Baaaa-aaaaah! * Using up all that mutton!

Greetings all my friends out in the Blogosphere!

Eid el Kebir has come and gone ... But I have been very busy with this little guy over here <- and we all had gotten the flu so we were getting over that. So today I would to share little of our holiday here (thou a bit late)!

We shared most of the meat with family, friends and some less fortunate as customary ... but we are still up to our eyes with mutton! So what to do with all that meat? Sometimes I think it can be rather tricky to figure that out ... For my husband he loves his mechoui (grill) but one can only eat so much ...

For my family, this year was the first sheep we have slaughtered in Algeria ... and actually a first I have done from start to finish ... so it was a real learning experience for me all around!
Today, I would like to share some scences of our Eid el Kebir ... but also some info on mutton, also some ideas for preparing it and making the most of it enchallah!

Our sheep from the start I think he knew what was coming to him poor thing as he was just shaky all the evening since he was brought to the house.

Some time later, after the slaughter ... some time for the sheep to 'rest' and allow all the blood to drain out. We hung it up ... then started to crave away! Even my daughter, who BTW is not a scared child but very interested in all learning opportunties (esp when involving animals) helped us out!

We kept half for ourselves; other was given away. Then the big chore of cutting the large pieces into more managable morcels began! Arms got very sore but overall worth it!

And once the whole job of cutting was over, we were left a moutain of mutton!

After this experience I was more familar with all the whole process of slaughtering and butchering a larger animalMy family when I was younger were slaughtering chicken, ducks and geese but compraing to this ... it was little different! My children (the older one) is now known familar with what we are eating (thou she is almost a vegetarian ..; I think this is just a stage she is at ... ) I am thankful for the experience ... something we did together as a family, was able to share something good with those less fortunate and culinary-wise was good thing since this c omes in handy when cooking the various cuts of meats.

Here is a picture of the various cuts

Living in Algeria traditionally after the sheep is slaughtered the innards are taken out ... cleaned of course ... then in my husband's family for lunch the liver, heart, kidneys .... and yesss even the testicles are cooked up on the grill. I did not pretake in the testicle eating but I was assured they are excellent! LOL! (Other familys may cook up the liver in kebda chermoula dish, which is basically livers cooked in a chermoula sauce) After these organs are eaten ... the lungs and intestines are used to make Osbane, a traditional dish of stuffed tripe made from the slaughtered mutton of Eid el Kebir.

I unfortunately do not have any photos of this dish to share, as I think photos help much in the prepartion so plz refer to OumSohayb's blog Dattes et Miel for the Osbane recipe!

Another traditional dish using the tripe is Tkalia ou douara or tripes and heart. For this recipe plz refer to Fatizo's blog Darna.
Finally, the head is not wasted but used to make yet another traditional dish called Bouzellouf Chtetha ... for a video on how to prepare this dish plz refer to this video! It is long process ... no wonder I have never done it! LOL!


Méchoui: Algérienne grillade

• 1 kg cutlets (lamb chops)



• salt/black pepper



• 1 TBS olive oil



• 1/2 tsp each of cumin, dried thyme, coriander,cinnamon, herbes de provences , saffron powder, dried minced onion, paprika



• 2 cloves of garlic very finely minced
  
  
  
  Make ready your grill ... outdoor carbon grill or indoor
  electric one ...

Clean and then dry the meat.

Rub the meat with the spices and allow to absorb them for at least 30
minutes.

Now you are ready to grill the meat!

Now here some other ideas for using up all that mutton!

Chourba hamra with mini meatballs

Bourek Algeroise as starter or with another dish

Shepherd's pie ( I will have my version up shortly)

Sumac koftes- (ground meat cigares)Grilled off and served with rouille, tzakiki sauce and fritte.
Koftes aux oeufs

Boulgour pilaf à la viande hachée en sauce

Lissan el Kadi
Maqlouba

Lamb caccitore with buttered noodles ( I will have this also up shortly)

Berkoukes lamb risotto

Txilindron de cordero -

Lahma Helou -
Bárány paprikás with spaetzle
Apricot and prune lamb tadjine
Deboned rosemary roasted leg of lamb with roasted veg( I will have this shortly)

Cherwarma sandwiches with half of leftover roast.

Mustard herbed chops with pomegranate reduction and mashed potatoes

Lamb osso bucco

Braised lmab shanks on loubia (cannellini beans)

Lamb shanks on loubia and fennel germoulta

Grilled bread with scaloppined lamb

Lamb fajitas

Spicy lamb tadjine with figs and sweet potatoes

Aeagan (Greek style) braised lamb shanks (below)

Lamb strudel (I will have this up shortly)

Arni me fasolakia

Lamb stew with Chickpeas and Pomegranate Molasses

Lamb en pate croute (I will have this up shortly)



From other Bloggers:

Pea and Carrots: Lamb Tadjine kabobs
Habeeas's Brulee: Lamb tadjine with dates, yams and apricots
Ivy Kopaiste: Lamb braised in milk and garlic
Ivy Kopaiste: Souvlaki
Ivy Kopaiste: Lamb Pie
Ivy Kopaiste: Sheftalia (the recipe calls for pork but I have made this with lmab; very excellent!)
Ivy Kopaiste: Moussaka




AEAGAN LAMB SHANKS - This dish I have called Aeagan lamb shanks since I ate in a resturant in Tolo, Greece back in the late 90s called the Aeagan ... It was so excellent ... I remembered the flavour for years ... and have tried my best to recreate it!

