"lamb" news and stories

Each Thursday, we round up a selection of scrumptious links from our friends over at YumSugar. Here's what they've got cooking this week:

• Tyler's ultimate baby food, for the discerning toddler.
• Track the development of a Joe, a cup of Joe, to be exact.
• Skip the brown-bag PB & J for a muffuletta or nine other delectable sandwich options.
• Spring may be on its way out, but lamb is still here, as evidenced by these delicious lamb chops with mint-pistachio pesto.
• A rose by any other name -- test your berry brain skills.
• If you couldn't get into esteemed Eton College, the next best thing is The Eton Mess -- a strawberry dessert.

Happy National Roast Leg of Lamb Day!

As exemplified by the spectacular rendition pictured at left, roast leg of lamb, when well-executed, creates a gloriously brown exterior with a succulent moist interior. When roasted with fresh herbs and wine for hours until cooked through, the meat takes on tremendous, unparalleled flavor. Recommends James Beard, "Serve with the pan juices and tiny buttered peas. Drink a very light red wine -- a Moulin-a-vent, young and fruity, would be extremely good."

For a sophisticated dish that can feed a family all at once, the roast is a fairly straightforward preparation, requiring namely a rub for flavoring and the addition of fat to maintain its juiciness. Check out our suggested list of recipes for inspiration:

• Roast Leg of Lamb with Beer and Rosemary (pictured at left)
• Roast Leg of Lamb with Mint Aioli
• Rosemary and Garlic Roast Leg of Lamb
• Greek-Style Roast Leg of Lamb
• Roast Leg of Lamb with Mint, Garlic and Lima Bean Purée
• Roast Leg of Lamb with Fennel Butter

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured on the site.

For some reason, eggplant is often neglected by home cooks. Maybe because it's hard to get excited about it visually (dull brown when you want something bright green or red or orange), or because the texture and flavor can be unappealing if cooked incorrectly, or because it doesn't groove with the protein you took out to defrost, or just... because.

This dish is a game changer. It capitalizes on eggplant's plump shape, brings plenty of color into play, uses Middle Eastern ingredients to boost flavor and incorporates chopped eggplant flesh into the lamb stuffing, so texture isn't an issue. Deliciously clever.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot of having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.

Barbecue ribs. Photo: biskuit, Flickr.

Oktoberfests are ubiquitous this month. For those not interested in the chug-a-thons and oompah bands, check out this list of alternative options.

Dixon Lambtown USA, Dixon, Calif., Oct. 3: Break out the mint jelly! Attendees can participate in such culinary slugfests as the National Lamb Ribs Eating Contest and Barbecue Cook-Off, not to mention a shearing competition and sheepdog trials. For the kiddies, there's Mutton Bustin' -- a buckin' bronco bruising of the woolly kind.

The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival, New York, Oct. 8-11: Hosted by and benefiting the Food Bank for New York City and Share Our Strength, this festival brings the toque and the home cook together. Everyone from sous chefs to casserole queens can attend wine seminars, recipe-creation panels and cooking demonstrations. For the kiddie cook, check out the Kids Get Cooking! series. Your favorite celebrity TV chefs will be there, en masse, including Ming Tsai, Paula Deen, Rachael Ray and Anthony Bourdain, as well as culinary heavyweights such as Sue Torres, Marcus Samuelsson, Odette Fada, Daniel Boulud and David Chang.

Sloppy Joe. Photo: gezellig-girl.com, Flickr

• Aww... Sloppy Joe loses its spotlight to a cousin -- the salsa-infused Sloppy Jose.
• Avocados can be whipped into more than just guacamole -- try some Avocado Fries.
• Peppers are hitting farm stands, including the tiny and tasty Yum Yum peppers.
• Mushroom lovers rejoice -- it's National Mushroom Month. Get your 'shroom on with Mini Quiche Caps.
• Houston writer Greg Morago says, "Don't be sheepish about eating lamb."
• Meijer makes Moose Tracks mint-flavored.
• Picking out the right ears and dishing up Corn-Corn Muffins.
• Good Stuff finds a green-onion recall, food events and funky dishes.