Sweet Baked Goat Cheese Spread

It doesn't have to be reserved as an appetizer, though.
Spread it on a morning bagel or muffin for a warm breakfast that will let you get going, and keep you going!
Ingredients
8 oz. chevre goat cheese
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup crushed, unsweetened pineapple
1/4 cup honey
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350° F.
Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a bowl. Spray a small casserole or baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Place cheese mixture in dish and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the sides begin to bubble and brown.

Serve warm with crackers or bread.

http://www.everything-goat-milk.com/baked-goat-cheese.html

Spiced Lamb Pitas with Fresh Mango Salsa

1-1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1-1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1-1/2 lb. ground lamb
1 large red onion, cut into small dice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbs. Major Grey style mango chutney
1 ripe medium mango, cut into 1/4-inch dice
3 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro
4 large pita breads, cut in half to yield 8 half-moon pockets
2 tsp. fresh lime juice; more to taste

----------------------------------------------------------

Heat the oven to 450°F. Mix the cumin, ginger, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Reserve 1/4 tsp. of the spice mix in a large bowl. In another large bowl, sprinkle the remaining spices over the lamb and mix with a fork to combine.

Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the lamb and all but 1/3 cup of the onion. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring and breaking up the meat with the side of a spoon, until the lamb is fully cooked and all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan, about 9 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup of the chutney and continue to cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and keep warm.

Lightly toast the pita breads on a baking sheet in the oven, 6 to 8 minutes, flipping once. Meanwhile, add the remaining 1/3 cup onion and 2 Tbs. chutney, the mango, cilantro, lime juice, and a pinch of salt to the reserved spices to make a salsa; stir to combine. Taste and add more lime juice if it seems sweet (it should be somewhat tangy to offset the sweetness of the meat).

To serve, let diners assemble their own sandwiches by filling the halved pitas with the lamb and salsa.

variations
This recipe also works as an hors d'oeuvre. Cut the pitas into triangles and toss with 4 to 5 Tbs. olive oil and kosher salt. Toast on a baking sheet in a 450°F oven, flipping after 5 minutes, until crisped and slightly browned, 7 minutes total. Top each triangle with some of the lamb mixture and a bit of the salsa.

Spiced-Lamb-Stuffed Zucchini

Contributed by Mohammed Antabli and Anissa Helou
4 medium zucchini (2 1/4 pounds)
1/2 cup short-grain rice, such as arborio, soaked for 20 minutes and drained
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 pound ground lamb
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 1/4 cups water
1 pound tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick

Halve the zucchini lengthwise and scoop out the flesh, leaving 1/4-inch-thick shells. Reserve 1 cup of the zucchini flesh and finely chop it.
In a large bowl, mix the drained rice with the turmeric. Add the chopped zucchini, lamb, butter, cumin seeds, ground cumin and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Using your hands, gently knead the mixture until blended. Add 1/4 cup of the water and knead until evenly moistened. Stuff the zucchini halves with the lamb filling.
Line the bottom of a large, deep skillet with the tomato slices and season lightly with salt and pepper. Arrange the stuffed zucchini halves on top of the tomatoes in a single layer. Add the remaining 1 cup of water to the skillet and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over moderately low heat for about 25 minutes, until the lamb is cooked through and the rice is tender.
Transfer the zucchini to a platter. Cook the tomatoes over high heat, mashing them, until thickened, about 4 minutes. Spoon the tomatoes over the zucchini and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The zucchini can be prepared through Step 2 and refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.

SERVE WITH  Plain Greek-style yogurt and warm pita.

