Stew and Green Beans

One thing that I think is an advanced cooking skill is the art of menu planning.  It's something I've struggled with in the past, but I am now getting more confident about my choices.  Sometimes you want a cook with a hot, or a green with an orange, or to pick culturally adjacent foods.  And even if the recipes you've chosen to pair together are old favorites, it's sometimes hard to predict with strongly flavored items, whether they'll go together well at all.

Last night's menu was VERY successful in pairing two items, and I think the key was a common element (roasted red pepper), contrasting textures (crunchy green beans vs. meltingly soft lamb), and savory savory sauce.  They were amazing together, and the sauce so good that we ended up finishing our plates, looking down, and toasting and buttering some wheat bread to sop up the sauce.

Makes enough for 2 dinner servings, plus two lunch portions, plus 1 1/2 cups of sauce that I intend to eat over spaghetti.

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/basque_lamb_stew/ (via Carol)

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/quick-recipes/2012/07/charred-green-beans-with-harissa-and-almonds (via my Bon Appetit subscription)  

Also, why don't I make harissa more often?  I've made it twice in the last month (two different recipes of varied difficulty) and it makes everything so delicious.  It goes over the green beans, but I also served it with poached eggs and sausage.  Forget salsa.... this is fast becoming my favorite condiment.

Pork Roast #1

Several in a series, I think, of pork roasts that I plan to do this winter.

So this recipe http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/10/braised-pork-shoulder-with-apple-cider-and-ginger-beer did not turn out as delicious as I had hoped.  It was good, but not magnificent.

Issue #1 - it did not translate well to the slow cooker.  I should have read this first: http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/howtocook/primers/slowcooking_adapting and I would have reduced the liquid by half.

Issue #2 - it wasn't spiced well.  Seasoning the meat is one thing, but this recipe would have done better if it had some cumin or some other sweet/savory spice.  The ginger beer used, while Extra Strong, wasn't enough to give the meat the flavor I wanted.  I may need to experiment with spice rubs.

But I served it with the Roasted Garlic and New Potatoes recipe that I thought was from Pioneer Woman Cooks, but apparently has been removed from her site.  Here's a copy of the recipe.  The white wine and long roasting time (1.25 hours) is key.
http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/1906407-Roasted-Garlic-and-New-Potatoes

And then I tried a new one for the Brussels Sprouts, you pan sear them and then add maple syrup and butter to make a sauce.  There are herbs, but I didn't include them, because 3 kinds of fresh herbs is excessive if you don't have them in your garden.
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/10/brussels-sprouts-with-maple-syrup

Work Lunch Planning

It takes time and forethought to effectively plan out meals to a) make leftovers and b) make leftovers that work well to take to lunch at work.  But when I don't plan out my lunches, I don't eat enough vegetables.

So last night I made this delicious stew of ridiculous spice mixes, tomatoes, eggs, and sausage.  It would have been ridiculously easy if not for the 14 ingredient spice mixture and homemade harissa paste.
http://www.food52.com/recipes/534_moroccan_merguez_ragout_with_poached_eggs

I served it with crusty bread and a cooling cucumber salad.  While I didn't follow this recipe exactly, it was a good inspiration.  What I actually ended up doing was slicing up the cucumber and radishes, reading the recipe all the way through for the first time, sighing at the 5 hour marination time required, and skipped the onion and just doused the cucumbers and radishes in 3 TBSP rice vinegar, 1 tsp coriander, and 1/4 cup olive oil.
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/06/cucumber-and-radish-salad 

The magical thing about this meal was not just how good it was last night, but how good it was reheated today for lunch.  The spices were stronger, but it was just as hearty and good, served with a slice of crusty bread that had spent a couple hours soaking up the juices in my lunchbox.

**** (out of 5) Would make again, but with a pre-prepared spice mix.