Armenian Lamb with Sauteed Peppers and Onions on Walnut Couscous

A couple of weekends ago, I was out camping at a large historical re-creation event. I camp with a group that of people that are mostly enthusiastic cooks. At this event, however, we are all busy with the myriad activities available, and so meals tend toward simple and quick to prepare. Another reason to keep it simple is that sometime this site has an abundance of wasps. The less time raw meat is sitting around, the easier it is to avoid attracting their attention.

This is not to suggest, however, that the food is less than tasty. We are all kinda picky that way. Simple and fast can still be good.

One of our go to meals is something we dubbed Armenian burritos. Basically, it is an Armenian style sautéed ground lamb, served with spiced, sautéed onions and peppers, wrapped in pita bread or lavash (a soft flat bread). It is served with various condiments and add-ons, including diced green chilies, sliced black olives, minced cilantro, parsley, and/or mint, sliced pepperoncini, feta cheese, and home made yogurt cheeses (this year I made roasted garlic, and cucumber). Both the lamb and peppers are seasoned with garlic, parsley, allspice, paprika, and black pepper.

Well, the spouse did not get to camp this year, so I claimed some of the left over lamb (which is awesome in an omelet, but that's another post) for her. We had a giant bell pepper that needed used, so I sliced it up and sautéed it with onion, and spiced it up with cumin, fresh thyme, and cayenne. The couscous is a simplified version of the walnut butter couscous I've made before. I served it with some of the cucumber lebni.

Recipes

Armenian Lamb

2 lbs. ground lamb
1/2 cup fresh parsley

2 cloves minced garlic

2 tsp. paprika

2 tsp.  allspice

2 tsp. black pepper
salt to taste

3 Tbsp. olive oil

Mix all ingredients except olive oil. Add oil to a hot wok, then cook lamb quickly, stirring constantly.

Spiced Bell Peppers and Onions

1 large ripe bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1/2 medium yellow onion, cut into thin strips
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves, minced
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne powder
salt to taste

In a large skillet over medium to medium high heat, sauté onions in olive oil for two minutes. Add peppers, spices, and salt. Cook until vegetables are tender.

Walnut Couscous

1 cup dried couscous
1/2 cup ground walnuts
pinch salt
hot water as needed

Place couscous in a bowl. Stir in walnuts and salt. Pour over couscous enough water to cover. Mix well, let stand five minutes.

Cucumber Cheese

1 lb. lebni
3 small Persian cucumbers
1 tsp. coarse sea salt

Peel and shred cucumbers. Place in a colander over a bowl, sprinkle with salt. Let stand 30 minutes to allow cucumbers to release most of their moisture.

Stir cucumbers into lebni. Best if refrigerated for at least a day before use.

Happy Eating!

Mango Carrot Cake with Mango Ginger Pastry Cream and Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting

A friend of ours was celebrating her birthday, and the spouse and I wanted to make her a cake. The spouse had found a recipe for a mango carrot cake in the April 2013 issue of Better Homes and Gardens Magazine. We followed the cake recipe, but I came up with my own filling and icing recipes. We coated the outside with toasted walnuts.

For the filling, the spouse and I collaborated on a mango ginger pastry cream. It came out very nice. It had a nice light mango and ginger flavor, and wasn't too sweet.

For the icing, I pulverized some candied ginger in my spice grinder, and added that to a cream cheese frosting. It was tangy, with a little ginger bite.

The original recipe had ribbons of plain old carrot piled on the cake by way of decoration. That seemed both lacking in flavor and messy to me. I candied ribbons of carrot in a simple syrup that had candied ginger and orange zest in it. While still warm, I rolled them up. I think it added color to finish the cake, and gave the cake a more professional appearance. And, they were tasty too.

The cake came out a little dense and gummy for my taste. Although, the person we made it for liked the texture. I think it is a fine idea, and some combination of more leavening, less liquid, or more cooking time should result in a better cake. Also considering moving from all purpose to cake flour.

Recipes

Mango Carrot Cake

2 cups all purpose flour
3 cups shredded carrots
3/4 cups mango nectar
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Pre-heat oven to 350F.

Grease and flour two eight inch cake pans.

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, beating until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well each time.

Alternate flour mixture and mango, mix on low after each addition, just until mixed.

Stir in carrots. Divide evenly between pans. Bake 25 - 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

(Update: Note that the recipe above should work fine. The original recipe  said 1 1/4 cup juice in the ingredients list, but buried in the text said to add 3/4 cup to the cake. The spouse added the full 1 1/4 cup to the cake.)

Mango Ginger Pastry Cream

2 cups milk
2 2/3 oz. by wt. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. crystallized ginger
1/4 cup mango nectar
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
pinch kosher salt

In a saucepan over medium low heat, combine milk, sugar, vanilla, ginger, salt, and juice. Bring just to a boil. Remove from heat. Slowly add 1/2 cup of hot milk mixture to the egg mixture while whisking continuously. Add mixture back to pot, return to heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.

Strain mixture, cover directly with plastic wrap, to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until cool.

Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting

12 oz. by wt. cream cheese
3 oz. by wt. room temperature butter
6 oz. by wt. powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. crystallized ginger
1 tsp. vanilla

Pulverize ginger in a spice grinder. Combine all ingredients in a stand mixer. Cream with a paddle until smooth.

Candied Carrot Curls

2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 large carrot, peeled
zest of 1 orange
2 Tbsp. crystallized ginger

Use a vegetable peeler to make long carrot strips. Set aside.

Place sugar, water, zest, and ginger in a small pan over medium low heat. When syrup comes to a simmer, add carrot strips. Simmer gently for about 20 minutes, until carrots are translucent. Remove from heat. Spread carrot strips out on wax paper. Let cool just enough to be handled. Roll up strips  to make a cylinder. Place on end on wax paper to cool.

To Assemble Cake:

Put one cake on a cake round. Place a 1/2 inch layer of pastry on top. Add the second cake. Using a spatula, place a thin layer of frosting on sides and top of cakes. Refrigerate twenty minutes to set coat. Add a top coat of frosting. Coat outside of cake with ground toasted walnuts. Pipe a ring of rosettes of frosting, add an inner ring of candied carrot curls.

Happy Eating!