Bookmarked For Death

Bram Stoker died on April 20, 1912 aged 64. After suffering a number of strokes, he died in his London home at St George’s Square. Stoker was cremated and his ashes are displayed at Golders Green Crematorium. The ashes of his son, Irving Noel Stoker, were later added to his urn. It was originally planned that the ashes of his wife, Florence Stoker, would also be added to the urn but her ashes were instead scattered in the Gardens of Rest at Golders Green Crematorium.

The first copy of Dracula I bought was The Essential Dracula by Radu Florescu and Raymond T. McNally (1979). I remember walking through a discount bookstore and seeing the bright red cover with a picture of Frank Langella as Dracula on it. The word “Dracula” in large black print sent a shiver down my spine. I grabbed a copy, grateful that it was within my price range. As soon as I got home I started reading. It was an annotated version, so I quickly flipped through the book to see the footnotes and photos that would explain the novel in detail. Dracula was a life-changing book. I’ve been reading and writing about it ever since.

When I started reading Dracula, I wasn’t expecting to be taken on a culinary journey through Transylvania. But, in a surprising twist, the first few chapters in the novel read like a travelogue as Jonathan Harker takes meticulous notes in his diary. Jonathan writes about the strange new lands he is travelling through, the unusual superstitions and customs of the locals, and the foreign food he eats. He makes detailed notes to let Mina know the names and ingredients of dishes he has enjoyed during his trip to Castle Dracula. Even after meeting the uncanny Dracula, Jonathan continues to make notes about the foods and drinks on offer at the Castle, gradually realising that he is also on the menu!

To honour Bram’s Death Day, and to pay tribute to a novel that has quenched many of my culinary thirsts, I’m making a fun cocktail. It’s inspired by an awesome collection of bookmarks I found on Etsy by Cara at Sonnet and Fable. Each bookmark contains ingredients for a cocktail with a literary pun twist such as The Pitcher of Dorian Grey Goose, Tender is the Nightcap, and a Rum of One’s Own. There is no surprise about which cocktail I’m making – Bramble Stoker! The fact they were sent from Cork in Ireland adds an extra delicious connection to my favourite Irish author. Naturally my recipe contains a few twists of my own. 🙂

A classic Bramble is a combination of gin, lemon juice, sugar syrup and a blackberry liqueur called Crème de Mûre poured over ice. It’s called a Bramble as blackberry bushes are called brambles. As I didn’t have Crème de Mûre, I substituted it with Chambord (raspberry liqueur) and added blackberry cordial. I also didn’t have sugar syrup so I used a honey syrup. I didn’t use ice as today has been particularly cold in Melbourne.

Bramblish Cocktail

Ingredients
4 parts gin
2 parts fresh lemon juice
1 part honey syrup
1 part Chambord
1 part blackberry cordial

Instructions
Mix together the gin, lemon juice and honey syrup.
Pour into a serving glass.
Slowly pour the Chambord over the top.
Repeat with the blackberry cordial.
Enjoy with a good book such as Dracula.

Sweet Tea For A Bloody Countess

August 21st is Elizabeth Bathory’s deathiversary. It’s also National Sweet Tea Day. When I realised this, I couldn’t help picturing Elizabeth sipping a sweet tea. Seeing as two of her epithets are the “Blood Countess” and “Countess Dracula”, maybe it isn’t sweet tea she is sipping.

Countess Elizabeth Bathory (born 7 August 1560 – died 21 August 1614) was a Hungarian noblewoman who was accused of torturing and murdering young girls. Bathory was eventually tried and convicted as a serial killer. She was imprisoned in her castle until her death. There is ongoing debate as to whether Elizabeth Bathory was a blood thirsty murderer or the victim of a witch hunt.

As a wealthy and influential landowner, there were many reasons to discredit her and take her land and power. This has led to questioning how the evidence brought against Bathory was gathered. Some testified that they had not seen her commit crimes but had heard stories about her while the eyewitness accounts from Bathory’s servants were mostly gained through torture. The enduring tales of her drinking and bathing in the blood of virgins to retain her youth appear to have been written after her death. Whether guilty or innocent of these crimes, Elizabeth Bathory has lived on in folklore, especially in vampire mythology.

