Lamb and Pomegranate Salad

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If you haven’t eaten lamb in a while, here are a few good reasons to head to the butcher shop: lamb is a complete protein, it’s high in iron, and a rich source of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Another reason not to forget about lamb is that a recipe like this one – Lamb and Pomegranate Salad – just isn’t the same with beef, pork or chicken.
Lamb shoulder is marinated in garlic, ginger and a hint of cinnamon then slow-cooked until tender. Instead of salad dressing, the greens are tossed with the warm jus left in the roasting pan, topped with slices of succulent lamb and garnished with sweet-tart pomegranate seeds and fresh basil. The pomegranate and basil add bursts of flavor and color to the rich meat.

While other cuts of lamb can quickly go from perfectly pink and tender to tough and chewy, you don’t have to keep a close eye on lamb shoulder. Lamb shoulder is a confidence-building cut that’s almost certain to come out juicy, tender and flavorful even if you only season with salt and pepper. Allow a few hours for roasting in the oven and you’ll be rewarded with a hearty and deeply flavorful roast that requires very little hands-on cooking time.
Lamb and Pomegranate Salad looks so gourmet, you’ll be surprised by how easy it is to make. Throw together a quick marinade, let the meat soak up the flavor, then put the meat in the oven and let it be. A few hours later you’ll have a succulent cut of meat and a salad like no other.
Servings: 3-4
Ingredients:

• 2-3 pounds lamb shoulder (900-1350 g)
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2-inch piece of peeled ginger root, sliced thinly
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (2.5 ml)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (5 ml)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (2.5 ml)
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil (45 ml)
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar (45 ml)
• 1/4 cup water, plus more if needed (60 ml)
• 1-2 pomegranates
• Large handful of fresh basil, roughly chopped
• Greens for the salad (try arugula, mache or mixed baby greens)

Instructions:
You can whisk together the marinade, but using a blender combines the flavors better. In a blender, combine the garlic, ginger, cinnamon, salt, pepper, coconut oil and vinegar. Blend at medium or high speed until garlic and ginger are finely chopped and the consistency is like a runny paste.
If the lamb is held together with netting, take the netting off and unroll the meat. Rub the entire roast down with the marinade.

Roll the roast back up and put the netting back on to hold it together. Let the meat sit at room temperature for 1 hour to marinate, or refrigerate for several hours.
Preheat oven to 325 °F (163 °C)
Place the lamb in a roasting pan, fat side up, and add the water.

Cover tightly with foil (or a lid) and roast for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or until the meat is very tender and pulls apart easily with a fork. As the meat roasts, check it once or twice to make sure the pan is not dry. This will only happen if the foil isn’t tight enough and steam escapes. If for some reason the pan is dry, add another 1/4 cup of water.
When the lamb has finished roasting, take off the foil and turn on the oven broiler to low. Broil the lamb just to crisp up the strip of fat on top, 3 to 5 minutes.
Remove the lamb from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Let it cool enough that you can touch it, then slice or shred the meat.

Cut the pomegranate in half. Squeeze out the juice into a bowl. You can drizzle a little juice on the salad if you like, or just drink it straight. Whacking the skin side of the cut pomegranate repeatedly with a spoon will make most of the seeds drop out into a bowl; the rest you can scrape or pick out.

To make each salad, put 2 large handfuls of greens in a bowl. Drizzle 3 tablespoons of the warm pan drippings onto the greens and toss. Arrange meat on top. Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and garnish liberally with basil.

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Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/lamb-and-pomegranate-salad/#ixzz28YlRerfH

Pictures!! FINALLY!

Sorry guys it took me so long... here they are! Please feel free to comment! ;)

Africa (...and London)

Photos!!!

Alright so I've got some photos up on Facebook here: Africa Pics

Enjoy... let me know what you think!! Additionally, since we adopted Daisy I think that I might turn this into a puppy blog! We'll see though. Pics of her here: Puppy Pics

Talk soon!!

Quads and The Universal High-Five

So I said I wasn't going to give an update unless we had something fun or exciting to write about and as it turns out I have both! First for the bit of fun...