Lamb Pizzettes

Contributed by Grace Parisi
Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
30 mini 2-inch pitas, separated into 2 rounds each
1/4 cup chopped mint leaves
2 scallions, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1 large egg
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound ground lamb
1 cup Greek-style plain yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons chile oil, plus more for drizzling
Preheat the oven to 425°. Brush 2 large baking sheets with olive oil. Arrange the pitas cut side up on the baking sheets and brush with olive oil. Bake in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, shifting the sheets, for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly toasted and crisp.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the mint with the scallions, cumin, cinnamon, pine nuts, egg, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Add the lamb and knead until evenly combined. Spread each pita with a slightly rounded teaspoon of the meat mixture and bake for about 8 minutes, shifting the baking sheets, until the lamb is cooked through.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the yogurt with the 1 1/2 teaspoons of chile oil and the remaining 2 tablespoons of mint and season with salt and pepper. Spoon small dollops of the yogurt onto the pizzettes and garnish with a drop of chile oil. Serve right away.
MAKE AHEAD The lamb pizzettes can be baked earlier in the day and reheated gently before serving. The chile-yogurt sauce can be refrigerated overnight.

Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine

By Summerwine on May 15, 2006

http://www.food.com/recipe/slow-cooked-lamb-shanks-in-red-wine-168157
Photo by Summerwine
7 Reviews

Prep Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 3 1/2 hrs
Servings: 4

About This Recipe

"My slightly varied version of Gary Rhodes delicious Lamb Shank recipe. Truly mouth-watering moist and tender! I’ve made this a few times now. The first time I made this I used a medium bodied wine and it turned out just as fantastic. If you want to make this exactly like Gary’s then only use 1 carrot, 2 cloves garlic, 1 sprig of rosemary, do all the stovetop and oven cooking in large stew pan or dutch oven, use beef consommé instead of beef stock and the thickening of the red wine sauce is optional. This is a truly wonderful meal and worthy of a dinner party, special occasion or just a romantic meal. I hope you like it as much as we do."

Ingredients
4 (1 1/2 lb) lamb shanks
2 large carrots, roughly chopped
1 onions, sliced
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs rosemary
750 ml full-bodied red wine ( 1 bottle)
2 cups beef stock
1 tablespoon soft brown sugar
1 -2 teaspoon cornflour ( cornstarch)
olive oil, for cooking
salt & pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 F degrees.
Season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper.
In a large frying pan brown the lamb shanks on all sides in the olive oil; remove from pan and put into a large casserole dish to keep warm.
In the same frying pan put in the carrots, onions, garlic, bay leaves and rosemary and cook slowly until nicely colored.
Pour in the red wine, beef stock, and brown sugar into the frying pan and stir gently bringing it to a low boil.
Pour the wine mixture over the lamb shanks; top up with water if needed.
Cover; put in oven and cook for 2 1/2 – 3 hours until very tender.
Remove the lamb shanks and keep warm and skim the fat off the top of the red wine juices.
Mix together the cornflour with just a bit of cold water and whisk the cornflour mixture into the red wine juices until desired consistency.
Serve up on individual plates and enjoy.

Chocolate Soup

Recipe courtesy George Duran
Ingredients
4 1/2 cups whole milk
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
5 tablespoons cornstarch
5 tablespoons cold water
Mini chocolate biscotti, for garnish
Fresh raspberries, for garnish
Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Directions
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together the whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, andvanilla bean. Bring the mixture almost to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and let it steep for 20 minutes. Strain and return to the pan. (Rinse and dry the vanilla bean and save it for another use.)
Put the pan on low heat, add the chocolate, and whisk until the chocolate melts. Combine the cornstarch and water to form a slurry. Add the slurry a little at a time, whisking constantly, until the soup is thick and smooth. You will know it is ready when the bubbles are gone and the chocolate has thickened, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Pour the soup into bowls and garnish with biscotti, raspberries, and mint leaves.

SPIT-ROASTED WHOLE KID GOAT

http://rossottiranch.com/?page_id=299

There is possibly no greater culinary spectacle than a whole animal turning on a spit over hot coals. Roasting the whole goat also makes it easy to feed a crowd. The flavors in this recipe are some of goat’s favorites: rosemary, garlic, and lemon. The garlic and rosemary are inserted into slits in the meat to infuse the whole goat with their flavors.Plan to make an entire day out of the spit-roast. It takes about an hour or two to set up the spit roaster, season the goat, and attach it to the spit rod. After about 5 hours of slow roasting and tending the fire, you’ll be feasting on some of the finest meat you’ve ever tasted!

