Down-under tucker

`I SHALL entice them to eat me speedily.' The writer of these words was St Ignatius of Antioch who had been condemned to death for his faith and was about to be thrown into the arena with the wild beasts. `I pray they will be prompt with me,' he continued — let's hope they were. It is his feast-day on 17 October; on the 18th, St Luke's, patron saint of artists; and the 19th is the day of St John de Brebeuf and Companions who were the first Jesuit mis- sionaries to Canada and North America. Their area was from Nova Scotia to Mary- land, but they were captured and vilely tortured to death by the Red Indians who didn't care for their interference — this was from 1642-49. Their deaths occurred in Auriesville, New York. What a tale.

Let us therefore go to the antipodes for our refreshment. Here is a nice way of cooking the relatively cheap New Zealand lamb which has a very good flavour — but do thaw it out completely.

Autumn braised leg of lamb

31/2 lb leg New Zealand lamb

1 teaspoon thy English mustard 1 teaspoon ground ginger salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon plain flour 2 leeks, sliced 2 carrots, sliced 4 medium potatoes, quartered

1/2 pint cider

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

Mix together the mustard, ginger, flour and salt and pepper to taste. Rub all over the lamb, pressing it in. Preheat the oven to Gas 5, 190C, 375F. Put all the vegetables into a large covered casserole or roasting- tin big enough to take the lamb. Pour in the cider and add the sprigs of rosemary. Place the leg of lamb on top of the vegetables, cover with a tight-fitting lid or foil and roast for one hour. Uncover and return to the oven at the same temperature until ten- der and depending on how pink you like it. Another quarter of an hour for really pink, half an hour for just pink, and a whole hour for thoroughly cooked through, which I do not recommend. Place on a nice warm charger with the vegetables and juices around it. From Australia, we get this most deli- cious pie which should or could be made the day before to enable the carving of it.

Baked egg and spinach pie with pancetta

1 medium onion 13 oz blanched spinach 12 eggs 13 oz cottage cheese 8 oz sour cream 4 oz grated cheddar cheese 2 teaspoons sea salt 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon oil 16 slices pancetta or streaky bacon

Preheat the oven to Gas 4, 350F, 180C. Butter and then line with baking-paper a 8-10-inch round cake tin. Peel and finely dice the onion. Squeeze the spinach dry and chop it roughly. Break the eggs into a large bowl and mix together just enough to break them up, but don't beat. Add the cot- take cheese, sour cream, grated cheese, salt and pepper; then add the spinach and onion. Combine thoroughly. Pour the mix- ture into the prepared tin and place in the middle of the oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes until the pie is fairly firm when you shake the tin. Remove from the oven and let it cool. When cold, cover with cling-film and refrigerate overnight or until well chilled, as it is impossible to slice when warm. Remove from the refrigerator and carefully turn the pie out. Slice it into wedges. Pre- heat the oven to Gas 2, 300F, 150C. Place the pie wedges on a non-stick baking-tray and cover them with foil. Place them in the oven to warm through for about 10 min- utes. Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the pancetta or bacon until it is crisp. Drain on kitchen paper. To serve, place the warmed pie on warmed plates and top with the pancetta. This is very good eaten with

Roast tomatoes

12 ripe tomatoes

5 fluid oz best olive oil

11/2 fluid oz balsamic vinegar freshly ground black pepper Preheat the oven to Gas 2, 300F, 150C. Halve the tomatoes horizontally and place them on a baking-tray. Roast for 1 hour. Mix the oil and vinegar together. Take the tomatoes out of the oven and sprinkle with the oil and vinegar mixture. Grind the pep- per over them, then return to the oven for another hour or until the tomatoes are soft and caramelised around the edges. These tomatoes will keep for at least a week in the refrigerator. Store them covered with olive oil in a sealed container. A good thing to have up your sleeve at any time. Try to get the best-flavoured tomatoes you can buy. Another good thing to have with the pie would be some splendid mushrooms.

Jennifer Paterson