Author Notes
I don't remember much about my maternal grandmother - she lived with us when I was quite young - but I do remember her spinach soup. It was tomatoey, garlicky with very little meat but a lot of spinach. I loved it and through the years my mother would make versions of it and now I make a version which is more like a stew served over rice( although I have added more broth and thrown the rice right into the pot for soup now and again). It's great comfort food for cool nights. —inpatskitchen
Ingredients
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1 1/2 to 2 pounds lamb shoulder meat cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces
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2 tablespoons
olive oil
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A little salt and pepper to season the meat
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1
very large onion, diced
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4
cloves thinly sliced garlic
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3 tablespoons
Hungarian sweet paprika
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1 teaspoon
salt
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1/2 teaspoon
black pepper
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1/4 teaspoon
crushed red pepper flakes
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One 28 ounce can whole plum tomatoes with its juice
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4 cups
chicken broth
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1/2 cup
chopped parsley
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1 teaspoon
minced winter savory (or 1/2 tsp dry ground)
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1 pound
fresh baby spinach leaves
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Salt and pepper for re-seasoning
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Hot cooked white rice for serving
Directions
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Season the lamb pieces with a little salt and pepper and brown them in a large soup pot in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in batches if necessary. Remove the meat from the pot.
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Add the other tablespoon of the olive oil to the pot and saute the onion until softened and starts to pick up a bit of the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the garlic and saute another minute.
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Stir in the paprika, i teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes. If using dried savory, add it here..if using fresh, save it for the end.
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Add the tomatoes, crushing them up with your clean hands as you go, along with the juice. Stir with a wooden spoon to pick up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
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Return the meat and any accumulated juices to the pot, bring up to the boil and then lower the heat and simmer for about forty five minutes or until the meat is tender.
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Add the parsley and savory and then add the spinach a handful at a time until all is wilted. Re-season with salt and pepper if desired.
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Place a few spoonfuls of hot cooked rice in the bottom of your bowl and ladle some stew over.
I think I get my love for food and cooking from my mom, who was an amazing cook. She would start baking and freezing a month before Christmas in order to host our huge open house on Christmas afternoon. I watched and I learned...to this day I try not to procrastinate when it comes to entertaining.
My cooking style is pretty much all over the place, although I'm definitely partial to Greek and Italian cuisine. Oh yes, throw a little Cajun in there too!
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