts?

How they almost never fail to generate leftovers. There are just SO many fast and easy things you can whip up with roast leftovers. But my favorite of all has got to be stew!

I remember when I was a kid, my mom used to make what she called Fricassée whenever we’d have Pork Roast leftovers. It basically consisted of nothing more than cubed potatoes and pork meat, roasted in pork fat, to which she then added some type of stock to make a sauce as well as pieces of carrots and green peas for added color. Or well, so I thought at the time. Surely, that had to be these guys’ main purpose in the dish. They were only thrown in there to make the whole thing look pretty.

Oh, how I loved Fricassée nights! Sometimes, I sort of feel like whipping one up, quick quick, just for memories’ sake.

But hey, it’s not pork roast we’re doing here tonight. It’s LAMB ROAST, for crying out loud. So enough with that pork already; let’s get back with the program, shall we?

Alright, so let’s say you made this lovely boneless leg of lamb and had way too much for just one meal.

Lucky you, you’re now stuck with a whole bunch of leftovers.

AH! And if you followed my recommendations, you held on to some of those gorgeous pan juices too, right? Good!

Because you are really going to put them to good use.

And I do mean GOOD use.

I kid you not, guys, this has got to be the bestest-mostest-delicioustest stew I have eaten in my entire life. And if you too happen to have a soft spot for lamb AND figs, I get the feeling that you’ll be right with me on that one.

The sweet flavor of the figs, coupled with their chewy softness and millions of crunchy little seeds seem to work magically well with the strong flavor and delicate texture of the lamb. The addition of toasted almonds just took this dish right over the top.

And if you do dairy, I’m pretty sure that a little bit of soft goat cheese crumbled on top of this meaty dish would be absolutely killer! I’m definitely gonna have to try it, someday.

There’s A LOT to be said about the turnip fries too. They were just the perfect accompaniment for this.

They’re so super flavorful that plain potatoes fries almost sound kind of boring after having these, like they seriously lack in the flavor department…

Just you wait ’til you try them. I’m pretty certain that you will agree with me.

Last but not least, the other beautiful thing about this stew is that it comes together in no time at all.

In fact, you should probably start by making the turnip fries, for they take the longest to make. The stew takes mere minutes. I would say fifteen, at most!

So make the stew while the fries are in the oven!

Oh, and if you haven’t got any of the precious pan juices, don’t despair: all is not lost! You could very well use some good quality beef or lamb stock instead. Or even vegetable stock. Or more coffee…

Or even red wine, why not?

Just don’t you go drink it all, alright? 😉

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