Quick & Easy Grainy Molasses Marinade

I don’t know what temperatures are like where you live, but here in Swizterland we’re neither used to nor prepared for heat waves in the summer; and for over a fortnight, the temperatures daily hit 35°C+ (95°F+), with no air conditioning.  By the evenings it was time to open up the windows, shutters and doors, and let the evening breeze through, and heat up the grill.

This marinade is one I mix together in a Ziplock bag, squish it together, toss in the meat of choice (it goes well with chicken, pork, beef… whatever you want!) and pop it back into the fridge, rolled up tightly to let the marinade hug the meat for a few hours before grilling.  It’s delicious, and glazes nicely!

Grainy Molasses Marinade

1½ C. molasses

3 Tbs. grainy Dijon mustard

2-3 cloves garlic, finely mashed (or 1½ tsp. puréed)

1/4 C. lemon juice

Mix it all together in a large Ziplock bag.  This amount will cover roughly 4 large chicken breasts.  Toss in your meat, seal the bag (squeezing out the air) and squish the contents around to mix well and coat the meat.  Roll the bag up around the meat to ensure that the marinade and meat “hug” each other, then let the flavours marry for a couple hours at least, or overnight.  Grill as you like, and enjoy!

Traditional Scottish Shepherd’s Pie

In a land dotted white with sheep, it’s not surprising that many of Scotland’s national dishes feature lamb or mutton on the menu.  My favourite is haggis, and in my recent Scottish holiday I had it as often as I could as it’s not something I would know how to make myself.  True Scottish Shepherd’s Pie is made with ground lamb; if it’s made with ground beef or anything else it would be known as “Cottage Pie”.  It’s a wonderful dish for warming you up on a cool evening (of which there are a good many in Scotland!!).

Serve hot with green vegetables, either baked or steamed, alongside.

Scottish Shepherd’s Pie

Photo credit: Taste of Home

450.gr. (1 lb.) Minced lamb
700 gr. (1½ lb.) Potatoes
Large onion
50 gr. (2 oz.) Mushrooms
Bay leaf
2 Carrots
25 gr. (1 oz.) Plain flour
1 Tbs. Tomato purée
25 gr. (1 oz.) Butter
4 Tbs. Milk
300 ml. (½ pint) Lamb or beef stock
50 gr. (2 oz.) Cheese

Dry fry the lamb with the chopped onion, bay leaf, sliced mushrooms and diced carrots for 8-10 minutes. Add the flour and stir for a minute. Slowly blend in the stock and tomato purée. Cook, stirring, until the mixture thickens and boils. Cover and simmer gently for 25 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and place in a 1.7 litre (3 pint) oven-proof serving dish.

At the same time, cook the potatoes in boiling water for 20 minutes until tender. Drain well, mash with the butter and milk and mix well. Spread on top of the mince mixture and sprinkle over with the grated cheese.

Bake for 15-20 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 200°C (400°F).