Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Lamb Shanks - Slow Cooker

Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Lamb Shanks - Slow Cooker

4 large potatoes, peeled, cut into slices
2 lamb shanks
1t salt
1/2t black pepper
6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
4 sprigs rosemary
2T olive oil
1/2 cup white wine

1. Layer potatoes in the bottom of the slow cooker.

2. In a small bowl, mash the salt, pepper, garlic and rosemary together with a fork to form a paste. Rub all over the lamp. Heat the oil oil in a pan and brown the lamb on all sides. Put lamb shanks into the slow cooker on top of the potatoes. Pour the white wine in the pan and bring to the boil, scrap the pan to get off any pieces of meat from the bottom and pour over the meat and potatoes.

3. Cook approximately 8 hours on low.

Because I had a bit of time when I got home from work, I threw the potatoes and lamp shanks into the over at 200 degrees celcius for a half hour or so to crispen everything up too. Was a nice addition, especially for the potatoes. :)

 

“The Internet is the Petri dish of humanity. We can't control what grows in it, but we don't have to watch either.”

I try not to get too serious on my blog. I mostly write about recipes, ventures with crafts and DIY, outings and a proverbial shitload of photos of my kid and dog...but in the last week, I have had enough of online bickering and wanted somewhere to express  my loathing for keyboard warriors and late night facebook lurkers everywhere. More and more often I am disgusted by the human race in general, one only has to watch the news to see why. The online environment seems to amplify this much more. I guess people forget their manners? Either that, or there are a lot more assholes out there than I was banking on.

I watched a video over the weekend of Russel Brand talking about his beliefs on life. I'm not a spiritual person by any stretch (or at least I don't think I am), but on the most part, what he stands for here speaks to me. Be kind, speak love, give, be happy. Not much different from Ellen's beliefs on the subject, someone I also wholeheartedly agree with in principle - "be kind to one another". I wonder why people can't just do this. I love a good debate as much as the next person (probably more) but I don't want to personally attack someone's ideas or beliefs...especially online where it's there for the whole world to see, forever.

We teach our children to 'say something nice or say nothing at all', but we can't do it ourselves? Online, people seem to forget this altogether. Earlier this week, I was reading this article about a woman who has spent a lot of money making sure her rottweiler gets the healthcare it needs and some of the struggles she's going through to make it happen. It was written from the woman's perspective and not subjective at all - she wasn't calling attention to the fact the vet bills are huge, she wasn't asking for money to help her with the debt she'd put herself in when paying for the bills, it was just simply her story. After reading the story and thinking about what I would do in the same situation - I'm telling you now, there'd be huge arguments between Mr. Man and I about what 'the limit' on money would be to save our Jake.

I foolishly decided to keep scrolling down and have a read through the comments, perhaps other people had been through the same thing and had some advice, or at least some words of love and encouragement. But boy was I wrong. Although many of the comments were love and support on what a lovely person she was for doing this for her dog, the vast majority were not. Ranging from slagging off the vets for charging so much to condemning her spending 12k on a dog when there are starving children in the world. How irrelevant!

So now,  here I am ranting. Forgive me! It's only once in a while.

My advice? Be nice to people, face-to-face as well as online. Heck, especially online. What you say and do tells us more about the person you are than anything else. Make 'em good things. Oh, and especially when you're commenting on my blog. Lol

xox

Cheese and Onion Rolls

From what I'm told, these are Kiwi as in the South Island. Up here in Auckland I'd never heard from them, but, after having just devoured my spoils I'd have to say that they're pretty good.

Cheese and Onion Rolls

Packet of Maggi onion soup
1 cup evaporated milk
1 cup grated cheese
10- 12 slices of sandwich bread
2T butter

In a saucepan, stir together the soup mix and milk. Cook over a low heat, stirring constantly until thick.

Stir in the cheese. Do no return to the heat once cheese has been added as, if it boils the cheese will go stringy. Allow the mix to cool a little.

Butter one side of each slice of bread. Turn over and place, butter-side-down, preferably on a board. Spread about 2 tablespoons cooled cheese-and-onion mix on the unbuttered side.

Roll up and secure with a toothpick. Place on a baking paper lined try. Bake in an oven preheated to 200 degree celcius for 10-12 minutes or until golden and hot.

Enjoy!

Variations - you could add a slice of ham or chopped, cooked bacon to the spread prior to rolling. Scattering chopped olives or tomatoes would also be yummy!