Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary

Recipes, travel & adventure from the wild and remote Shetland Islands

Lamb Casserole with Ale

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 In collaboration with Lamb. Tasty, Easy, Fun.

Lamb Casserole with Ale - a delicious slow cooked lamb dish flavoured with ale, mustard and spice!

Lamb Casserole with Ale

Winter is most definitely here in Shetland. We had a really mild October; an unseasonably warm month with plenty of sunshine. I’m pretty sure there was more sun in October than there was through the whole summer!

All of a sudden, it felt, we were hit by an icy cold blast from the North. The heaters have been cranked up and new slippers have been ordered online – my goodness the floor is cold.

On the up note, the northern lights were spotted again on a recent clear night.

Hearty, warming comfort food is definitely required.

Lamb Casserole with Ale

I’ve teamed up with Tasty Easy Lamb to share one of their delicious and hearty slow cooked lamb recipes with you. The secret ingredients for this tender casserole with a gorgeous thick gravy is a good quality ale, a spoonful of Dijon mustard and Speculoos biscuits!

I’ve been reading all about Speculoos (or Speculaas) on my fellow food blogger’s posts for years now, and the first time I ever had the opportunity to try them for myself was on our summer trip this year to Brussels, Belgium. We were at the Chocolate Museum (yes, they have a chocolate museum!) and the attendant dipped a speculoos biscuit into freshly melted milk chocolate for us to taste test.

Utterly delicious! Like ginger snaps, but with more cinnamon.

Lamb Casserole with Ale

Speculoos is a type of spiced shortbread biscuit traditionally baked in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany during the winter festivities.

As chance should have it, lurking in the back of my cupboard there was a packet of Speculoos spice mix and a traditional wooden stamp used to decorate them. I spent a rather pleasant afternoon recently making a batch of these biscuits, enlisting the help of my seven year old with the mixing and stirring.

Lamb Casserole with Ale

Lamb. Tasty, Easy, Fun is a new EU campaign launched with funding from the EU. It’s main goals are to encourage home cooks, like you and me, to incorporate more lamb into our diets.

A lot of people think lamb is difficult to cook, that it’s expensive, or it’s just for Sunday roasts. It’s not. The aim of this campaign is to move beyond the mint and demonstrate just how tasty, easy and fun lamb is to cook with in everyday life, like with this recipe, and its addition of biscuits!

I can’t even begin to describe how delicious this recipe is!

Lamb Casserole with Ale

The lamb in this dish is slow cooker on the hob over an hour and a half so it’s fork-tender. There’s a gorgeous mustard-kick (you won’t like this recipe if you’re not a fan of mustard) and the sweetness of the speculoos biscuits counteracts the acidity of the ale, resulting in a deliciously moreish gravy-laden casserole perfect for spooning over a pile of creamy mashed potatoes. If you can’t find speculoos biscuits I reckon some Norwegian pepperkaker or even ginger nuts would work well.

Leftovers reheat really well too. The lamb doesn’t lose any of its tenderness, and in all honesty, reheating it seems to mellow the mustard flavour too.

Would you believe my fussy children asked for seconds when I served them this meal? We’re onto a winner here!

For more recipe inspiration, helpful hints on which cuts to choose when you’re at the butchers’ counter and to learn about the vital role that sustainable sheep farming plays in the economy by supporting rural communities across England, Ireland and France visit the Lamb. Tasty, Easy, Fun. website.  You can also find them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Lamb Casserole with Ale
Lamb Casserole with Ale
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A delicious slow cooked lamb casserole flavoured with ale, mustard and speculoos. Serve with mashed potatoes for the perfect Autumnal comfort food meal.
Lamb Casserole with Ale
Print Recipe
A delicious slow cooked lamb casserole flavoured with ale, mustard and speculoos. Serve with mashed potatoes for the perfect Autumnal comfort food meal.
Servings Prep Time Cook Time
4servings 25minutes 90minutes
Servings Prep Time
4servings 25minutes
Cook Time
90minutes
Ingredients
Servings: servings
Units:
Ingredients
Servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
  1. Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan, season the lamb and brown over a high heat for 3-4 mins. Remove from the pan and set aside.
  2. In the same pan soften the onion for 2-3 mins, over a low heat, stirring occasionally.
  3. Sprinkle the flour over the onion, stir for 1 minute then add the stock. Stir well to remove any sediment from the bottom of the pan. Return the meat to the pan.
  4. Add the ale or stout, mustard and bouquet garni. Cover and leave to simmer for 1 hour on a very low heat.
  5. Stir through the carrots and biscuits. Cover and continue to cook for a further 30 mins. Adjust the seasoning if needed.
  6. Garnish with the parsley and serve with mashed potatoes

 

OTHER EASY LAMB RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
Pistachio & Orange Crusted Lamb #MiniRoast by Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary
Lamb Burning Love by Fab Food 4 All
Mamta Gupta’s Keema Meatball Curry by Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary
Greek Lamb Shepherd’s Pie with Feta Mash by Foodie Quine
Slow Cooked Shetland Lamb Casserole with Creamy Polenta by Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary
Moroccan Spiced Lamb Meatballs by How to Cook Good Food
Pastitsio – Greek Macaroni Pie by Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary

SHARING WITH SOME BLOGGING LINKIES
Recipe of the Week by A Mummy Too

SHOP THIS POST
Sjolmet Stout from the Valhalla Brewery
Essential Cuisine Lamb Stock
Speculaas Spice Mix from The Speculaas Spice Company
Whitbread Mackeson Cast Iron Bottle Opener (charity shop find – check eBay!)
ProWare Kitchen Copper TriPly 24 cm Saute Pan
Emma Bridgewater Market Deli Bowl
Round wooden chopping board (charity shop find)
Treble Clef Cutlery (charity shop find in Norway but link is similar)
Westside Cob from The Quernstone
Premier Potatoes from J.K. Mainlands, Shetland

This is a sponsored recipe post in collaboration with Lamb. Tasty, Easy, Fun. All thoughts and opinions expressed are our own. Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me to do what I love: mess up my kitchen and share recipe stories.

Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary

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Comments

  15. Every single post I read of yours inspires me. I love this sort of meal at this time of year! It’s such a great way to use up meat too – great recipe and of course as always great post x

    Reply

  19. I love warm hearty foods at this time of year. I never cook with lamb or ale, I’m definitely one of those that thinks it’s difficult and tend to just order it for sunday lunch when I’m out. But this sounds really simple and fun to do. I’m definitely going to experiment a lot more.

    Reply

  28. Wow I’d love to see the northern lights you’re so lucky. This dish looks so hearty, delicious, and perfect for the cold winter evenings. I’ve never heard of those speculoos biscuits before but they sound delicious!
    Emily recently posted…Sausage Stuffing BallsMy Profile

    Reply

  34. This looks like a hearty, warming meal for this time of year and brimming with meat, especially with the fussy eating kids going back for seconds. I’ve never cooked with ale before but y dad does with his meats x

    Reply

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