Unlike the mythological doomed character Persephone you will not be sentenced to spend half the year trapped in Hades, for eating pomegranate seeds. You will however hum with delight as you devour this Lamb, Pomegranate and Roasted Capsicum Salad. The taste and texture is terrific, especially as the tiny jewel-like pomegranate seeds burst open with sweet juice at every mouthful.
I served this up for dinner last night alongside a hearty Vegetable and Cheese Filo Pie and a slow roasted, boned out lamb neck in a fresh tomato and lemon sauce. I had wanted to make the Greek inspired spinach pie but found I was out of the key ingredient. Rather than heading off to the shops, I decided to make do with what was in my fridge and created this version instead which features vitamin rich broccoli and zucchini. This is an easy and effective way of encouraging children to eat vegetables.
Make an effort to add variety to your meals by presenting readily available ingredients in a different and appetising way. As my brother Milan often says, “mix it up a little!”.
Lamb, Pomegranate and Roasted Capsicum Salad
To serve 4 people as a main or 6 people as a side dish.
Ingredients and Method
First of all prepare the wheat…
200 g fine cracked wheat ( you can also use couscous)
Put the cracked wheat in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Allow to steep for 20 – 30 minutes until the grains have softened and swollen.
500 g lamb fillets, sliced into bite sized diagonal pieces
2 large red capsicums sliced into finger width lengths
1 cup roughly chopped fresh coriander leaves
sea salt and black pepper to taste
finely grated rind of a lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
Combine the above ingredients in a bowl and set aside on the bench to marinate while you turn on the barbecue to pre-heat and prepare the following remaining ingredients.
And the dressing…
juice of 1 lemon
half a cup of young, fresh mint leaves
1 x pomegranate – slice into quarters and remove all the red edible seeds and set aside in a small bowl. Discard the outer red shell and the inner white membranes which tend to be bitter.
1 x tablespoon pomegranate molasses – this is available from well stocked fresh food markets like the Norton Street Grocer Leichhardt or Middle Eastern food stores.
Finely slice the mint leaves and put them into a large serving bowl with the lemon juice.
Drain any excess water off the cracked wheat by putting it into a fine sieve and pressing it firmly with the palm of your hand. Then shake the cracked wheat into your serving bowl and fluff up with a fork to separate the grains.
Time to cook…With the BBQ hot and ready, tip the lamb/capsicum combination onto the plate and cook using a stir-fry motion. It should only take 5 -7 minutes for the lamb and capsicum to cook, because you still want a bit of crunch in the capsicum and the lamb should be slightly pink in the middle.
When ready scoop the mixture off the BBQ and directly into your serving bowl which should have the mint, lemon juice and drained cracked wheat waiting. Sprinkle over the pomegranate seeds and pomegranate molasses. Toss everything gently using salad servers.
This can be eaten immediately or at room temperature. I like to dollop slightly sour plain yoghurt on top of my portion, but then I could easily eat yoghurt with almost every meal!
Vegetable and Cheese Filo Pie
This will make 8 generous slices in a 24 cm round, deep pie dish.
1 x tablespoon olive oil
1 bunch of spring onions – remove the top, limp green fonds and slice the remaining robust green stalks and white ends into thin rounds.
2 x medium zucchini – coarsely grated
1 x head of broccoli – cut into bite sized florets
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
3 eggs
250 grams baked ricotta diced into very small pieces
200 grams feta coarsely grated
125 ml pouring cream
10 sheets filo pastry
30 grams melted butter
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees on a conventional setting.
Heat the olive oil over a low – medium heat in a large frypan and add all the vegetables with the oregano and nutmeg. Saute for 8 – 10 minutes with a grind of salt and pepper.
Meanwhile in a mixing bowl, beat together using a fork, the eggs, cheeses and cream. When the vegetable mixture has cooled slightly, tip this into the mixing bowl and combine.
Melt the butter in a small jug or cup and using a pastry brush, lightly coat the bottom and sides of your pie dish. I used a very ordinary but practical Pyrex dish which bakes beautifully and washes up without much effort.
1) Place 2 of the filo pastry sheets in the pie dish, one running vertically and the other horizontally. The ends of the filo should hang over the edge of the pie dish at this stage.
2) Spread a quarter of the mixture evenly over this pastry.
3) Layer with another 2 sheets of filo, brushing with a little butter in between each layer.
4) Add more filling. Repeat the process until all the filling has been used and you finish with a topping of pastry.
5) Brush the overhanging filo with butter and fold over onto the top of your pie. Dab with a little more butter and place in the oven for 45 minutes.
This is best eaten warm. If you do make this ahead of time, then reheat in the oven to maintain those light, crispy pastry layers. Do NOT reheat in the microwave or you will end up with a soggy, unpalatable mess.
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