And now onto something sweeter than blood – Sweet Tea!
National Sweet Tea Day is a day to enjoy the pleasures of a refreshing glass of iced sweet tea. The difference between sweet tea and iced tea is that sweetener is added to the tea at the time of brewing. National Iced Tea Day is celebrated on June 10.

To celebrate National Sweet Tea Day, I’ll be enjoying a sweetened Earl Grey tea. To pay tribute to the contribution Elizabeth Bathory has made to vampire mythology, I’ll be adding a slice of blood orange. It won’t be chilled either as I believe that tea, like blood, should be served warm.

Happy Drinking!

Stately Ghosts

April 20th is Bram Stoker’s Death Day. This year marks the 110th year since the Dracula author passed away. To honour the memory of one of my favourite writers, I went on another Lantern Ghost Tour.

The Eynesbury Homestead Dinner and Ghost Tour usually takes place once a month on a Friday night. I had originally booked a tour for Friday the 13th in August 2021, but sadly had to postpone it. I rescheduled it for April 15th which was close to Bram Stoker’s deathiversary and also Good Friday. I loved doing a ghost tour on a day dedicated to death, blood and resurrection. The fact that it was also a full moon added to the magic!

With the moon lighting our way, our guide took us for a walk through the property, pointing out places of historical and ghostly significance. The stories were gruesome as our guide told of those who’d died so long ago, and the stories of the ghosts who remain. The abandoned meat room, with meat hooks that sometimes swing on their own, was pretty creepy. The outdoors fully explored, it was time to go inside.

As we entered the first room – the former sitting room, I was drawn to one section in particular. I wasn’t surprised when the guide told us that’s where they placed the coffin for a wake or vigil. The deceased would be displayed in the family home for a few days to make sure they were truly dead. In a time when it was difficult to ascertain death, a wake was literally giving the deceased time to wake up before burial.

I loved the stories our guide told us as they really brought to life the house and the family who built it. Sadly, most of the house has now been transformed into a restaurant at the cost of some of its historical charm – a mixture of Victorian and Georgian styles reflecting its late 19th century origins. The exception was the snooker room, which was decorated with original furnishings and even wall paper. It brought out the historical feel, including a full sized snooker table so heavy that it had sunk into the floor and had to be reinforced! Overall though, the fact that the house is displayed as a restaurant, and not a stately home takes away some of its spirit, but it’s still worth visiting.

There is a collection of antique dolls but, devastatingly, they were not on display. Apparently they have been banished to the cellar for being too creepy. We couldn’t go in the cellar, but I did take photos, hoping to see the creepy dolls. Sadly they were out of view so I didn’t get to see them.

To console myself I went home and played with my not so creepy Dracula dolls.

Death By Crumble

This year I thought I would commemorate Bram Stoker’s April 20th Deathiversary by exploring Quincey P. Morris, an important but often overlooked character in Dracula.

Quincey P. Morris is a young, rich American from Texas. He’s a larrikin who carries a bowie knife. He has travelled and had many adventures and is a bit rough and ready. He loves using American slang when he is with friends but is also a gentleman with impeccable manners. Quincey is close friends with both Arthur Holmwood and Dr Seward. All three are in love with Lucy Westenra and all three propose to her. Although Lucy chooses Arthur, Dr Seward and Quincey remain loyal and devoted friends to both Arthur and Lucy. When Lucy is bitten by Dracula, Arthur, Dr Seward and Quincey join forces with Abraham Van Helsing to try and save her life. Sadly they fail and Lucy becomes one of the undead and is eventually staked by Arthur.

The Dracula Tarot

When Mina Harker becomes the next target of Dracula, Arthur, Dr Seward, Quincey and Abraham Van Helsing join forces with Mina and her husband Jonathan Harker, to do battle with Dracula for the life and soul of Mina. After mighty struggles and an arduous journey to Transylvania, Mina watches as Jonathan and Quincey fight a band of gypsies protecting the fleeing Dracula. As they fight their way towards Dracula’s crate, Quincey is stabbed by one of the gypsies. Undeterred, Quincey makes it to Jonathan’s side and together they pry open Dracula’s crate. A horrified Mina watches as Jonathan slits Dracula’s throat and Quincey stabs Dracula in the heart with his bowie knife. Dracula’s body crumbles and disappears before their eyes. A dying Quincey watches as the symbol of Mina’s corruption, a wafer burn scar on her forehead, vanishes. He dies a happy man knowing that Mina’s soul is restored.

