This is a recipe that was given to us by friends who worked for some years as university professors in Afghanistan.  It works equally well with ground mutton or lamb.

1 lb. ground lamb.

1 tablespoon oil.

approximately 1 cup diced onion.

1 ½ cups rice

lamb stock, plus enough water to make 3 cups.

½ teaspoon saffron (optional)

1 teaspoon each of ground cinnamon, cumin,and coriander.

½ teaspoon ground cardamom.

salt and pepper to taste.

3 medium sized carrots.

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup golden raisins.

½ cup toasted almonds. (whole or slivered)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Saute the onion in some oil and cook until it is translucent.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add the lamb or mutton and cook until it is no longer pink.  Add 3 cups of water to the meat mixture and bring to a boil.  Drain the meat and set it aside, keeping all the liquid it was cooked in.

Measure that liquid and add enough water to make 3 cups and pour this into a cooking pot with a tight fitting lid.  Add the rice, saffron, cinnamon, coriander, cumin and cardamom.  Cover, bring to a boil and simmer 20 minutes or until the rice is tender.

In the meantime, cut the carrots up into matchstick-sized pieces and saute them with the sugar and a little bit of oil, for about 5 minutes.  Watch carefully so they don’t burn.  Add the raisins and continue to saute the mixture for a few more minutes until the raisins are plump and the carrots tender but not mushy.  Stir the toasted almonds into the mixture and set aside.

Grease a casserole dish and put a third of the rice mixture on the bottom, followed by half the meat mixture, then half the carrot mixture. Follow this by another third of the rice, the remainder of the meat, the remainder of the rice and finish these layers by putting the rest of the carrot mixture on the top.  Cover and bake 20-25 minutes.