you could make mint oil, add equal amounts of mint leaves and oil into the food processor and chop fine, Use this in your cake recipes, brownies, breads, etc. mix it with other herbs and make a pesto, you can strain it and make it into a bread dipping oil. refrigerate any leftovers, it keeps almost forever. steep mint and other herbs in wine vinegar, do not boil. my favorite is orange mint, orange zest, thai hot peppers, and lemon thyme, with a bit of ginger root. add a bit of sugar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and concentrated orange juice and use it for a chicken maranade. mint is excellent with lamb. use it in a salad 3 tomatoes chopped 1 med onion chopped 1 bunch or large handfull of mint, chopped 5-8 green onions or scallions, thinly sliced juice of 2 lemons salt put all ingredients in a bowl and chill for an hour, serve with grilled chicken or fish Tomato soup with couscous 2 Tbs olive oil 1 onion chopped 1-2 carrots diced 14 oz can italian chopped tomatoes 6 garlic cloves chopped 6 1/4 cup veggie or chicken stock 1 1/2 cup couscous, or alphabet noodles 2-3 sprigs mint chopped 1/4 tsp ground cumin 1/4 bunch cilantro cayene pepper to taste salt and pepper cook the onion and carrots in oil of about 10 minutes until softened add the tomatoes, half the garlic, stock, couscous, mint, coriander and spices bring to boil add remaining garlic and simmer for 7- 10 minutes until couscous is just tender serve hot Chopped Veggie Salad 1 each red, green, and yellow bell pepper seeded, and diced 1 carrot diced 1 cucumber diced 6 tomatoes, diced, I prefer romas 3 garlic cloves chopped fine 3 green onions or scallions sliced thin 2 Tbs chopped cilantro 2 Tbs each chopped dill, parsley, and mint 1 hot pepper chopped fine 3-4 Tbs olive oil juice of 1 lemon salt and pepper to taste add all ingredients, toss, and serve chilled mint can also be added to any green salad