The Dracula Tarot

On the anniversary of Quincey’s death, Mina gives birth to a son. Quincey Harker has a bundle of names that link all the vampire hunters together but they call him Quincey in honour of his ultimate sacrifice. Quincey P. Morris is in many ways the true hero of Dracula. As a big fan of Quincey, I’m happy that his name and spirit live on.

To pay tribute to Stoker’s fascinating yet underrated character, I was considering making a Texas Funeral Cake. This way I could honour Quincey’s Texan heritage, and also enjoy a chocolate sheet cake topped with chocolate frosting and pecans. But as I thought of Quincey, I couldn’t help thinking of quinces. The name play being too tantalising for me, I started working out how I could add quince jam or paste to a Texas Funeral Cake. As I pondered whether to add quince to the cake batter, the cooked cake, or add it to the frosting, the thought hit me that as Dracula dies he crumbles. My mind then went straight to a Quince Crumble! 

The joy of using fresh quinces is that, as they cook, an amazing alchemical process takes place and the white flesh slowly transforms to a reddish pink colour. Watching the quince change colour naturally makes me think of blood, which is so appropriate for a recipe honouring the deaths of the author of, and a character in, a vampire novel! I’m sure Bram will enjoy my playful take on Quincey’s role in Dracula’s crumbly end. 🙂

Quincey’s Crumble

Ingredients
750g quinces, peeled, cored and quartered
1/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 + 1/4 cups plain flour
175g unsalted butter, diced and chilled
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions
Place the quince in a medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat.
Add the caster sugar, vanilla extract and enough water to just cover the fruit.
Bring to the boil then simmer for 3 – 4 hours or until the quince have turned a pinkish red.
Preheat the oven to 180C / 350F.
Add the flour and chilled butter to a medium sized bowl. Using your fingertips, rub the mixture together until you form large crumbs.
Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and mix through until combined.
Spoon the quince into a baking dish, leaving behind any excess liquid.
Sprinkle the crumble topping over the fruit.
Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes or until the crumble is golden brown.
Serve with cream, ice cream or custard.

Marmalade And Mayhem

When my 50th Anniversary Edition of Traditional Macedonian Recipes arrived, I couldn’t wait to to see what tasty offerings it contained. I was happy to see some familiar treats like Chicken and Baked Rice (Kokoshka Sus Oris), Egg Custard Banista (Mletchneek) and Lenten Crepes with Garlic Sauce (Posnee Peetoolee Sus Tulchen Luk). These recipes brought back happy memories and took me on a culinary journey through my childhood.

Traditional Macedonian Recipes was originally published in 1969 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by the St. George’s Macedono-Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church and Ladies’ Section Mara Buneva. I was intrigued by who Mara Buneva was and, after a quick search, I discovered a female revolutionary who is as fascinating and divisive as the Balkans themselves.    

photo from Wikipedia

Mara Buneva was a Macedonian Bulgarian revolutionary. She was born in 1902 in Tetovo which was then a Vilayet of Kosovo in the Ottoman Empire and is now part of North Macedonia. After the Serbian annexation of Tetovo, Buneva moved to Bulgaria. She studied at Sofia University and married a Bulgarian officer. They divorced in 1926. Buneva then joined the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) in Sofia.

In 1927 she returned to Skopje and opened a store. When members of the Macedonian Youth Secret Revolutionary Organization were arrested and sentenced to long-term imprisonment, IMRO ordered the execution of Serbian official, Velimir Prelić.   

On January 13th, 1928, (ironically Friday the 13th), Mara Buneva assassinated Velimir Prelić. After shooting Prelić, Buneva committed suicide by shooting herself. Prelić died a few days later in hospital. Buneva was buried by Serbian police in an unknown place.

Buneva is viewed by some as a traitor and terrorist while others celebrate her as a heroine and martyr, fighting for the freedom of Macedonia. Attempts to place a commemorative plaque at the place where she died have failed as they are destroyed not long after they are erected. I don’t know if there is one there now, however, there is a wax figure of Buneva in the Museum of the Macedonian Struggle. 

