Angie Pangie tries Lamb Stew. For real this time.

When I was little, being the same as nearly every other kid on the face of the earth, I was a picky eater. I mean, I haven’t always liked veggies and gyros, and . . . well, all the good stuff.

I used to only drink sweetened tea and eat pizza, macaroni and cheese, french fries and mashed potatoes. To be fair, as I got older I branched out and started eating more daring things like chicken fingers, mushrooms and cheeseburgers. In fact, I ate so many cheeseburgers that as a teen my Dad literally bought me a license plate for the front of my medium blue Chevette that said “Fast Food Angie.” Sad, but true. I’m just bein’ honest here, folks.

But, when I was a just wee one I discovered one of my favorite foods was the most unexpected tuna casserole, of all things. My super smart and ingenious Dad (the same Dad who bought the above mentioned license plates which I will decline comment on) knew there was no way I was ever going to willingly eat something called “casserole” or “fish” so when I said “What’s for dinner, Dad?” he replied:

“Lamb Stew.”

And I said something along the lines of “Hmm. I don’t think I like that.”

To which he said something about how it was FANTASTIC. A local FAVE. Something that shouldn’t be missed out on!! And, being the wonderfully behaved only child that I was,  I said “Ohh! A local fave?! I can’t wait to try it!  Bring on the lamb stew!!”

Actually, I don’t really remember what exactly he said, but I think it was probably something more along the lines of “You’ll eat if I damn well say you will.” or “You’re about to find out if you like it or not.” It’s really hard to know exactly what it was he said, but I think you get the general idea.  And, likewise, my response was more likely “You’re so MEAN!  That’s yucky!!  I don’t waaaaant it!”  Like I said, I was pretty little.

You know, I was thinking the other day about something else that my Dad told me once when I was little. It was something like “Every time you take a bite it is considered good manners to wipe your mouth with a napkin afterward.” And, you know, I worked HARD at doing that. It wasn’t easy either! At the young age of five I was taxing my brain thinking bite, chew, wipe. Bite, chew, wipe. Bite, chew, bit . . . oh, I mean wipe! Well, anyhow, I did that for years, people! Not until I was in high school and one of my friends asked me “Why do you wipe your mouth so much?” did I realize I’d been bamboozled by my very own Dad. Misled, even, if you will. WHY would he tell me that? I used to lay in bed at night (not really) and wonder what the deal was.

Then, I had children. Oh, Oh-MY-Goodness, please would you WIPE your mouth before I scream and-no-I-don’t-mean-on-your-sleeve!!  Yeah.  Good one, Dad.  Nice form.

I really do lay in bed at night now trying to come up with ways to be even half as cunning as my Dad was with me.  My kids tell me that I have managed to perfect the twitching eye-vein popping out of my forehead “I’m not screwing around here!” look that my Dad was so good at.  That took a lot of work, readers.

But, back to my story. Dad told me we were having lamb stew and I tried it and I LOVED it. Lamb Stew (aka Tuna Casserole) was my favorite for many, many years. I don’t really love it now, but I do still like tuna fish.

But, today’s recipe really is lamb stew. It is!  Really.  No tuna, I swear!!  And it really is FANTASTIC. A local FAVE. Something that shouldn’t be missed out on!! Sweet raisins combine with the rich curried gravy and tender delicious meatballs to make an out of this world dish.  And, this one’s for you Dad. You’re still the smartest most ingenious guy I know.

Love ya, Fast Food Angie (Pangie)

Curried Lamb Meatball Stew
Adapted from All You Magazine

Meatballs
2 pounds of ground lamb
2 egg
1/3 cup milk
3/4 cup italian or plain breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Combine all ingredients and shape into 1 1/2 inch balls. Bake on rack in oven for 20 minutes at 350F, or until browned. Use paper towels to drain meatballs before adding to stew. Don’t skip the draining part unless you like greasy stew. Eww. I do NOT like greasy stew, Sam I Am.

Stew
3 Cups chicken broth
1 onion, chopped
3 teaspoons curry powder
1/4 cup flour
4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup raisins (don’t skip, these MAKE the dish!)

In the bottom of the crockpot whisk chicken broth, curry and flour. Mix in onions.

Gently add meatballs, so as not to break the meatballs into smaller pieces.

Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Add carrots and raisins and cook for an additional 2 hours. If necessary, use a spoon to remove excess fat from the top of gravy before stirring and serving(Like I said earlier, I skipped the paper towel part, not a good idea!)

Serve over rice.

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