Spicy lamb kebabs

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If you are looking for an amazing LAMB KEBAB then look no further. We were so bowled over by the taste experience that we've put our usual Sunday lunch on hold to make another one today. It is so much better than any other kebab we have ever, ever tasted. We had thought there was a lot of faff involved in making the kebab and it may not be worth the effort. BUT... we were proved wrong! Our efforts were more than rewarded by the final outcome.
What more could you want after a few drinks relaxing with friends. Everything was prepared before we went out, so the meal was ready soon after we returned.
The predominant flavours were lamb, lemon and that subtle (building of) heat running through the whole experience.
We love spicy food, and the lamb was infused with a selection of spices - including SUMAC, a tart lemon spice, which we used for the first time today. If you can't find this spice, you could use the zest of a lemon instead. If you prefer to buy a ready made spice mix, this will certainly save you time.
We went the whole hog and made our own flatbreads (using yeast). But to save time you can always buy them ready made, or use tortilla wraps. I was impressed with the texture of these flatbreads - sort of deliciously chewy yet soft.
We estimate our late night kebab at around 600-650 calories. Not bad. I suspect if you compare this to a takeaway, you will be saving lots of calories. If you omit the flatbread (200 calories), and eat this as a salad you'll have a delicious lunch at around 400-450 calories. Here's our recipe:

LAMB KEBAB

Ingredients - serves 4

400g minced (lean) lamb

Marinade:

1 crushed clove of garlic

1 large tablespoon of chopped fresh chilli

2 large tablespoons of fresh thyme

2 teaspoons ground cumin

3 teaspoons SUMAC or 1 grated zest of a lemon

salt/pepper to season

a few finely chopped pistachios (optional)

***

Marinate the lamb for at least two hours. Knead the mixture together for a few minutes until the meat begins to bind together then shape into sausages. We made two 50g sausages per kebab. 

When ready to serve - just fry them as you would a sausage. The cooking time will depend on how thick you roll them out. Ours took about 7 minutes. 

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FILLING

A selection of grilled mediterranean vegetables - aubergine, courgette, peppers etc

A few olives

One or two sliced tomatoes - use sun dried if you have them

Rocket

Flat leaf parsley

Plain yoghurt

Sumac to sprinkle on top of the yoghurt (or grated lemon zest)

Chopped fresh mint

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TIP: I griddled the vegetables before we went out, then placed them onto a baking tray and covered with cling film. To get those griddle marks, don't grease the pan and brush the vegetables lightly with oil. That saves on calories too. When we were ready to eat, I put them under the grill to heat through.

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And if you're going to try these delicious flatbreads here's the recipe:

FLATBREAD with yeast (about 200 calories each)

250g strong bread flour

160ml water

5g fast acting dried yeast

5ml olive oil

small amount of sugar (pinch) to activate the yeast

half teaspoon each of: salt, ground cumin, paprika and ground coriander to flavour the bread

***

Put the water and yeast together with a pinch of sugar (to activate the yeast). You'll find the instructions on the yeast pack. 

Once yeast is activated add to the dry ingredients. Mix. Knead for ten minutes.

Place in an oiled bowl and cover with cling film. Leave to rise for about two hours (while you go out perhaps).

When risen, knead again for about one minute. This will take it back to its original size.

Divide into four and roll out into a circle. 

Heat a dry frying pan (reasonably hot) then place the rolled out dough in the pan and cook on both sides until brown. Ours took about 3 to 4 minutes each side. 

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REMEMBER: We all have a calorie allowance - do you know yours?

We began our weight loss journey in January 2011 - and began our blog in June 2011. Here's a link to the first post. (here's the link).

We like to post our main meals to show you what CAN be eaten. You won’t find us posting every last morsel though – but we hope this gives you an idea of how far calories can go! I'm currently going through the photographs and replacing them with more website friendly versions which will allow the blog to load quickly. 

Read about our UNIQUE METHOD of weight loss and find out how you can lose weight eating the food you love.

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