While I’ve only explored the tip of the iceberg in relation to the controversies and legacies surrounding Mara Buneva, it’s a journey I’m eager to pursue. And speaking of icebergs, Buneva Point in Antarctica is named after Mara Buneva.

To celebrate my discovery of another controversial revolutionary woman, I thought I would make one of the cakes from Traditional Macedonian Recipes. To honour Mara Buneva’s deathiversary, I’ve chosen the Marmalade Cake, which is a special Lenten recipe and contains no fats, dairy or eggs. Thankfully it contains lots of flavour! 

Marmalade Cake

Ingredients
1/2 cup oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)
1 cup marmalade
1 cup water
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
zest of 1 orange
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions
Preheat oven to 180C / 350F.
Line a 20cm (8inch) square baking pan with baking paper.
Mix together the oil, marmalade, water, walnuts and orange peel in a bowl.
Sift in the dry ingredients.
Mix until combined.
Pour into prepared pan.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes before removing and cutting into squares.
Can be eaten warm or cold.

A Biscuit Story

April 25th is Anzac Day in Australia and New Zealand. It was originally a day to honour members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who served in the Gallipoli Campaign, which was the ANZAC’s first engagement in World War I. Today it is commemorated as a national day of remembrance for both Australians and New Zealanders who have served in war or other conflicts, to remember the sacrifices of those who served and honour those who died.

One way of commemorating Anzac Day is by baking Anzac biscuits. There are two stories explaining how these sweet biscuits (cookies) became associated with Anzac Day. The first one claims that the biscuits were sent to soldiers abroad as they wouldn’t spoil during transportation. The second story is that Anzac biscuits were sold as a way of fundraising for the war and eaten by Australians and New Zealanders at home. Whichever story is true, one thing that is not in dispute is the fact that Anzac biscuits are sweet and delicious.

Anzac biscuits also come with a legal warning! The term “Anzac” is protected by law in Australia, especially for commercial purposes, and cannot be used without permission from the Minister for Veteran Affairs. Happily there is a general exemption granted for Anzac biscuits but you must follow two rules. Firstly, the biscuits must remain true to the recipe which contains oats, flour, coconut, baking soda, butter, sugar and golden syrup. Secondly they must be called biscuits and not under any circumstances be called cookies. Here is my version of Anzac biscuits which, for taste reasons as well as legal ones, stays very close to the original recipe. 🙂

Anzac Biscuits

 

Ingredients
1/2 cup flour, sifted
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup sugar (granulated)
pinch of sea salt
60g (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
1/2 tablespoon golden syrup
1 tablespoon boiling water
1/4 teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate)

Instructions
Preheat oven to 170C / 340F.
Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
Mix together the flour, oats, coconut, sugar and salt in a bowl.
Melt the butter and golden syrup in a saucepan.
Mix together the water and baking soda.
Pour the baking soda mix into the melted butter, being careful as it may bubble up.
Pour the butter mix into the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
Drop tablespoonfuls of batter onto prepared trays.
Gently press on them with your hand. The thinner they are, the crunchier they will be and the less cooking time they will need.
Bake for 10 – 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool for 5 minutes on the tray before placing on a wire rack to cool completely.

For The Blood Is The Life

There are three interesting events coming up – National Bat Appreciation Day, Orthodox Easter and Bram Stoker’s Deathiversary.

April 17th is National Bat Appreciation Day, a day when we are asked to remember the important role bats play in our lives. Bats are insectivores, which means they eat insects which helps keep insect numbers down. This is especially critical with mosquitoes. Bats are also pollinators which means they move pollen from male to female flowers which helps bring about fertilisation, thereby providing a vital link in our food chain. There are heaps of other interesting facts about bats and April 17th is a great day to learn more about them.

This year April 17th is also Orthodox Good Friday. This doesn’t happen every year so it’s a fun coincidence. Orthodox Easter Monday will be celebrated on April 20th which is also Dracula author Bram Stoker’s Deathiversary – another fun coincidence. Perhaps a more disturbing coincidence is that all three events have a blood connection.

While my favourite bat is the fluffy and cuddly Australian flying fox, I’ve always been fascinated by the cute and uncanny vampire bat. Vampire bats are connected to vampires, not only in name, but also by being blood suckers! There are other connections too as the vampire’s cape is reminiscent of bats wings and some vampires are depicted as sleeping upside down like bats rather than in coffins. Dracula can also turn into a bat when necessary. With all the competing Easter traditions such as bunnies and chocolate eggs, it is easy to forget that Easter is actually a celebration focussing on blood, death and rebirth. 

