Lamb, Lima Beans and Spinach Soup

Posted on 12th of December, 2011 by Lévana

For many years, my classroom was in Lincoln Square Synagogue. When I made this soup at a cooking demonstration, a large group of people who were taking a Chumash class in a room next to my kitchen lined up at my door at the end of their class, telling me how terribly hard it had been to concentrate on what their poor teacher was trying to tell them because the smell of the soup was driving them so crazy. The teacher himself later told me that he found teaching exquisite torture on Monday nights. I could have told them what I had known all along: Man does not live by spirituality alone!

This soup could easily be a complete meal, with the addition of some good bread and a green salad.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, quartered

8 cloves garlic

1 bunch flat parsley

½ bunch cilantro

4 ribs celery

3 quarts water

2 pounds lean lamb cubes for stew, or 3 lamb shanks

2 cups large lima beans, no soaking necessary

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut in small cubes

2 large bunches spinach, leaves cut in ribbons, stems sliced thin

1 teaspoon turmeric

2 pinches saffron

2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Salt to taste

Juice of 2 lemons

Ground pepper to taste

Instructions:

Heat the oil in a skillet. In a food processor, coarsely grind the onion, garlic, parsley, cilantro and celery, and add to the hot oil. Sauté until translucent. Add all but last 2 ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the flame to medium and cook covered 3 hours. Stir in the lemon juice and ground pepper. Adjust texture and seasonings. It should be the consistency of a thick soup.

8 main course servings.

Photo via Chaim Szmidt at Kosher Scene

Filed under: Beans Recipes, Gluten Free Recipes, Kosher Natural Foods, Kosher Recipes, Lamb recipes, Meat Recipes, Moroccan Food, Moroccan Recipes, Recipes, Sephardi Recipes, Soup Recipes, Spinach Recipes