cumin roast lamb with za'atar spiced chickpeas & rocket

Sunday roast lamb with a twist.  I love this combination of cumin roast lamb and za'atar spiced chickpeas with rocket.  A mixture of Middle Eastern and North African flavours that I love to experiment with.

A great alternative to the traditional Sunday roast and ready in half the time.  Full of punchy, strong, earthy flavours and perfect for these warmer Spring days (OK - I am being hopeful as there is a bit of sun in the sky and I didn't wear my waterproof jacket when going out today!).

My za'atar spiced chickpeas are inspired by a recipe for garbanzos con espinacas (chickpeas with spinach) from the fabulous Moro Cookbook by Sam and Sam Clark.  They go great with this roast lamb but would work equally well as a side dish to any roast or as a tapas with other dishes.

The lamb would also work well with my za'atar roast potatoes or easy flat breads

I hope you enjoy - let me know how you get on......

serves 4-6 people

ingredients:

cumin roast lamb

1.5-2kg lamb shoulder
2 tbs cumin seeds
1 lemon
2 bay leaves
1 head garlic
salt and pepper

za'atar spiced chickpeas & rocket

150g rocket (spinach and watercress would work well too)
2x400g tins cooked chickpeas
400ml water
1 tsp chilli flakes
6 cloves garlic chopped
1 tbs za'atar
150g breadcrumbs (I made mine by giving some stale white bread a whizz in the food processor)
2 tbs red wine/sherry vinegar
2 tbs olive oil

to serve
fresh mint and coriander chopped
lemon wedges

instructions:

cumin roast lamb

• preheat the oven to 220C 
• squeeze the juice of the lemon over the lamb, then rub in the cumin seeds and salt and pepper.
• place the lamb in a roasting pan with the head of garlic (separated into cloves), bay leaves, and lemon (leftover from juice)
• roast the lamb for 20 mins per 450g plus an extra 20 mins. Cook at 220C for the first 20 mins and then 190C for the remaining time.  
• remove from the oven when done and leave to stand for at least 20 minutes which gives the meat a chance to relax and for the flavours to develop.  

za'atar spiced chickpeas & rocket

• heat a frying pan with the oil, when hot add the breadcrumbs and chopped garlic - fry until lightly golden brown.
• add the drained chickpeas, za'atar, vinegar and chilli flakes and stir-fry for a few minutes before adding the water.  
• cook for a few more minutes until well mixed and heated through.   
• Take off the heat and stir in the rocket to wilt.  
• This dish is best served at room temperature which gives the flavours a chance to mingle - I leave to stand for about 20 minutes before serving.  

and finally....

• carve the lamb into large chunky slices and serve with the za'atar spiced chickpeas.
• garnish with chopped mint and coriander and serve with lemon wedges.
• Enjoy :-) 

polenta gnocchi with super-green florentine sauce! (and it's gluten free and vegetarian too!)

A great winter warming recipe - polenta gnocchi with a watercress, spinach and rocket Florentine sauce all topped with parmesan - great as a vegetarian main meal or a side dish with a hearty stew or casserole.

Inspired by gnocchi Romana which is traditionally made with semolina and prepared simply with butter and parmesan. I have added this super-green Florentine to try and add a tasty little boost to my immune system in this cold and flu season.

The super-greens (watercress, spinach and rocket) add lots of vitamins and antioxidants as well as a lovely peppery taste which works well with the crème fraiche that makes the super simple super-green Florentine sauce!

This is a really simple recipe - the hardest bit is stirring the polenta while it cooks and thickens up - which does give you arms a bit of a work out but listen to some music and it'll be over in no time - no pain no gain as they say ;)

This is also a great gluten-free and vegetarian dish.

serves 3-4 as a main or 6 as a side dish

preparation time: 45 minutes (plus about 1 hour cooling time)

cooking time: 20 minutes

ingredients:

polenta gnocchi

3 cups fine/coarse cornmeal/polenta

6 cups water

30g grated parmesan/pecorino

1 tbs butter

1 tsp salt (or to taste)

black pepper to taste

1 tbs chopped sage leaves

few gratings of nutmeg

super-green florentine sauce

300ml creme fraiche (mascarpone/soft cheese would also work well)

100g mixed spinach, watercress, rocket leaves

black pepper to taste

30-50g parmesan or pecorino cheese to grate on top before baking

• pre-heat the oven to 200C
• add salt, chopped sage and nutmeg to the water and bring to the boil in a large saucepan
• when boiling add the polenta in a steady stream to prevent lumps (do as I say not as I do as I accidentally added in one big clump which made it harder work to get the lumps out!)
• stir, stir, and then stir some more - for about 30-45 minutes with a wooden spoon until the polenta starts to leave the sides of the pan and has thickened up and all lumps are gone.
• take off the heat and add the grated cheese and butter - stir until combined then tip onto a greased surface or tray
• spread out with a knife to about 1.5cm thick (dipping the knife in boiled water helps prevent the polenta sticking to it) then leave until completely cool. You can put in fridge to speed things up, but I left mine on the work surface and it was cold in about 1 hour.
• cut into small circles (I used a 5cm cutter) to make your polenta gnocchi and then put into a greased oven dish slightly overlapping
• you can add any offcuts together and flatten again to cut out more gnocchi if you still have some left over or save in the fridge for another day.
• chop the watercress, spinach and rocket roughly then add to the creme fraiche to make your super-green Florentine sauce - add black pepper to taste.
• top the gnocchi with the sauce then add more grated cheese to top before baking.
• bake at 200C for about 20 minutes - until the gnocchi are heated through and the top is golden and bubbling
  I served this with a fresh, super-green leaf and beetroot salad.