Hey y'all (you?) -

Look!  I made myself breakfast!

two eggs, garlic pork, salsa

Sorry for being a major d-bag on the whole... this is a blog, so you should blog... thing... Aside from a big travel stint (for fun, fortunately), I've just been uninspired in the cooking department, until NOW!

For one thing, I got a link!   OMG, my probably one and only reader and dear friend Coral started a blog documenting a 30-day paleo challenge and it is great! At any rate she linked to me, so I guess I should take her pleading to heart and post something, eh?  Here we go.

So yeah, everything I've been cooking seemed like a bit of a flop/unbelievably boring until this past Monday, when my new Bon Appetit magazine arrived. I'm a sorta-long time subscriber, and I usually abhor the "grilling issue"... like, honestly, (former?) editors of BA... those who subscribe to your magazine do not necessarily need yet another way to slap sugary bbq sauce on meat and put it over flame.  I personally want  inspiration for interesting new ways to make summer cooking delicious and unusual... and that's exactly what they delivered this month!  Incredible!

Coincidentally, this week we were invited to the birthday party of a friend who is a number of things - 1) she is lovely and deserving of fine things (as are all of the people I associate with), 2) she is a member of the #1 CrossFit Affiliate team in the Northwest Region (go Kirkland CrossFit!!) and 3) she is from Iceland, where people seem to be, above many things, enamored with lamb, shrimp, and being fancy.  With these items in mind, BA's crazy recipe for lamb and shrimp kebabs with red harissa seemed a no-brainer to bring to her birthday bbq.

I pretty much followed the recipe as written, so I've copied it below, but I had a hard time getting mine to stick to the metal skewers that I had... we ended up making little patties out of the mixture and that turned out fine, but if you want them to be real kebabs, you probably need wooden skewers. 

• 1 1/4 pounds boneless leg of lamb or top round, cut into 1" cubes
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup coarsely grated red onion
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound large shrimp (about 20), peeled, deveined, coarsely chopped
• Oil for the grill 

Chill lamb in freezer for 10 minutes. Place in a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Transfer to a large bowl.

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon salt over garlic and chop, occasionally smearing mixture with side of knife, until paste forms. Mix garlic paste, onion, cilantro, cumin, pepper flakes, black pepper, and remaining 1 tsp. salt into lamb, blending well. Add shrimp; mix to combine.

Measure 2 tablespoons lamb mixture; roll between your palms to form a 2"-long oval. Slide skewer halfway into lamb mixture, pressing to adhere. Repeat with remaining lamb mixture and skewers. (*OR make little patties) DO AHEAD Can be made 6 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
Build a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill, or heat a gas grill to high. Brush kebabs with oil and grill, turning occasionally, until nicely charred and just cooked through, about 6 minutes per side. Serve with Red Harissa.

 

 

The real star here is the red harissa. DEFINITELY take the time to make it, it tastes amazing on everything, as we discovered.  By the end of the party two of the fittest guys I know were practically mainlining the stuff on crackers with cream cheese... not paleo, but completely awesome.  I love when I don't take home any leftovers!

• 3 large red bell peppers
• 2 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 red jalapeños (I couldn't find red ones, so I used one green one) or Fresno chiles, stemmed, seeded, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more for seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more for seasoning
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Roast peppers in broiler or directly over gas flame, turning occasionally, until charred all over. Transfer to a large bowl, cover, and let stand 15 minutes. Stem, peel, and seed peppers; coarsely chop.

Place peppers, next 4 ingredients, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a food processor. Purée until very smooth. With machine running, gradually add oil. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if desired.