Everyone knows how I like my high-fives... Well it turns out everyone here is game too! So not only have I been getting plenty of high fives but yesterday we are hauling you know what down the highway and I'm sitting in the back of the truck when I see some dude also sitting in a truck bed heading the opposite direction. Seeing this as an opportunity that can't be missed I hang out over the side of the truck and put one up for a fiver! Random dude responds! We're going for it at a combined speed of way-to-fast when as we pass we just barely miss. :( Probably a good thing though since the resulting crack and pain of shattered hand bones wouldn't have been fun. It was just fun to have gotten that response!

Now for the exciting! It just so happened that a guy in our hunting party shot and we think wounded a wildebeest. While this in and of itself isn't exactly exciting, the hunting and tracking that came after it definitely was! After refuling with both food and petrol we went back into the fields with two four wheelers and a dirt bike. Now think about this. This is a redneck's fantasy! Tearing through the African bush on quads with guns looking for a wildebeest!!

While I didn't have a gun it was most certainly exciting cruising through the woods with a giraffe running alongside me 20 yds to my left. I've not had much time on 4-wheelers but after 6 hours in the bush I felt like a pro. Definitely an exciting experience and one worth noting!

Some random notes from the weekend that I just remembered...

* Our shower in the hut was outside and under a roof but it was locker room style... There were two shower heads in one gigantic outdoor shower room. I asked about this and was met with the approximate response of: "The guy who designed these places liked to party and laid out the specification that the showers must have room for four." Hahaha. Awesome answer.

* Don't discuss politics with a large group of great white hunters that came from the states to hunt large African game unless you're ready to go off the deep end. I'll leave it at that.

* Michael Jackson happened to be a favorite musician/artist of one of the locals in Vaalwater. I still maintain that every one on this planet knows of MJ. 2 year old kids out in the bush included! ;)

* We got into an interesting discussion on endangered animals and so I'm doing an informal poll. Oh dear three readers of this blog, with out looking it up: Are elephants endangered? Yes or no?

That's all for now! We are on our travels back to the states. We go through London and Chicago before getting to Denver 36 hours later. Maybe have some update for you all later on! TTFN!

-- Dan

Last Post from SA... Maybe?!

So I think this might be my last post while in S. Africa but perhaps I'll write something on the way to the airport tomorrow. So yah, not so much to tell you since we've come back to the main camp in Vaalwater...

We hunted yesterday and harvested two warthogs and a bushbok. The bushbok was an upsale by our very skilled guide Andrias. My dad took it... It's a beautiful animal. This morning we're going after wildebeest and impala. So if you're keeping track that's 6 days of hunting in 9 days of being in SA! It's been fun and quite fruitful but I'm kind of ready for something else! ;) I've almost got everyone convinced to go to the white lion perserve tomorrow before we leave.

It's a breeding/conservation area where they are helping to increase the white lion population. My understanding is that they're not albino but it's actually a ressesive gene that makes these lions white. I've been told there are some new cubs there that look just like little snowballs and I'd definitely like to see if we can't photograph them! We'll see though.

As far as my photo safari has gone so far? Very successful! Lots and lots and LOTS of pics. Some even of people! :) But I've got baby giraffe, young elephants, rinos, and great close-ups of a lion! It's funny now that we've been here for a while whenever we see a giraffe or rino I only take 3-5 pictures instead of 30-50! Haha. This lens is great and I think I've got more than one "wow" shot so I'm happy. Would've loved to had the opportunity to get a cheetah or leopard but I guess that's a reason to come back!

The camp has been lots of fun... Still eating great and sleeping well and the weather has been quite cool... I'm in a fleece and pants this morning!

We've made good friends in our guide Andrias, his wife Stephie, and our tracker Mandlla who as I have said is very good. I think we are going to have to follow up with them once we get back to the States!

I'm not sure what else to tell you! I can't wait to go through the pictures and grab a hundred or so to share with you all on the web! I'm also excited to share some South African wine and Amarula as both are very tasty!

