Thomasina Miers offers a sumptuous winter feast with a Moroccan-inspired lamb filo pie and a cardamom panna cotta with rhubarb. The slow-braised lamb shoulder is seasoned with ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, and saffron, then encased in crisp filo pastry with honeyed carrots and toasted almonds. The dessert features a creamy cardamom and orange-infused panna cotta topped with Pernod-baked rhubarb.
For the pie, brown a trimmed boned lamb shoulder in butter, then sweat onions with spices. Return the lamb, add water, and simmer for 90 minutes. Sauté carrots with honey, add to the lamb, and cook until the sauce reduces. Layer filo pastry in a buttered dish, fill with the lamb and toasted almonds, top with more pastry, and bake until golden.
The panna cotta requires infusing cream and milk with orange zest, sugar, and crushed cardamom pods. Soften gelatine, then dissolve in the warm cream mixture. Whisk into Greek yoghurt, pour into moulds, and chill for at least three hours. Serve with rhubarb baked with sugar, orange juice, and Pernod.
Both dishes can be prepared in advance, with flavours improving overnight. The pie serves six to eight, while the panna cotta serves four.
