Crispy Iberian Pork Bites

When all else fails, serve dinner on colorful toothpicks.

So easy, very little hands on time, relatively neat to eat one-handed while doing homework, and totally customizable with whatever you happen to have on hand in the spice cabinet, meet your new best friend on a busy school night.

No lemons? Use limes. Not feeling the cumin and paprika? How about lime juice, soy sauce, freshly grated ginger, and a splash of fish sauce for an Asian vibe instead? Use the Spanish-style version below as a jumping off point but then feel free to play around. The flavor profile possibilities are limitless. Try lime, chili powder, cumin, and fresh cilantro for a taco-like feel. Or how about lemon juice, red wine vinegar, thyme, and oregano for a Greek take? Ooh, serve those with some sliced tomatoes and cubes of good Feta cheese. Whatever you do, don't forget the cute toothpicks.

Crispy Iberian Pork Bites
adapted from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman

2 pounds pork shoulder, trimmed of some, but not all fat
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp paprika
1 tbsp lemon zest
1 tbsp kosher salt
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup minced onion
1 tbsp olive or canola oil

Cut the meat into 1x1-inch cubes. Put the meat in a large, nonreactive bowl and toss with all of the remaining ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to 2 days.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Scatter the meat on a rimmed roasting pan in a single layer. Roast for about an hour, stopping to stir the meat occasionally. You want it crisp and brown on all sides, but not burned. Remove the meat from the pan with a slotted spoon. Serve on toothpicks with lemon wedges and/or Cumin Yogurt Dip.

Ancho Pork Hominy Stew

The holiday whirlwind is upon us and we're expecting a full house this year. Three generations of grandparents, aunts, uncles, sisters, and cousins will descend upon us in less than 48 hours and I cannot wait. As far as I'm concerned it wouldn't be Christmas without a little chaos.

Mufasa must have been extra good this year because he is now the proud owner of a brand spanking new Big Green Egg. So while he's working out plans for several holiday roasts on his new toy, I'm turning my focus to what we're all going to eat in the days leading up to and in between the major celebrations.

Thanks to the chest freezer, I've been squirreling away banana bread, squash muffins, and countless freezer bags of soup for weeks now. Next on the list is one of my personal favorites, this spicy ancho chili spiced pork and hominy stew.

Ancho Pork Hominy Stew
Adapted from Cooking Light, December 2009

2 tbsp ancho chile powder
2 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped, or 2 tsp. dried oregano
1 & 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp ground cumin*
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 & 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces (about 1/2-ich cubes)
1 tbsp olive oil, divided
2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 tbsp minced garlic
2 & 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 (28 ounce) can hominy, drained
1 (14.5 ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained

For garnish
fresh lime slices
fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1/2 cup queso fresco, crumbled

1. Combine the first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well. Set aside 1 & 1/2 tsp of the spice mixture. Add pork to the remaining spice mixture and toss to coat.
2. Heat 2 tsp of the oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook until browned on all sides, stirring occasionally (the pork does not need to cook through at this point). Remove the pork from the pot and set aside.
3. Add the remaining 1 tsp oil to the dutch oven. Add the onion, peppers, and garlic and saute for 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Return the pork to the pan. Add the remaining 1 & 1/2 tsp of spice mixture, broth, hominy, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover partially and simmer for about 30 minutes or until ready to serve. Garnish with fresh lime slices, cilantro, or queso fresco.

Makes 6 (1 & 1/3 cup) servings

*The original recipe calls for half as much cumin but can one go wrong with pork and a little extra cumin? I think not.

My advice is double the recipe. You'll need a huge pot but the payoff is so worth it. Eat round one for dinner tonight and pack away round 2 for some night in the coming weeks when you've eaten a few too many sugar cookies to turn on the oven. This freezes and reheats beautifully and is such a nice departure in flavor from the typical Christmas roasts and hams we'll be eating next week.

Lamb and Lentil Mini-Meatballs with Cumin Yogurt Dip

Meatballs are usually a hit with the Kid Cultivation crew, but since Roo is allergic to eggs, my go-to substitution is silken tofu. It works beautifully in these Asian-Style Pork Mini-Meatballs, but given Beans love for beans and Looly's hatred of them, I thought I'd try something new.

I was hoping lentils would bind the meatballs and keep them from drying out. Mission accomplished. What I hadn't anticipated was the nice little bite the lentils would give the lamb, such a pleasant snap with each mouthful. They're a little unexpected and boast great flavor with or without the tangy yogurt dip. Cocktail parties, Christmas, New Year's Eve, I'm keeping this one in my back pocket for the holiday party potluck scene.

So, like I said, Looly abhors beans. She possesses a particular vehemence for lentils. She loves a plump sauce-covered meatball, however, especially if it came from Noodles & Company, but I digress. Even at home, she'll eat a meatball with sauce on it most of the time. I was fully prepared to drizzle marinara over these bad boys in anticipation that she would complain about yogurt sauce but I never got a chance. All three kids took down the meatballs before I got any sauce on the table - cumin yogurt or marinara. That never happens!

Now aside from Mufasa's praises, there were no rave reviews, choruses of delight or requests for second helpings from the six and under set. But the important thing is that the meatballs disappeared - no prodding, arguments, threats or negotiations. Of course Looly has no idea she ingested lentils, but I'm already eying a can of chickpeas.

Lamb and Lentil Meatballs

1 cup cooked lentils
1 pound ground lamb
3/4 cup Panko or other bread crumbs
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 small onion, grated or finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Put the lentils in a large bowl. Using your hands, mash the lentils a few times until about half of them are mashed into a paste and half are intact.
3. Add the lamb and all other ingredients to the bowl with the lentils. Mix well with your hands until everything is nicely combined.
4. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll the meat mixture into small balls, about 1 & 1/2 inches in diameter. Place on baking sheet and cook approximately 15 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with Cumin Yogurt Dip (recipe below)

 Cumin Yogurt Dip

1 cup plain yogurt
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 tbsp chopped, fresh mint
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp kosher salt

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Serve with Lamb and Lentil Meatballs.