I have lots of recipe books, and I do like sitting down and browsing through them. But, I don’t do this nearly as much as I should to gain new inspiration. It’s lovely, therefore, to come across recipes that inspire me in the land of blog. This week I’ve encountered several that are now on my list of ‘must try’ and a couple that I tried straight away.
The first was koftas – little meaty sausages/patties served with flat bread and spicy condiments. I have to confess that I now can’t remember which blog I saw these on. I didn’t write down the recipe because it was so easy – minced lamb, garlic and seasonings mixed together, rolled into little shapes, put on one side for a while and then cooked in a pan without any oil added as lamb is fatty anyway. My only modification was that I used mutton rather than lamb – it has more flavour, its use means the animals have a longer life and graze naturally rather than being brought on using concentrates (as much lamb is) and apparently it’s good for you. The reason this recipe appealed so much was that I could serve it with a whole host of home made/home grown things: lettuce picked fresh, flat breads made by Mr Snail, dollops of the delicious sweet hot chilli sauce, home made yoghurt and freshly stewed apples. I can report that is was all delicious – certainly something we’ll be cooking time and again.
The other recipe I tried this week was for Dutch Apple Pie… in my life I have made many apple pies but, trust me, this one was really special and different from any I’ve made before. The buttery crust is delicious, and the filling – made with sugar, corn starch, water, cinnamon and apples – was wonderful. For this one, I can direct you to the recipe, it’s from Amanda, The Farm Wyfe and you can find it here.
In her post, Amanda also mentions apple brownies, which she has also kindly given me the recipe for… see her response to my comment at the bottom of her pie original post if you want this.
In addition, Kate (Tall Tales from Chiconia) sent me a cake recipe earlier in the week, but since it requires lots of eggs and our girls are hardly laying at the moment, trying that will have to wait.
So, have you come across any good recipes in blogland recently? If so, do share!
The Snail of Happiness 
writinghouse
/ November 14, 2015YUM!!
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katechiconi
/ November 14, 2015What a pity my insides won’t tolerate oats either… I think rice flakes will be too hard; maybe I can find some other flaked grain that won’t set off my problem, to substitute. Thank you for the link, I must put up another recipe soon. Meanwhile, I’m feeling distinctly in need of a cherry pie or bakewell tart. Good job it’s a baking day tomorrow!
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The Snail of Happiness
/ November 14, 2015I wonder whether millet flakes would be suitable.
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katechiconi
/ November 14, 2015I wonder if I can find them!
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thecontentedcrafter
/ November 14, 2015I rarely bake/cook anything noteworthy these days. But as my daughters are joining me for Christmas this year, and one of them has a birthday two days before, I have been requested to sharpen up my skills and whip up two old favourites. One is the rather prosaically named Cold Christmas Pudding – a rich melange of brandy soaked fruits and spices mixed in with breadcrumbs and eggs and so forth. The other is an equally rich but quite different steamed pudding full of cacao and brown sugar and other unhealthy food options. Both these items have been in my repertoire since about 1974. If we consume all this stuff, I don’t expect us to make it to the New Year! 🙂
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The Snail of Happiness
/ November 14, 2015Well, good luck with all that… apparently garlic is good for lowering cholesterol… it sounds like you might need it!!
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nettyg
/ November 14, 2015My new favourite is a sweet potato casserole type thing I saw Jamie Oliver cooking when I was channel surfing. I have a lot of home grown sweet potatoes, so it was good to find a new way to serve them and simple. Saute onions and garlic, add mushrooms, then biggish chunks of sweet potato and let it all brown nicely, add whatever seasonings you like….I added a good dollop of chilli and some fresh rosemary…. tomatoes from my garden and a half a tin of organic chopped tomatoes ( the other half went into a dahl curry) bring it to a boil then into the oven. Jamie had a nice skillet that went from stove to oven, but I transferred it all to an oven proof dish, swirling a little water to get the very last of those juices and caramelized bits. Jamie put a few olives in his, but I didn’t have any, and he also browned off some chicken breasts, so I added big cubes of tofu. Cooked for about 30 minutes and served with polenta, but you could have anything with it, I had leftovers the enxt night with brown rice. There was enough left to go in the freezer for another time 🙂
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The Snail of Happiness
/ November 14, 2015That sounds lovely. Sadly I don’t seem to be able to grow sweet potatoes (any tips?) but sometimes I can get a cheap crate of them, so I know what to do in future!
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arlingwoman
/ November 14, 2015Oooh, I have a recipe for these koftas and have not had the courage to make them, what with the nearby Lebanese market (in which they are perfectly shaped like tiny American footballs) I may try soon. You have given me courage. Tonight it’s black bean soup, though, which I’ve been making for years and have no recipe for!
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cambridgearomatherapy
/ November 15, 2015Our girls are if not on strike then certainly on a go-slow or work to rule at the moment also!
Still in a month and a half’s time the light will be increasing and if last year was anything to go by that will see an increase!
Yesterday, I made a pie with beef from the cattle that graze the commons around Cambridge saving the council money on mowing them two or three times a year! They are Red Polls a particularly placid breed that cope with hundreds of dog walkers, a small minority of whom behave badly. Cam Cattle don’t get incidents even then, though occasionally the cattle do forget that the tarmac path is for walkers and cyclists to get through!
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The Snail of Happiness
/ November 15, 2015Excellent – when used appropriately, livestock are brilliant land managers!
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nettyg
/ November 15, 2015I can’t think of any sweet potato tips……..I just shoved a few sprouting bits left over from some I bought from the organic grower at the Farmer’s Market, into a spare corner of my veggie patch, covered them with mulch and left them…..now I have a bumper crop! I also put a couple in a pot and they’re growing nicely along the side fence, I haven’t checked to see what’s grown yet, I like the greenery in an otherwise hot, cement path area. Maybe it’s our sub-tropical soil and air temps, they grow really well around here. At least if you know where to get them pretty cheap that’s good.
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