Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Today, I had every intention of waking up early and making it to the gym,...

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Today, I had every intention of waking up early and making it to the gym, as I have a busy day of meetings and appointments.

At 6:15am when my alarm went off, I jumped out of bed. My sister was even ready to go, but I took one look outside at this muggy, rainy, dismal day and what did I do? Crawled back into bed.

Morning gym fail, that’s what I call that. Let’s just say, June, get allllll the rain out now, because come June 20th, you better give me nothing but sunshine!

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Speaking of the wedding, today, I’m going into the city for a couple of meetings and to (hopefully) pick up my wedding dress at Kleinfeld’s!

This wedding dress has been somewhat troublesome. I’m tough, because I have a larger bust but I didn’t want any cleavage on my wedding day, so it has been a struggle to a) fit my girls into a dress that doesn’t make me look like I’m draped in a burlap sack and b) find the right ehem-undergarments-ehem to support said girls.

If you’re a guy and reading this blog post, I apologize – just skip right down to the good stuff (the recipe!)

I’ve always had problems buying bras, bathing suits, dresses, button-down shirts. Girls with larger chests get me. So, when I went shopping for my wedding dress, I knew it would be a struggle.

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Long story short, last week was supposed to be my last fitting, but we had an issue with the way the seamstress had sown my bra into the dress, so she had to pull the stitching out and now, she’s going to retry.

Fingers crossed for me, y’all.

Other than that, I have a lunch meeting with my editor (eek!!) and a meeting with my wedding consultant from EVJ Wedding Co, a wedding planning company based in Hoboken, started by this sweet girl Jacquelyn.

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

In the eleventh hour, I ended up hiring someone to be there for my wedding weekend to take care of any last-minute details and so I could truly enjoy that day. I tend to micro-manage and take on too much (I’m not a good delegator), so I figured this would force me to sit back, relax and enjoy my wedding weekend.

But today’s not about all that, today’s about this carrot salad with spiced lamb I adapted from this Jamie Oliver recipe. I took it a step further and made the shaved carrot salad into more of a pasta/side dish, making the meal as a whole more “complete.”

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Blade D on the Inspiralizer is the key here – it makes such perfect carrot noodles that aren’t too thick, so they cook in a pinch and their flavor isn’t too overbearingly carrot-y.

The spiced lamb is simply seasoned with garam masala, salt and pepper, but you’ll be amazed at the flavor that creates with a quality ground lamb.

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

What really puts the cherry on top here is the fresh cilantro (err – coriander) and fresh mint, along with the ginger-lemon dressing. Altogether, the freshness of the dressed carrot noodles with the warm, crispy lamb is sensational and gorgeous – it’s definitely an impressive dish that comes together in one skillet, in 30 minutes!

Alright, time to fit in a quick sweat session before this fitting – I can’t believe we’re 11 days away to me becoming Mrs. Cerda. Now, if I could only start writing the vows….

 Nutritional Information & Recipe

Weight Watchers SmartPoints*: 12 points

Inspiralized

Indian Carrot Noodle Salad with Spiced Lamb

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 2

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground lamb lean
  • 2 teaspoons garam masala
  • salt to taste
  • 3 large carrots peeled, Blade D, noodles trimmed
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
  • 1/4 cup fresh mint
  • For the dressing
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried cumin
  • 1 small red onion peeled and sliced thinly
  • juice of 1 lemon + its zest
  • 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
  • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

  • Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and once heated, add in the lamb, crumbling with a wooden spoon, until all the fat releases into the pan. Add the garam masala and season with salt and pepper. Cook the lamb until its crispy, about 7 minutes.
  • Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing into a bowl and whisk together. In a large mixing bowl, add in the carrot noodles, mint and cilantro. Pour over the dressing and toss to combine.
  • Divide the lamb mince between four plates and top with the carrot noodles.

 

with love, Ali

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comments

  • I'm so happy with this post :) Such a lovely time for you two! I hope everything is perfect with your dress fitting* Fingers crossed!
  • Where did you get your gold flatware? I've been searching for a good brand that won't ruin!
  • Praying for sunshine, lollipops and rainbows (old song) and everything beautiful on your wedding day! Thanks for sharing this recipe and all the other tricks and tips!
  • Hi Ali, I just found you and your website today- been reading it for hours now! I ordered my Inspiralizer (after I did my due diligence on research and came back for this one). We are sitting here now showing my husband your site when we saw this post. 28 years ago we were married on June 20th!!! It's the perfect day "to marry your best friend, the one you laugh with live for and love" (that's what hanging here in our living room... our framed invitation.) We wish you many happy, healthy years together! Your already on your way with this awesome Inspiralized site!
  • Hi Ali, I just found you and your website today- been reading it for hours now! I ordered my Inspiralizer (after I did my due diligence on research and came back for this one - the best one). We are sitting here now showing my husband your site when we saw this post. 28 years ago we were married on June 20th!!! It's the perfect day "to marry your best friend, the one you laugh with live for and love" (that's what hanging here in our living room... our framed invitation.) We wish you many happy, healthy years together! Your already on your way with this awesome Inspiralized site!
  • I need to start cooking with more lamb! This is such a fun and healthy way to get these flavors in a simple delicious dish. Thanks for sharing, I can't wait to try it! ♥ Lisa Strum Simmer Sip
  • I like lamb but have never been a fan of ground lamb only because each time i attempted a recipe w/it the flavor was off or it was too chewy (overcooked). But maybe i will give it another go. Or even bison or ground elk may work well here. After it's official it will seem odd googling Ali Cerda rather than Maffucci to access your instagram or other info. Will you be taking his name or using a hyphen? I love yoir posts about the wedding! You can feel the excitement in your words. As a loyal fan, i will be rooting for a flawless day for you both. *crossed fingers*
  • This is just the kind of recipe I've been looking for, for when I don't have a stove. Unfortunately I'll have to use blade C for my carrots because my Inspiralized is not with me, only the other brand I started with. :-( I hope your dress turned out perfect and that your wedding day has perfect weather (and everything else). I wish you and Lu many happy years together.
  • Hi! Just a quick question! Does this recipe make four servings or two? In the nutritional information it says it's four servings but in the recipe it says two. Thanks!
  • Serves 2, divided among 4 plates? Did I misread it?
  • This recipe caught my eye at once. I use Heritage ground pork with Grass fed and finished lamb and beef to make patties for hamburgers to go with my gluten free naan bread...so I used one of my lamb and pork patties for the meat portion....had no cilantro or mint so used my Young Living essential oils for that. This is a great salad. I will be making this often this summer. So good. Blessing, Anne
  • Hi Ali, Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious - didn't change a thing. Total hit with my husband who asked for it to be kept on the "Make Again List". Many thanks for the inspiration and for sharing your life and recipes, Jeanette