You will love this Pastichio Recipe

Since the start of this blog I have tried to consistently bring you recipes that my family eats and loves. With an emphasis on classic, well-loved dishes without fussy ingredients, like my fettuccine bolognese. 

They might make you feel like a chef right in your own home, but mostly, they’re just delicious.

You know I have an affinity for comforting baked pastas like my family’s Midwestern classic, lasagna recipe with cottage cheese, and it’s vegetarian cousin, vegetables lasagna.

And my taste buds often crave Greek flavors, so Greek chicken meatballs with Greek yogurt mashed potatoes are a dinner we make often, and my melomakarona recipe are our favorite Christmas cookie.

So add that all up, and what do you get? This Greek Lasagna, which is something I have been making for my family for years and years, but haven’t published on this blog until today.

“Made this for my boyfriend and I on date night. I was really worried because I have never made anything like the cream sauce before, and I am newly non-vegetarian so cooking meat is also fresh to me. It turned out EXACTLY like the picture and I’m so excited I get to eat the leftovers for the next few days. This is definitely going into my special occasion recipe rotation. Thank you for the great recipe!”

—Lara

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For me, there is no meal more decadent or special than lamb chops. I have a very fond memory of helping to make the banquet dinner for the graduating class of culinary students when I was in my first year of school.

I was in charge of searing lamb chops all night. At the end of the evening, there was a ton of food left over, and the instructors let us take home as much as we could carry. Jeff and I feasted on lamb chops and vegetable quiche and shrimp deviled eggs and big slices of vegetables lasagna all weekend and it was glorious.

While ground lamb makes it into more frequent meals like lamb tacos and lamb bolognese, chops are special. Especially lamb “lollipops” which are chops cut from a rack of lamb that has been “Frenched,” meaning all excess meat and fat has been trimmed off the exposed bones so they look extra pretty.

Today, I’ll teach you how to cook lamb lollipops, as well as make the best marinade and herby yogurt dipping sauce for them.

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When it comes to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with a meal, those of us who don’t love corned beef (except sometimes in corned beef egg rolls) don’t have a ton of options.

My colcannon soup is always tasty. And sure, we could just drown our sorrows in a beer charcuterie board and Baileys brownies, but you need something more than just cheese and brownies, right?

While my wine and cheese board can certainly make an argument for an entire meal based on cheese and alcohol, I have another idea.

This mini shepherd’s pie recipe is made in a muffin pan, producing perfectly portable, bite-sized versions of a classic St. Patrick’s Day meal.

If you’re attending a gathering this year, these would be perfect. No serving spoon needed, just grab them and enjoy!

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Something about this time of year makes tiny sandwiches just feel oh so right. Whether it’s leftover maple bourbon turkey on a dinner roll with cranberry sauce, or a slice of pineapple ham on a small piece of crusty baguette with salted butter, it just tastes great.

But sliders don’t have to be just a way to use up leftovers. They can be their own special, dare I say elegant, dish.

These lamb sliders start with a succulent roasted boneless leg of lamb generously rubbed with warming spices. The meat is put on a slider bun and dressed up with pickled radishes and pesto mayo.

Bookmark this lamb slider recipe for a party this festive season! You can also use leftover lamb from a holiday dinner to make these sliders.

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Other than Italians, I have a feeling that Midwesterners eat just about the most pasta per capita. Especially in the fall and winter, when it’s cold, damp and seems to start getting dark at about 2pm.

While I definitely try to sprinkle in lighter, non-pasta dinners like almond crusted chicken, Greek chicken meatballs, and shrimp fajitas, I do admit that noodles like salmon pasta make up a significant portion of our cravings during this time of year.

And while a pack of ground beef will always be on standby for meat sauce rigatoni or fettuccine bolognese, sometimes I like to change things up.

Just as ground lamb tacos are a unique twist on taco night and lamb sliders and lamb lollipops are elegant for a holiday appetizer, this lamb bolognese recipe will have you coming back for seconds with its rich, hearty, gourmet flavor.

The post Lamb Bolognese (The Best Lamb Pasta!) appeared first on Foxes Love Lemons.

It’s not unusual for us to have tacos twice a week. On Saturday, we’ll make the classic ground beef/cheddar/lettuce/tomato ones that I grew up eating every weekend.

But we have absolutely nothing against another taco night a few days later – maybe mushroom tacos for Meatless Monday or something different for Taco Tuesday.

What if that something different was ground lamb? It’s the star ingredient in my Greek layer dip and Greek lasagna, and also works quite well for tacos, too.

These spiced lamb tacos come together quickly using everyday ingredients like cumin and chili powder. They might convince you to have tacos multiple times a week, too!

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Where are we at when it comes to food served in jars? I feel like recipes like mason jar taco salads, and food of all kinds served in mason jars, really, was peak 2014 on Pinterest.

Since I started this blog in 2013 and also happened to love mason jars, many of my early “popular” recipes were mason jar-based.

Trends come and go, and over time, people began replacing mason jars with other, more updated ways of packing their lunches.

But now that we’re hyper aware of germs, shared utensils and social distancing, maybe the time is right for jars to make a comeback?

I can make a pretty solid argument for jarcuterie being the new charcuterie board. And today, I’m doing away with layered dips in big communal baking dishes and serving them in individual jars instead.

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One thing you might not know about me is that in addition to the recipes you see on this blog, I do quite a bit of freelance recipe development and food photography work.

This is where I create recipes and images and submit them directly to clients (food brands, mostly) for their use on websites, advertising, print materials, packaging, etc.

Once in awhile, I like to share projects I’m particularly proud of here on this blog, this lamb assignment being the latest. While people most often think of lamb for dinner, like in mini shepherd’s pie, it’s very versatile for appetizers, too.

This is a series of four lamb appetizers perfect for the holiday season that I created for a lamb client last month. Links to the full recipes are included below each image. I hope you enjoy!

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There’s an amazing Lebanese restaurant just up the street from my house. I often say that if I could afford it, I would eat ALL of my meals there, because I never seem to tire of the bright, fresh flavors.

This is the restaurant that turned me from a fresh mint hater into somebody who craves fresh mint, in the form of their mouthwatering tabbouleh.

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A few times a month, I assemble what I call a “platter dinner.” Sometimes it’s premeditated (like this one) and other times it’s literally just filling a big cutting board with all of the odds and ends I find around the kitchen, adding a bread basket and calling it a meal.

Either way, it’s one of my favorite ways to eat dinner. It’s low-stress, low-mess and a lot of fun.

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