Feb 24

Feb 24 We Tri'd It: Lamb Power Bowls (Thanks David Tanis & New York Times Food)

I almost skipped over this recipe for Turkish-Style Lame Boreks by David Tanis in a recent issue of the New York Times when I saw the picture of the flakey pastry. NOT gluten-free friendly. But I kept reading because it reminded me of a dish we had in Israel. Actually, it was more like a bite of a dish I had in Israel since I had to dig through a delicious looking pastry to get to the flavorful meat filling. Anyone else do that?

Anyway, I figured, why not drop the borek wrapper (and that flakey pastry I wish I could eat) and turn this dish into a Borek Bowl. Chipotle, I'm one step ahead of you! I subbed in nutty buckwheat (kasha) for the pastry, kept the flavorful spiced lamb and tangy feta sauce in tact, and added some fresh elements.

I hope David Tanis isn't too annoyed that I modified his recipe. Maybe he'll be happy with the gluten-free updates so that people with restrictive diets didn't have to skip over this recipe. Cuz it's a good one.

BOREK BOWLS

modified from the New York Times Food Section (AF additions in bold)

FOR THE MEAT:

1 pound ground lamb

1 small onion

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

1 tablespoon sumac

1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses**

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

2 large handfuls of spinach, chopped

FOR THE CHEESE:

4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

1 cup Greek yogurt

juice from 1/2 a lemon

salt & pepper

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped

OTHER BOWL ESSENTIALS:

2 cups cooked kasha (buckwheat)

diced red bell peppers

sliced persian cucumbers

Lemon wedge

Sesame Seeds

**pomegranate molasses isn't a normal pantry item for me (maybe now it will be!), so instead I used 1/4 cup of an athlete favorite concentrated tart cherry juice.

Here's the original method, with me changes penciled in. You can find the original recipe here.