• 4 lamb shanks)


• 1 large onion, finely chopped


• 1/2 cup balsamic vingaer (not very Greek but adds nice sweetness like wine would, omit if you like)


• 2 TBS tomato puree


• olive oil


• 1 bay leaf


• 1 pinch cinnamon


• 2 pinches of oregano


• Salt/ black pepper
• cube of sugar (depends on the sweetness of the tomatoes)
  
  

Heat olive oil in a pot and saute the chopped onion, the and the lamb.

Let the meat take a brown.

Now season with salt and pepper, and add the bay leaf and the cinnamon.

Finish roasting by pouring the balsamic and let it evaporate by letting it boil for a while.

Add the tomato paste.

Pour some water and let it cook for 1 hour in 150 C until the sauce thickens.

I serve this orzo but also with roastedAlgerian style (with fritte - french fries) placed right in the gravy. Also good with rice.

Finally I would like to thank IVY of Kopaiste for passing me a wonderful award ... THANK YOU SO MUCH!

I would like to pass it along to 7 other bloggers:

Lynda of Texas to Algeria: My Culinary Adventure

OumSouhayb of Dattes et Miel

Kouather of Culinary Delights

Arlette of Phonenican Gourmet

Summer of Mimi cooks

Sabah of Sousous Kitchen

Celine of Le Palais des Delices

Ay bsahatkoume!

Espresso Coconut roll - Roulade de espresso et noix de coco

Kekesz tekercs, as it known in Hungary is a delicious yet very simple dessert for the average housewife to make. I think the wonder of this little amuse-bouche is that it taste gourmet without any of the work of a gourmande LOL!

I grew up eating this treat, thinking it was something special and difficult to make ... until I was let in on its simple secrets ... today I would like to share also with everyone in the Blogosphere this treat from my childhood.

I have made this several times for holidays here in Algeria ... including for Eid al Fitr this year. I made 4 rolls that only lasted me 2 days ... yes, I am confidant in telling everyone these are ery tasty!
This is such an easy recipe ... there is really no need for instructions! But for everyone I will try to get the main points ...

Dark portion:

• 350g package of ground up digestive biscuits (I use Bimo brand biscuits that I grind in my robo, but you can use any you like)


• 150g powder sugar


• 200ml milk


• few spoons of instant espresso (add enough to give you the nice dak colour) disolved in the milk


• 1TBS dark cocoa powder

Light portion:

• 100g softened real butter (plz do not use margine or smen or ghee here ... real creamy butter is what gives the flavour)
• 100g powder sugar
• 3 TBS milk
• 140g desicated coconut
  
• Extra coconut for rolling the outside


• powder sugar for dusting the board

1. Grind the biscuits in your robo very fine.
2. Now in a bowl mix all the ingredients for the dark portion of the roll. Knead everything together very thourghly to form a firm yet slightly sticky dough.
3. Now in another bowl whip the soft butter ... adding in the remaining ingredients.
4. Chill both paste for about 30 minutes before working with it.
5. When ready to roll out, dust the board with powdered sugar ... then roll out the dark portion of the dough.
6. Spread the coconut creme over the dough.
7. Now roll the dough over ... as you would when making a jelly roll (roulade).
8. The roll is will slightly sticky on the outside, so you can easily roll it in some coconut for decor.
9. Wrap very well with first plastic wrap then foil ... before placing in the fridge or freezer.

When you are ready to serve this treat, you can serve cold or even frozen ... very tasty both ways. And the best part is that it stays conserved ... ready to be sliced for any unexcepeted guests who may arrive. ( I usually have roll or two always in my freezer just for this!)

Trick:

Traditionally in Hungary, a shot or two of brandy or rum is added to the dark dough but since I do not drink ... I omit this.

Also my family also makes this roulade using apricot jam as the binder ... omiting the milk and powder suagr all together and using enough apricot jam to bind the dough. I find this more flavourful ... especial since I do not use the alchohol!

Thon en sauce Mornay - Tuna Mornay

Tuna Mornay is a great midweek meal idea. It’s quick to make, less stress for a a recovering mum with a full house of children. It takes a minimal of ingredients – most from the pantry. It can be served with a variety of side dishes, or none at all. And it’s great for dinner the next day, or lunches over a couple of days. It has nice simple flavours that are wholesome and creamy. It’s a nice way to spend a cool autumn evening, curled up on the couch with a bowl of tuna mornay fresh from the oven.

I really like sauce Mornay ... which is really just a bechamel (white) sauce that has cheese added to ... so for the everyday terms - a cheese sauce. It is a part of modern French cooking and was made famous by the Hot Brown Sandwich at the Brown Hotel in Louisville, KY USA ... but also in the dish called Tuna mornay or also called Tuna noodle casserole in some parts of the USA.

Here’s the ingredients & method I use …

• 1 1/2 cups Milk
• 2 Bay leaves
• 1 can tuna
• 500g pasta
• few knobs of butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 celery stick, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup AP flour
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• Handful of fresh parsely, chopped (optional)
• 100g gyuyere
• 100g garlic and herb creme cheese
• 1/2 cup Breadcrumbs
• sprig of fresh thyme1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• peas and/corn (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Drain the can of tuna and reserve the brine. Flake the tuna.
3. Heat butter in a pan. Add onion and celery. When onion and celery soften, stir in flour and cook for 1 minute.
4. Remove the pan from heat and gradually stir in the milk and tuna brine.
5. Return the pan over low heat until it boils and thinkens. Simmer gently for 2-3 minutes.
6. Stir in nutmeg, cream, herbs and half the cheese.
7. Remove from heat and stir in tuna.
8. Season with salt and pepper.
9. Spoon the mixture and cooked pasta into a baking dish.
10. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs over the top.
11. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Do not over bake as it will dry out the sauce!

A dish even children will eat ... nice to add in extra veg of your choice ... for extra vits!