I'm defintely in withdrawls from football! Hahaha. Definitely ready to watch the Cowboys beat the Broncos on Sunday!! In a way I'm almost ready to get back to work too. More than anything im ready to be back with Karissa. This is a loooooong vacation and it's been tough being apart!!

Welp, I guess I'll quit rambling and sign off for now. Perhaps we'll see or experience something crazy or extraordinary on the way to the airport tomorrow and I'll update this sucket again, otherwise I'll defintely post an update once we're back in the States!

-- Dan

The Kruger

Hiya everybody!

So we're well into our second week out here and on our way back to the main camp from Kruger NP. Before I go any further though I want you all to know that riding in this damn passenger van is about the most uncomfortable thing you can imagine. We sit over the axel and the roads are so terrible that we literally hit our heads on the ceiling on some of the bumps. Anyway... All that being said we've been having a great time in the park!!! ;) Its only the 6-7 hour drive to and from the park I'm complaining about! Haha. Oh and they drive on the left side of the road here! I had no idea...

So onto what they call the 14th greatest park in the world (and I have no idea how they came up with that ranking)! Basically it's just 5 million acres of places to camp or rent out a room (which we did) and then go drive out into the park (with a cooler full of beer!) to see what you can see... and we saw quite a lot! I'll talk more about that later.

What I want to talk about first is the camps and the camping that goes on in this place. First of all there are maybe 12 constructed and maintained camps that you rent out huts which are really 2-5 bedroom houses. Each camp has a resturaunt and gift shop ("curio shop") and is well maintained and really nice but what's crazy about these places is that they are like compounds in that they're surrounded by electric high fence, the entrance is guarded and you have to be in before and you can't leave after 6PM!! All because of the preadators. So fun. I begged for a lion in camp but I never got one! :(

Seriously though, you can go out on "night game drives" where you are escorted in a safari vehicle with an armed ranger and you have spotlights and you drive around looking for cool nocturnal animals! But that's it. If you're caught in the park after hours it's a serious fine. I didn't really get all the hub-bub about not getting out of your vehicle except in designated areas, not being out in the park, and all of the protection around camp until I asked the guide and our driver if it was all just a show. I guess that armed rangers have been taken by leopards on these night drives and that at least one person a year turns into kitty food when they get out of their car for a closer picture. After some choice stories I bought into it all.

So what did we see?! Well on the night drive we got to see some night birds, a hyena, and two different kinds of jackals along with some other less cool stuff. We scoured the trees for leopards but we never did see one. During the day we did get to see 4 lions one of which was right by a zebra the pride had recently taken down. Way cool. There are about 1600 lions in the park which compared to the 300 cheetahs is definitley impressive. Pretty much everywhere you looked there were elephants, giraffe, buffalo, impala, waterbok, and other deer-like animals. We did see a rino out there too which was great. Saw some elephants (play) fighting and a little tiny, like 3-6 month old elephant. We tried and tried to get a picture but the other elephants had it protected so well we could never get a clean shot at it. It's really really neat seeing all of these animals in their actual habitat and not surrounded by fence. Definitley a fun experience. I have a few crappy photos to share but I won't get the good ones up until I get back I think. Here are some terrible camera phone pictures of elephants and giraffe as a taster. ;)













What made the Kruger experience really fun and interactive is that you get a little pamphlet check list and a map/guide book that shows pictures of all of the animals and birds and then as you see them you look them up and check them off. We made lots of progress on the list and it will be fun to use to show people what birds and animals are what once we get the pictures up. We saw some pretty rare sightings according to our guide... An oriobi for example is this very little deer looking thing that I guess is on it's way out of existence. So it was cool to see that.

So it's back to hunting tomorrow... I think I've been convinced to try and take a warthog for my sister and her husband (he flys A-10 "Warthogs") but we'll see.

Everyone is doing well out here. The malaria pills haven't caused anyone to get sunburnt and no one has gotten sick... Except for a little homesick! All of us talk about bringing our wives back here some day to let them experience it and I know the only thing that could make this better is if Karissa were here... I am quickly getting ready to get back to see her. We have 4 more days before we head to the airport and then it will be another day of travelling before we get home. I'll definitely try to get at least one more update on here before we leave... Sorry they're so sparse! We are definitley staying busy. Hasta pasta!
-- Dan

A new day!

