Lamb and apricots recipe

The Lebanese Recipes Kitchen (The home of delicious Lebanese Recipes and Middle Eastern food recipes) invites you to try lamb and apricots recipe. Enjoy tasty food and learn how to make lamb and apricots.

This fragrant, sweet-and-sour casserole is inspired by the tagines of north Africa.

Serves 4
Ready in 2 hours 35 minutes

Ingredients

1kg diced shoulder or neck of lamb, trimmed of any excess fat
1½ tbsp mild olive oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
2 leeks, washed and roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
2 bay leaves
3 tbsp red or white wine vinegar
1 tbsp tomato purée
350ml chicken or vegetable stock, hot
500g fresh apricots, halved and stoned or a 410g can apricot halves in fruit juice, drained
4 tbsp natural yogurt (strained, Greek style is best)

Method

1. Season the lamb well. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan or casserole over a high heat. Add half the lamb and brown on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside while you brown the remaining lamb, then set aside as well.

2. Add the chopped vegetables and garlic to the pan and cook gently, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, until tender. Don’t let them brown.

3. Meanwhile, dry-roast the whole spices in a frying pan over a high heat for no more than a minute.

4. Stir the spices into the cooked vegetables, then add the bay, vinegar and tomato purée. Return the meat to the pan and stir. Add just enough stock to cover the meat. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook over a low heat for 1 hour.

5. Add the apricots, but don’t stir into the stew. Re-cover the pan and cook for another hour. Keep checking to make sure the stock has not reduced too much – top up if needs be.

6. Once the lamb is tender (you should be able to cut the pieces with a spoon), remove the pan from the heat. Check the seasoning, then gently stir the apricots into the stew. You can either divide between bowls and garnish each portion with a tablespoon of yogurt, or serve the yogurt on the side.

Nutritional info

Per serving: 578kcals, 33.6g fat (14.7g saturated), 56.1g protein, 15g carbs, 12.5g sugar, 2.3g salt

Delicious magazine

Baked lamb & apricot couscous recipe - Middle Eastern chicken & apricot stew recipe - Apricot Couscous 

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Apricot yoghurt cake

Ingredients (serves 10)

410g can apricot halves, drained, sliced
125g butter, softened
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups self-raising flour
2 x 175g tubs NESTLE All Natural Orchard Apricot yogurt
1/4 cup flaked almonds
1/4 cup shredded coconut

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease base and sides of a 6cm-deep, 20cm (base) springform cake pan. Line with baking paper. Pat apricot dry with paper towel. Using an electric mixer, cream butter, caster sugar and vanilla until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in flour and 1 tub of yoghurt until well combined.

2. Spoon half the cake mixture into prepared pan. Smooth surface. Top with apricot. Spoon remaining mixture over apricot. Smooth surface. Sprinkle with almonds and coconut.

3. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Stand cake for 5 minutes in pan. Remove from pan. Place on wire rack to cool.

4. Serve cake with remaining yoghurt.

Notes & tips
If cake starts to over-brown in the oven, cover loosely with foil for the remainder of the cooking time.

Source
Super Food Ideas - November 2007, Page 73
Recipe by Kim Coverdale

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Apricot crumb squares

Apricot crumb squares for high days and holidays.

Easy
Serves 16
Prep 20 25 mins - Cook 50 mins

Ingredients

FOR THE TOPPING

175g plain flour
140g light muscovado sugar
140g butter , softened
1 tsp ground cinnamon

FOR THE CAKE

175g butter , softened
200g golden caster sugar
3 large eggs
175g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
2-3 tbsp milk
8 fresh apricots , quartered (or canned in natural juice)
icing sugar for dusting

Method

1. Preheat oven to fan 160C/ conventional 180C/gas 4 and butter a shallow 22cm square cake tin. Put all the topping ingredients in a food processor with 1⁄2 tsp salt and blend to make a sticky crumble.

2. Using an electric hand whisk or wooden spoon, blend the cake ingredients, except milk and apricots, gradually adding enough milk to make a creamy mixture that drops from the spoon. Spread in the tin and scatter with apricots. Top with the crumble and press down.

3. Bake for 45-50 minutes until golden and a skewer comes out clean. Cool in tin, cut into 16 squares and dust with icing sugar. (Keeps up to 5 days in a plastic container in the fridge.)

Nutrition per serving

332 kcalories, protein 4g, carbohydrate 42g, fat 18 g, saturated fat 11g, fibre 1g, salt 0.52 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, July 2003.

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Sweet & spicy apricot chicken

Experience Moroccan-style chicken in minutes - it's easily doubled too.

Easy
Serves 2 (generously)
Easily doubled
Prep 10 mins - Cook 15 mins

Ingredients

100g frozen chopped French green beans
400g packet mini chicken breast fillets
1 tbsp olive oil
14 kalamata olives
chicken stock cube
1 tbsp apricot conserve (with large pieces of fruit)
2 110g packets coriander and lemon couscous
A small handful fresh coriander
1 tsp each ground cumin and coriander

Method

1. Put a kettle of water on to boil. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and add the chicken in a single layer. Scatter the spices on top and leave to cook, without stirring, for about aminute. Flick the chicken pieces over and cook for a minute or so on the other side.

2. While you are waiting, tip the couscous into a saucepan. Pour 400ml/14fl oz boiling water over the couscous and allow to bubble on the heat for a minute. Cover, turn off the heat and leave to soak for 5 minutes.

3. While the couscous is soaking, pour 300ml/1⁄2 pint boiling water over the chicken in the frying pan and crumble in the stock cube. Tip in the conserve, beans and olives, add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste, stir, then leave to bubble gently for 5minutes. Meanwhile, chop the coriander and sprinkle it into the pan before serving.

4. Fork through the couscous - it should have plumped up by now - and pile into 2 large shallow bowls. Spoon the chicken, beans and olives on top and pour the sweet and fragrantly spiced juices over.

Nutrition per serving

514 kcalories, protein 56g, carbohydrate 38g, fat 16 g, saturated fat 3g, fibre 3g, salt 5.24 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, November 2002.

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Apricots

A relative of the peach, nectarine, plum and cherry, apricots are fragrant, with a soft, velvety skin that ranges from pale yellow to deep orange. Inside there's a large kernel that will fall out easily if the flesh is ripe.

Apricots need a warm climate to thrive - in the summer most come from hot European countries, and there's also a short winter season for apricots grown in Chile and South Africa.

Availibility

The British apricot season is from May to September.

Choose the best

An apricot's colour is not always a reliable guide to flavour, but steer clear of very pale varieties, and always avoid wrinkled or blemished skins. The flesh should feel moderately firm with some give.

Prepare it

Halve by running a blade around the kernel following the line of the fruit's natural dimple, then gently twist apart and flip out the stone. Brush the cut sides with lemon juice to prevent the flesh from discolouring.

Store it

At room temperature if not completely ripe (they'll ripen in a day or two in the fruit bowl), otherwise in the fridge.

Cook it

In tarts and crumbles; poached and served with double cream; or use to make jam, compote or chutneys.

Try

• Apricot yoghurt cake
  
• Sweet & spicy apricot chicken
• Apricot crumb squares

Can't find it

Try peach or nectarine

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