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Artichoke and lamb stew is a very common dish in the western Aegean part of Turkey, where Turk and Greeks lived together for years. The original recipe requires artichoke heart, lamb, onion, and, the most important of all dill. Yet, I find the mix of just artichoke and lamb to be very heavy, so I modified the recipe by adding carrot ands green peas.


























serves 4-6

1 pound lamb
8-10 small or 4-6 big peeled artichoke hearts, cut into 4-6 pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped in half rounds
1 pound fresh green peas or 1 can green peas
1/2 bunch dill, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil or 4 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tbsp flour
juice of 1 1/2 lemon
1 tsp sugar
water
salt

-Soak chopped artichoke hearts in a bowl with lemon juice until you cook them. Otherwise, they will darken.
-Heat olive oil or butter in a broad pot and add lamb. Stir for a couple of minutes until its cooked on each side.
-Add onion and carrot. Stir until onion is softened. Add flour and stir for another minutes.
-Add artichoke, green peas, lemon juice, sugar, and salt. Add water to barely cover vegetables.
-Bring to a boil, and then cover and simmer on low for almost an hour.
-Add dill after your turn it off.
-Serve with rice.

With the harmonious friendship of artichoke and dill, the recipe is for Weekend Herb Blogging, founded by Kalyn and hosted this week by Pille of Nami Nami

Imagine large, tender chunks of venison slowly simmering away in a broth of hearty red wine, sweet brandy, ripe tomatoes and fragrant herbs like lavender and thyme. After a few hours, this stew will fill your home with the most inviting smells.  Following the French tradition, a lot of alcohol was used along with a small handful of herbes de Provence, a mixture of herbs indigenous to the Mediterranean, Southern part of France. Ladies, this is the perfect meal to welcome your beloved hunter home. After a cold day of being out in the field, he will surely appreciate this warm meal. (All political correctness aside-- I usually go with him, but when its cold, I volunteer to stay inside. Id rather stay home and cook than freeze my butt off. Let the man bring home the meat. You know what Im sayin?) And for all you gentlemen out there, shell appreciate you helping with the dishes. Rick does and I love him for it. ;-)


5. Add brandy and let it boil away.
Be careful though...
9. Drop in orange zest. Bring to a simmer.
Return the browned venison along with the meat juices. Return the bacon bits.
10. Cover the pot. Slide into the oven and cook for about 2.5 hours, or until meat is fork tender. Stir every 45 minutes. 
This weeks wine was Long Arms Red Blend, one that we got from Trader Joes for about 6 bucks. Its not what you call a "pedigreed" wine, but Rick still gives it two thumbs up.

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I cant help but chuckle at the title because I know that a lot of my readers and blogger friends despise Rachael Ray.  I know shes quirky and annoys people but that doesnt stop me from trying her recipes and it shouldnt stop you either. I like her and more importantly, this dish is delicious!  I added a potato and handful of Trader Joes frozen sliced peppers (in addition to the cubanelles), a can of roman beans, some crushed red pepper (since I didnt use spicy sausage) and Italian seasoning.  I loved it!  I cant wait to eat the leftovers for lunch today!



Sausage, Pepper and Potato Soup

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/sausage-peppers-and-onions-stoup-recipe/index.html

Ingredients:


3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds hot or sweet Italian sausage, cut into small pieces or smashed with a masher or spoon
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 to 4 cubanelle peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
2 medium-large onions, thinly sliced
1 large potato, diced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 cups chicken stock
2 (15-ounce) cans or 1 (28-ounce) can crushed or diced fire roasted tomatoes
1 can roman beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley leaves
1/2 cup basil leaves, torn
1 tsp Italian seasoning
crushed red pepper to taste (if you use spicy sausage you dont need this)
1 cup Romano cheese

Directions:

Heat extra-virgin olive oil in deep skillet, add sausage and brown a few minutes then add potato, garlic, peppers, onions and cook until soft, 6 to 7 minutes more.

Deglaze pan with vinegar abd stir in stock, tomatoes, basil, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper.  Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer, cook 10 -15 minutes and then add beans and cook for another 5-10 minutes until potatoes are tender.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with grated cheese on top.