To celebrate this trilogy of bloody connections I’ve made dyed red Easter eggs – with a twist! Colouring eggs red is meant to represent the blood of Christ which is shed on Good Friday. I’ve used red wine to colour my eggs as red wine is symbolic of blood in Christian rituals. (Knowing this connection it always amused me that Bela Lugosi’s Dracula never drank wine.) I’ve also added spices, which symbolise the spices that Jesus’ body was anointed with before burial. The eggshell represents the tomb and the egg signifies rebirth. An Easter tradition I grew up with was the egg cracking game where you try to crack the shell of your opponent’s boiled egg without cracking yours! Because I’m not a traditionalist, I had to break the rules by cracking shells and turning them into Chinese marbled eggs. But don’t worry, there are still some unbroken eggs to play with. 🙂

Red Wine Eggs

Ingredients
6 eggs
1 bottle red wine
1/2 teaspoon sugar
4 cloves
2 star anise
2 cinnamon sticks

Instructions
Place the eggs, wine, sugar, cloves, star anise and cinnamon sticks in a saucepan, making sure the eggs are fully submerged in liquid.
Cover and bring to a boil.
Once boiling, turn off the heat and allow the eggs to cook for 15 minutes.
Remove half the eggs from the saucepan and allow to rest until cool enough to touch. Gently tap them with the back of a spoon to crack shells, making sure to keep the shell intact. The deeper the cracks, the more flavour will penetrate.
Place the eggs back in the wine with the remaining eggs.
Allow to cool then refrigerate and steep for a few hours or overnight.
Remove the eggs from the wine and allow to dry.
Peel the cracked eggs to show off their marbling.
Use the remaining eggs to play the cracking game.

Wake The Dead Cake

Saturday the 20th of April is Bram Stoker’s 107th deathiversary. To celebrate, I thought I would play around with a recipe from one of my favourite cookbooks – Death Warmed Over by Lisa Rogak. This cookbook is a collection of recipes and customs from different countries and religions around the world with a common theme of death. The recipe I have chosen is an Irish Wake Cake, in honour of Bram who was born in Ireland on the 8th of November, 1847.

Irish Wake Cake

 

Ingredients
for the cake
1/2 cup dried currants
1/2 cup mixed peel*
1 + 3/4 cups flour
1 + 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
170g (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
80g (3oz) cream cheese, room temperature
2/3 cup buttermilk

for the glaze
1/2 cup icing (powdered) sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons brewed black tea**

Instructions
Preheat oven to 160C / 325F.
Line a 22cm (9inch) loaf pan with baking paper.
Place the currants and mixed peel in a small bowl.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt in another bowl.
Add 1/4 cup of the flour mix to the dried fruit and toss until the fruit is coated in flour.
Place the butter, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl and, using an electric mixer, beat until fluffy.
Add the eggs one a time and beat until combined.
Add the cream cheese and beat until combined.
Add 1/3rd of the flour mixture and 1/3rd of the buttermilk to the batter and mix until combined. Repeat with remaining flour and buttermilk.
Add the dried fruit and mix until combined.
Pour batter into prepared baking pan.
Bake for 1 hour and 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before placing on a wire rack placed over a tray.
Make the glaze by combining the icing sugar and tea together in a bowl.
Drizzle the glaze over the warm cake and allow to cool completely before serving.

*the original recipe just uses currants. I substituted half the currants for mixed peel as I like the flavour and texture.
**the original icing is a lemon icing. I substituted the lemon juice with black tea as I was curious to see how it would taste and used Earl Grey to compliment the citrus notes of the mixed peel.

Food For Death

Bram Stoker died 106 years ago on April 20th, 1912. Many of us will never forget this great writer nor the amazing works and characters he created.

My recipe for this year’s deathiversary is inspired by a traditional dish called funeral potatoes, an American comfort food casserole that is often brought to gatherings held after funerals. There are many variations but the key ingredients are potatoes, cheese, onion, sour cream, a canned cream based soup and a crunchy topping. It is easy to prepare, travels well and is easily reheated.