12 branches fresh rosemary

3 heads garlic, separated into cloves and peeled

1 whole goat, 25-30 pounds

2 lemons, halved

½ cup olive oil

3 tablespoons kosher salt

1½ tablespoons ground black pepper

3 scallions, roots trimmed

Stainless Steel or Copper Wire

1. Strip the leaves from 8 of the rosemary branches and put them in a food processor, along with the peeled cloves from 2½ heads of garlic. Pulse until finely chopped. (Make and refrigerate up to 2 days ahead).
2. Put the goat on a large work surface with the chest cavity up. Squeeze the juice from the lemons into a bowl, discarding the seeds but saving the rinds. Rub half of the lemon juice all over the inside of the goat cavity and inner thighs. Rub the entire cavity with ¼ cup of the olive oil. Sprinkle the cavity with one third of the garlic mixture, 1 tablespoon of the salt, and 2 teaspoons of the pepper. Put the scallions, remaining 4 branches of rosemary, remaining peeled garlic cloves, and the spent lemon rinds into the cavity.
3. Push the spit rod through the goat’s rear, along the cavity parallel to the backbone, and out through the neck or upper chest. Lay the goat on its side with the cavity facing you so that you can wire the backbone to the spit rod. Position an 8 inch length of wire in the center of the cavity. Insert the wire through the inside of the goat near the backbone and rod. When the wire pokes through the outside of the goat, bend the wire around the outside of the backbone and push it back through the goat so that the entire length of wire is wrapped around the backbone and rod. Use pliers to twist the two ends of the wire together, securing the wire very tightly around the spit rod. Repeat this process at roughly 4 inch intervals toward the rear and front of the goat until the backbone is securely fastened to the spit rod.
4. Slide the spit rod’s skewers over the front and rear ends of the rod. Push the skewers firmly into the shoulders and thighs or hips of the goat, then tighten the skewers onto the rod.
5. Attach the hind legs and forelegs to the rod with wire, twisting the ends of the wire until secured. Attached the neck to the rod in the same way.
6. Wire the goat cavity shut by sewing from one end to the other with one long piece of wire. Twist each end of the wire with pliers to secure it.
7. Make 20 to 30 small, ½ inch deep slits all over the outside of the goat, especially around the shoulders and legs. Use your fingers to stuff each slit with the remaining garlic mixture. Rub the remaining lemon juice all over the outside of the goat. Rub all over with the remaining ¼ cup olive oil, then sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons salt and 2½ teaspoons pepper.
8. If using wood chucks or chips, soak them in water for 1 hour. If using charcoal, light about 30 pounds of charcoal. When the coals are just ashed over, rake them into 4 piles near the corners of the firebox.
9. Attach the spitted goat to the roaster so that the goat rests 1 to 2 feet above the coals. If necessary, re-rake the coals to position the 4 piles just outside the shoulders and thighs so that the goat cooks by indirect heat.
10. Roast over indirect heat for 5 to 5½ hours, turning slowly buy constantly. Add a few pounds of charcoal to each pile when the old coals begin to burn low, about every hours, letting the charcoal ignite naturally. If using wood chunks or chips along with charcoal, ass the soaked chunks to the hot coals every hour or so. After about 2 hours, re-rake the coals to position them directly beneath the goat. Make two large pile beneath the shoulders and legs, connected be a shallow, narrow strip of coals beneath the ribs. During the last hour of cooking, if the goat in not browning sufficiently, baste it all over with additional olive oil. When done, the meat should be well browned on the outside and tender on the inside, with some pink meat only near the bones. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest parts of the thighs and shoulders should register about 150° to 160°F.
11. Transfer the goat to a large, clean work surface and let rest for 20 minutes. Using wire cutters and pliers, remove the wire from the legs and neck. Remove the wire that sewed the cavity shut and the wire from around the backbone. Remove the spit’s skewers, then pull out the spit rod. Be sure all of the wire is removed before serving.
12. Carve the meat from the bones, or scrape it off in chunks, and serve.