What a treat we have for you today! Liesl Maré follows yesterday's story Come Dine With Me with her own recipe for a special dinner. We all have our own talents and gifts, anyone who has eaten from Liesl's table would know that she was born to create delicious food!
We hope you enjoy Liesl's recipe for Moroccan Lamb and hope it takes pride of place on your dinner table sometime soon.
Moroccan Lamb with apricots in a phyllo circle:
Serves 6-8
Olive oil – approx. 50ml
2kg stewing lamb
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 red onions, peeled and chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
2t ground cumin
2t ground coriander
2t smoked paprika
1 t turmeric
1 t cinnamon
2 T fresh ginger, peeled and grated or 1 t fine and dried ginger
Zest of 2 lemons and juice of 1
2 T sugar
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
2T tomato paste
2 cup Lamb or chicken stock – lamb is the best though
80g Turkish apricots, diced
2 Handfuls of fresh mint, chopped
16 sheets phyllo pastry, defrosted
100-150g butter, melted
Black or white Sesame seeds to sprinkle – black looks very interesting
1) Preheat oven to 180oC
2) Heat 2 T oil over med heat in ovenproof pot until hot.
3) Season stewing meat pieces generously with salt and pepper and brown in the oil to seal.
4) Remove meat and set aside.
5) Heat the remaining oil in the same pot and saute the onion until soft.
6) Add the garlic and cook for 2 min, add oil if needed.
7) Add all the spices, ginger and lemon zest and juice and cook for several minutes to intensify the flavours.
8) Add the sugar, tomatoes, tomato paste, stock and apricots, stir to combine then return the meat to the pot.
9) At this stage you can transfer the mixture to a slow cooker and put it on low through the day or night. Or it can remain in a ovenproof pot/dish.
10) Pour over 300ml boiling water, ensuring the liquid just covers the meat.
11) Put the lid on, place in oven and cook until the lamb is soft – 3 ½ - 4hours, or overnight in slow cooker. It must cook until the meat falls off the bones.
12) Shred the meat , pull off from bones (discard bones), take excess fat off, return meat to the sauce in the pot.
13) Add the chopped mint and set aside to cool.
14) Lay 2 pastry sheets down lengthwise, overlapping in the middle by 3cm. Brush lightly with melted butter, then lay 2 more sheets on top.
15) Place half the lamb filling along the bottom length of the pastry, leaving a 2cm edge.
16) Roll up snugly, from the bottom up to form a sausage shape.
17) Carefully shape the roll into a coil, starting with one end as the centre and working outwards. Repeat the process with the remaining phyllo and lamb and add to the coil.
18) Brush the top and sides with melted butter, sprinkle over the sesame seeds and transfer to a lined baking dish.
19) Bake until the top is golden and crisp – approx. 30- 45 min
20) Enjoy!