My funeral potatoes are a very different dish and are inspired by Dracula’s immortal line “I Never Drink … Wine.” Although these words never appeared in Bram Stoker’s novel, they were uttered by the equally unforgettable Bela Lugosi in Tod Browning’s 1931 movie Dracula. Baked in red wine and olive oil and flavoured with rosemary, the herb of remembrance, these versatile potatoes can be eaten hot from the oven or cold from the refrigerator. I find the flavour of the wine is more pronounced when they are eaten at room temperature.

Served with sour cream you’ll want to make them for all occasions – not just funerals!    

Funeral Potatoes with Red Wine & Rosemary

Ingredients
1kg potatoes
1 cup red wine – split in two
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
sprigs of fresh rosemary
sour cream for serving

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200C / 400F.
Peel then chop the potatoes in half and then in quarters.
Place in a baking tray in a single layer.
Pour over 1/2 cup of red wine, reserving the other 1/4 cup for later.
Pour over the oil.
Add the dried rosemary and salt.
Toss together until combined.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and flip them over.
Pour over the remaining 1/2 cup of wine.
Return to the oven and bake for another 15 – 20 minutes or until they are cooked to your liking.
Drain on paper towels and allow to cool.
Place in an airtight container and add some sprigs of fresh rosemary.
Refrigerate until needed.
Allow them to come to room temperature before serving.
Serve with sour cream.

Bram Stew

I hope Bram Stoker isn’t going to turn over in his grave when he sees what I have chosen to make for his 105th Deathiversary (Thursday the 20th April) – deconstructed Irish Stew! It’s not the first time I’ve dabbled with deconstructing a classic recipe for Bram. I celebrated one of his birthdays by making a dessert version of an Irish Coffee.

So how do you deconstruct an Irish Stew? First, you have to have an idea of what deconstruction means in cookery terms. Basically, it is the art of looking at all the ingredients in a recipe, reimagining them in some way, and then putting them together again. The key is to make a dish that reminds you of the original, especially in flavour, and remains true to the essence of the dish. How you do this is where the artistry and the confusion comes in.

With that in mind there are a few ways of deconstructing a stew. I have chosen to stick with a basic stew but have taken the lamb out of the dish. Isn’t that just a vegetable stew? Yes, except I am still serving the lamb but in a different form. My aim is to deconstruct only part of the dish. The essence of a stew for me is a piping hot combination of hearty ingredients cooked to perfection in a tasty sauce. The reason I am taking out the lamb is because I don’t particularly like lamb. The only way I eat lamb is as crumbed cutlets. So, when I thought about making an Irish Stew for Bram, I couldn’t help but think of a dish of piping hot vegetables with succulent and crispy crumbed lamb cutlets served on the side. I hope you and Bram enjoy my reworking of this classic dish.

Deconstructed Irish Stew

Note:
Start preparing the lamb cutlets once you have the stew simmering.

For the Irish Stew
Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
4 medium potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
3 tablespoons plain flour
1 cup of Irish beer
1 cup of  chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.
Add the onion, carrots and potatoes and cook for a few minutes.
Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables. Stir so they are all coated in flour.
Stir in the beer and stock. Add water if needed until the vegetables are just covered.
Bring to boil then reduce heat to a simmer.
Cook for 1 hour or until the vegetables are tender.
Check the liquid level during the cooking process. The vegetables should be covered at all times. Add more beer, stock or water as needed.
Once cooked, taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.
Keep warm while you cook the lamb cutlets.

For the Lamb Cutlets
Ingredients
1/4 cup plain flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
6 lamb cutlets, French trimmed
olive oil for shallow frying

Instructions
Mix flour and salt on a plate. Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Place the breadcrumbs on another plate.
Flatten the cutlets between plastic wrap with a meat mallet.
Working with one cutlet at a time, coat cutlet in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in the beaten egg. Dip in the breadcrumbs, pressing firmly to coat. Repeat with remaining cutlets.
Cover and refrigerate until the stew is ready and is being kept warm.
Pour enough oil to cover the base of a large frying pan. Heat over medium heat.
Working in batches, cook the cutlets for 3-5 minutes each side or until they are golden brown and cooked to your liking.
Drain on paper towels before serving.

If you would like to keep the stew vegetarian, substitute vegetable stock for the chicken stock.