Recipes for Lughnasadh
Foods associated with Lughnasadh include:
homemade breads (wheat, oat, rye and especially cornbread)
corn, potatoes, berry pies, barley cakes, nuts, wild berries, apples, rice, acorns, crab apples, summer squash, turnips, oats, all grains and all First Harvest
roasted lamb
Traditional drinks are hard cider, elderberry wine, ale, and meadowsweet tea.
Traditional herbs of the Lammas Sabbat include acacia flowers, aloes, ginseng, cornstalks, cyclamen, fenugreek, frankincense, heather, hollyhock, myrtle, oak leaves, sunflower, and wheat.
It is also appropriate to plant the seeds from the fruit consumed in ritual. If the seeds sprout, grow the plant with love and as a symbol of your connection to the Divine.
Aromatic Lammas Lamb
1 leg of lamb (about 4 lbs)
3 lb potatoes (about 5 oz each)
1 lemon (may be doubled)
honey
olive oil
butter
rosemary, thyme & oregano
Put the leg of lamb into a large roasting pan. Bruise the leaves of 2 or 3 sprigs of rosemary and sprinkle them over the meat. Add plenty of pepper and 1 tablespoon honey. Rub the mixture into the meat with your hands. Then rub half a lemon over the joint, squeezing the juice on to the meat as you do so. Do not add any salt. Leave to marinate for 4 to 24 hours.
Peel and quarter the potatoes, then arrange them in a single layer round the lamb. Squeeze lemon juice over the potatoes -- use at least half a lemon, or up to one and a half lemons for a strong citrus flavour. Carefully pour 1/4 pint water into a corner of the roasting pan, then sprinkle over the potatoes and lamb about 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, at least 1 teaspoon each fresh chopped thyme and oregano, and some salt and pepper. Drizzle on 1-1/2 teaspoons honey and 1 tablespoon olive oil, then dot with 1 oz butter. Bake at 425 F (220 C) gas mark 6 for a further 1 to 1-1/4 hours. The ingredients will become gilded and will burnish to a rich brown in places. Lift the meat and turn the potatoes occasionally, and if necessary, add a little boiling water to the pan to prevent drying out.
Parmesan Barley Cake
8 cups water
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cups pearl barley (about 14 ounces), rinsed
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 4 1/2 ounces)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan; cover and keep warm over low heat. Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and cook over low heat, stirring, until translucent, about 8 minutes.
Add the barley to the onion and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until thoroughly coated with butter, about 2 minutes. Add 2 cups of the hot water and simmer, stirring often, until the water has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining water, adding 2 cups at a time. Remove the barley from the heat. Stir in 1 cup of the Parmesan and season with salt and pepper. Spread the barley on a baking sheet, cover with plastic and let cool.
Line a 10-inch cake pan with plastic wrap, allowing a 6-inch overhang. Using a rubber spatula, spread half of the barley evenly in the cake pan. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan and cover with the remaining barley; smooth the surface. Cover the barley cake with the overhanging plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours or overnight.
Heat the oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet. Working quickly, unwrap the barley cake and gently lift it from the pan using the plastic wrap. Invert the cake onto an unrimmed baking sheet, discard the plastic wrap and slide the cake into the skillet. Cook over moderate heat until the cake is heated through and very brown and crisp on the bottom, about 15 minutes. Set a large serving plate over the skillet, invert the cake onto it and serve cut into wedges.
MAKE AHEAD: The cake can stand at room temperature for up to 4 hours. Rewarm in a 350° oven.
From: Thomas Keller and Joseph Keller
Golden Rice and Acorn Pilaf for Lammas
1/2 cup long grain white rice
1/2 cup orzo pasta
1/4 cup chopped acorns
3/4 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons dried onion flakes
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
salt
grated romano cheese
Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the rice, orzo, and chopped acorns. Sauté and stir until golden. Gently pour in the chicken broth and water. Add the turmeric, garlic powder, onion flakes and salt. Stir and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce the flame. Simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Serve and garnish with the Romano cheese.
Turnip and Apple Bake for Lughnasadh
1 turnip
1 tsp butter
salt and pepper, to taste
2 cup thinly sliced cooking apples
2 tsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp butter, melted
Cook turnip as usual in salted boiling water, mash with butter and seasonings. Mix sliced apple with brown sugar and spices. In greased casserole layer turnip and apples with turnip layer last. Mix bread crumbs melted butter and brown sugar and put over turnip, bake in 350 F oven 50 to 60 minutes.
Grand Marnier Blackberry Pie
2/3 cup flaked coconut
1/4 cup icing sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
3 egg whites
2/3 cup sugar
4 cups fresh blackberries
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup Grand Marnier
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
Combine coconut and icing sugar, set aside. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy; add sugar a little at a time, beat well after each addition until mixture stands in peaks. Fold in coconut, spread mixture in a buttered nine-inch pie plate. Bake in 325 F oven for 30 minutes or until meringue feels dry and firm; let cool.
Place blackberries and cinnamon in a bowl with Grand Marnier for three hours. Before serving, drain berries and reserve liqueur.
Whip cream until stiff, sweeten to taste. Fold in berries; fill meringue shell, decorate with extra berries. Serve in slices, top with reserved liqueur.
Crabapple Liqueur
4 quarts crabapples
4 cups sugar
3 cups vodka
Take a 4 quart mason jar, and fill it with crabapples that have been washed and quartered (there's no need to core or peel them). Add 4 cups of sugar and three cups of vodka. Store the jar on its side, turning once every day for 16 days to get the sugar to dissolve. After 16 days, filter out the fruit bits - you can use a knee-high nylon stocking, as this can be suspended for a few days to get every last drop out, and bottle. This recipe can be done on nearly any scale from 1 quart to 4 quarts, and two bottles of vodka will normally yield about five bottles of liqueur.
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