Alright so it's cool... I'm just going to save after every paragraph. I'll try and remember the 10 paragraphs I wrote previously! It was still raining this morning but now it's just cloudy and cool.

I'll start with some updates on the place were staying. It's very nice and quite plush even though it's obvious we're in the bush. We have our own little "hut" with a 20ft high ceiling that is a thatched roof. The compound/lodge/resort is all thatched and is quite African (naturally). There is a bar and dinner tables outside by the pool. The bar is where we all sit around swapping stories from the day. Castle is the local beer brand and it isn't bad at all... We've been turned on to Amarula which is like Bailey's but mixed with the fruit of the Marula tree (an elephants favorite). Quite good... I'll definitley bring some back. There are probably two other groups at any given time out here that are also on safari so we all sit around and eat dinner together and talk about home. All good people.






The food has been excellent! We've eaten a different game meat each night and the sides are all great. We've had impala, kudu, blesbok, wildebeest, and chicken (not game I know but it keeps the variety streak alive)!! They had some mashed greenbeans the othernight that were fantastic... I would have never thought to prepare them that way.

As far as the hunting has gone, Aaron has "harvested" a zebra, a kudu, and a jackal. My dad has harvested a zebra and a warthog and Alan got an impala. 5 more animals to get before the wishlist is filled! (wildebeest, another impala, gemsbok, and two more warthogs in case you were wondering.) The guide and trackers are very respectful of the animals. They're shot humanely and cleaned up afterward out of respect (and it makes for a better picture. Heh.). The hunting is exactly what you'd expect in a safari... Ride around in the bush in the back of a 4x4 truck with rifles and start tracking the game. Gives us plenty of opportunity to see many many many different types of animals.

So far out here we've seen (and photographed) the following wildlife: rino, giraffe, baboons, monkeys, kudu, blesbok, springbok, wildebeest, gemsbok, warthog, hartebeest, klipspringer, steenbok, impala, nyala, bushbok, eland, waterbok, ostrich, emu, and tons of other cool and colorful birds. Of course they have all the same domestic animals...

It's hard to believe that we're still going to see more wildlife! We are on our way to Kruger National Park for 3 days to see all the other animals that they don't have where we have been staying. It's a 5 hour drive and I can tell you already that I miss our highways. I'll be 3 inches shorter when I get back to the states because of all the bumpy rides!! Talking to other tourists that have been, they say that Kruger is like RMNP but with the most diverse wildlife in the world. I'm ready to see some elephants, lions, hippos and the rest of them all!! We will spend one night outside of the park and one night inside of the park. Super excited for this side trip.

Photos photos photos!! I'm going to have to spend hours going through the 1000+ pictures I've taken so far. I'm sure I'll pitch maybe half of them as I'm still getting used to the lens and taking 4 or more photos of each animal I've seen. The photo opportunities so far have just been training for the Kruger trip. I've seen pictures where you get so close you can frame a lion and the side of the car in the same shot. Unfortunatley there is no getting out of the car for a super close up! :(

So enough animals... The human/social aspect of the country is quite different from the states. This is probably obvious to everyone but I didn't realize the extent of it until spending time here. I liken it to the way the US had racial segregation during the 60s. The racism on both sides is blatant and glaring. Our tracker eats lunch with us in the field but doesn't sit at our table at the lodge. I wish that would change. I think in time it will.


It is obviously poor in this area but it's better than other African countries or so I'm told. Some of the guys brought pens and candy for the kids but they need more. I will say that the safari industry out here does a lot to employ and bring money to the area. It employs lots of locals and the folks who work for the safaris end up staying on the property and are fed the good meals which is all much better than living in the tin shacks and cooking over wood fires. People are collecting firewood all over the place to cook with.

We're having fun over here seeing a bunch of the country. While riding around in the back of a 4x4 looking for animals to shoot is fun I am excited to see more! I'll have some updates after Kruger I'm sure. Tot siens! ("Untill next time" in Afrikaans!)

-- Dan