Meatballs and Bell Pepper Sauce over Farro

We have been working on this dish for a few weeks and it is finally time to post it!  It was originally inspired by a Marcus Samuelsson recipe from his cookbook, The Soul of a New Cuisine.  We found the original, "Kofta Meatballs with Okra Tomato Sauce," a bit bland.  It was probably our fault for using frozen okra.  Anyway, discouraged by that experience we re-imagined the dish as lamb and beef meatballs with a Middle Eastern influenced pepper and tomato sauce over farro.

We rip off the tomato/pepper sauce from Oprah.  We use basically the same ingredients, but we saute the garlic and then add the pureed ingredients and heat it on low heat while we brown the meatballs.  When the meatballs were done browning we drain them and then add them to the sauce to finish cooking.

Roasting Peppers
For those of us who are urban dwellers, it's incredibly easy to roast peppers in the oven broiler.  Hopefully you have a broiler even if it's miniature like ours.  Just core the peppers, cut them in quarters, and then cut the tips off the quarters.  Press the quarters flat in a pan and put them in the broiler for about ten minutes.  It's a good idea to check them and turn them about halfway through for even roasting.  When the skins are blackened and blistered all over remove the peppers and let them cool a bit.  While they are still hot to the touch seal them in a plastic bag and let them sit for until they reach room temperature.  At this point they should be easy to peel.

Tomato Pepper Sauce

1 slice white sandwich bread, toasted and torn into pieces
1/2 cup walnuts
3 Tbsp. olive oil (for puree)
1 Tbsp. olive oil (for sauteeing garlic)
3 Tbsp. pomegranate juice
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
3/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 cloves garlic
2 roasted red bell peppers
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
2 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 - 1 1/2 cup chicken stock

Use a food processor to chop the walnuts as finely as possible.  Then add the peeled roasted peppers, bread, tomatoes, olive oil, pomegranate juise, lemon juice, and seasoning. Puree the ingredients until they form a smooth, thick sauce.  Sautee the garlic in olive oil until it just starts to brown.  Add the puree and chicken stock and reduce heat to low.  Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.

Meatballs
1/2 lb. ground lamb
1/4 lb. ground beef
1 slice white bread, soaked in milk
4 Tbsp. minced parsley
1/4 cup minced onion
2 tsp. cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix together the ingredients thoroughly.  Form meatballs approximately 1 1/2 in. in diameter (will make about a dozen meatballs).  Brown the meatballs in olive oil over medium heat.  Drain on paper towels and then add to the sauce to finish cooking.

Farro
1 1/2 cup farro
3 cups water
2 tsp salt

Cook farro as you would brown rice.  Total cooking time is approximately 45 min.  Be sure to check the farro toward the end-the more you try it the more you will develop your own preference for doneness.

Serving
Serve the meatballs and sauce over the farro.  Garnish with parsley if desired.

S & I Smash the Mold

On March 5th the Upper West Side Supper Club 2011 competition entered a new phase.  S & I created an event of truly unprecedented quality and proportions.  With the help of a Sterno fireplace and a buxom waitress they created a pop-up haute restaurant.  The appetizers, which consisted of baked brie in pastry, shrimp wrapped in pancetta, and asparagus (wrapped in prosciutto, naturally!) were delicious.  The main course and contest entry was a beef and barley stew that scored particularly well in the prep cookery department (one diner wrote in a "5+").  Overall S & I took a decisive lead with 29.1 points.  (Apologies for the lack of pictures--I think they are in Italy right now.  I will post when they get back.)

Standings:

UWSSC Standings
R & E: 26.3
A & N: 27.0
S & I: 29.1

Lamb Stew at the Second Upper West Side Supper Club Event

Sad that I'm only blogging it more than a week on, but I can still remember the delicious sweetness of this hearty lamb stew accented with rosemary, thyme, parsnips, and pearl onions.  Our entry in the winter stew category was N's adaptation of a Julia Child (JC? WWJCD?) recipe.  Uncharacteristically bereft of bacon, JC develops the flavor in the lamb by browning it, coating it in flour, and braising it in its own juices for a while before adding the other ingredients.  N improved upon the original by cutting the number of potatoes drastically, boosting the liquid with some extra stock part way through braising, and increasing the amount of herbs.  The result not only avoided the dryness of the original, it was absolutely delectable in my opinion.  We were so excited about it my mother in law made her own version today (thank goodness she's not in the SC--it wouldn't be a fair fight).  Our fellow diners, however, only awarded us a 27.  I'm hoping that was on account of my salad: bitter greens tossed in a mustard vinaigrette with gorgonzola croutons.

UWSSC Standings
R & E: 26.3
A & N: 27.0

Upper West Side Supper Club Inaugural Dinner

The Upper West Side Supper club is a group of friends who love to get together to enjoy good food, improve our cooking skills, and engage in some friendly competition.  Last night we kicked off the 2011 season with a delicious entry in the Winter Stew category by E & R.  They set the bar high in the flavor and originality departments with a chicken tagine.  A scrumptious salad of arugula, beets, goat cheese, and walnuts started things off.  Their total score: 26.3.  Stay tuned as the other contestants make their Winter Stew entries.