Herbs which go in/with lamb: Basil, Bay, Caraway, Cinnamon, Coriander, Cumin, Dill, Garlic, Ginger, Lemon balm, Horseradish, Hyssop, Marjoram, Mint, Onion, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Saffron, Sage, Savory, Tarragon, Thyme. There are many more, and it's a matter of personal preference. I quite like a roast leg of lamb which is cooked with lavender instead of rosemary. Just lay the sprigs on and around the roast. Also look around for Moroccan dishes, or other Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dishes, including Greek. Just a few non-mint ways of serving lamb for you: Anise Hyssop Sauce 3 tablespoons powdered sugar 1/2 cup cider vinegar 1/2 cup water 1/2 cup coarsely chopped anise hyssop leaves and florets Combine sugar, vinegar and water in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and add the chopped herb and boil very briefly. Remove from heat and allow to steep for 30 minutes. Pour through a strainer, pressing against the pulp with a wooden spoon. Serve with roast lamb or veal. Lemongrass Lamb Chop on Sauteed Choy Sum For each lamb chop: 1 teaspoon lemongrass, finely chopped 1 teaspoon soy sauce 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon garlic, minced salt to taste Mix ingredients to create dry rub for each lamb chop. Marinate lamb chop overnight. Pan fry to desired taste. Souvlakia 2 onions 3 green capsicums 2-3kg leg of lamb, boned and cubed 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled 1/2 cup olive oil 3 bay leaves 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 3 garlic cloves, minced juice of 2 lemons 1 cup dry white wine 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 6 tomatoes, quartered Cut onions into quarters and separate layers. Cut capsicums into quarters, and cut each quarter in half. Combine all ingredients, except tomatoes, in a shallow roasting pan, mixing well so that meat is completely coated. Marinate in refrigerator for several hours. Take out of refrigerator and let sit out about 20 minutes to come to room temperature. Before cooking, add tomatoes to marinade and mix well to coat with juices. Place meat cubes on skewers, alternating with capsicum pepper slices, onion slices, and tomato wedges. Lay skewers in pan with marinade, turning several times. Put skewered lamb on a rack over pan containing marinade and place under preheated griller. Turn several times during cooking and baste with marinade from pan. Cooking time depends on your taste. For medium rare allow about 15-18 minutes. Alternatively you can barbecue lamb using marinade as the basting sauce. Serve skewers on plates with rice pilaf. Swedish Roast Lamb 1.5-2kg leg of lamb salt and pepper 1 cup strong coffee 1/4 cup cream 1 teaspoon sugar water 1 1/2 tablespoons redcurrant jelly Rub salt and pepper into the flat surface of the lamb. Roast at 180°C for 50 minutes per kilo plus an extra 25 minutes. After an hour, pour in the coffee, which has been mixed with the cream and sugar. Baste the lamb occasionally during remaining cooking time. Transfer lamb to a platter and keep hot. Skim fat from the pan juices, add enough water to make a gravy from the remaining drippings. When the gravy has boiled and reduced until thickened, add the redcurrant jelly. Horseradish Leg of Lamb 1 leg of lamb, boned, butterflied 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons horseradish 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning, crushed 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper Preheat oven to 150°C. Pierce lamb generously with fork. In a non-metal baking dish, combine vinegar, horseradish, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Coat all sides of lamb in marinade, then place roast flat; spoon any remaining marinade into center of meat. Roll up meat from short side to make a 25cm long roll, 12cm wide. Tie meat several times along length of roll with string. Place rolled lamb into a baking pan. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until done as desired, brushing with pan juices every 30 minutes. Remove from oven; let cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove string; place roll on serving platter. Cut into 1cm slices to serve. Grilled Lamb Cutlets with Herbs 1 clove garlic salt and pepper to taste 2 small shallots, finely chopped 1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary 4 sprigs dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon ground sumac juice of 1 lemon 60ml extra-virgin olive oil 8 double lamb cutlets Crush the garlic with the salt, then combine with the pepper, shallot, herbs, sumac and lemon juice in a bowl. Whisk in the oil to make a thick, pungent dressing. Heat a griddle or barbecue to its highest setting. Brush the cutlets very lightly with a little of the dressing, then cook for 2 minutes on each side for medium-rare. Towards the end of the cooking time brush on a little more of the dressing. Serve the cutlets hot from the grill with the remaining dressing on the side. Sweet Spicy Moroccan Lamb 4 lamb steaks, diced 1 teaspoon allspice 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 medium onion, diced 1 cup vegetable stock 1/2 teaspoon cumin 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 eggplant, cut into 1cm cubes 1 carrot, sliced 5 dried apricots, diced 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 teaspoon paprika In a flame-proof casserole dish, heat the oil, then add the lamb and brown. Add the allspice, ground ginger, cinnamon and paprika, combining well to ensure the meat is coated in the spices. Add onion, garlic, vegetable stock, eggplant and carrot, then cover and cook for 20 minutes or until tender. Add lemon juice and apricots, stir through and serve. Lamb Chops with Herbs 4 lean lamb chops 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 2 tablespoons minced fresh chives 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped Trim fat from lamb chops; sprinkle with pepper. Combine chives, parsley and rosemary; press herb mixture on each side of chops. Coat a non-stick frypan with cooking spray, place over medium heat until hot. Add lamb chops, and cook for 10 minutes on each side or until desired doneness. Rosemary, Lemon and Mustard Lamb Cutlets 1/4 cup white wine 1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary 2 tablespoons lemon juice 12 lamb cutlets, French trimmed 600g orange sweet potato, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces olive oil spray 2 teaspoons olive oil 100g baby spinach leaves 1 small red onion, thinly sliced Whisk together the wine, mustard, rosemary and 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a glass or ceramic bowl. Add the lamb and turn to coat. Cover and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to marinate. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 200°C. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Place the sweet potato, in a single layer, on the lined tray. Lightly spray with olive oil spray. Season with pepper. Roast, turning once, for 30 minutes or until sweet potato is tender and golden. Preheat a barbecue grill or chargrill on high. Lightly spray both sides of the lamb with oil spray. Cook on grill for 2 minutes each side for medium or until cooked to your liking. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil. Set aside for 5 minutes to rest. Combine the oil and remaining lemon juice in a jug. Combine the sweet potato, spinach and onion in a bowl. Drizzle over dressing. Toss to combine. Divide the lamb and salad among serving plates. Serve immediately.

I feel the same way (about using cinnamon in a savory dish) but I didn't use my stronger cinnamons. I used the regular cinnamon from the supermarket and it blended in with the other spices. The marinade set aside that eventually goes into the yogurt sauce makes it taste so good. Hope you like it! Ann

Thanks for all your suggestions. The theme idea is good. I'll be doing a marinade late this afternoon so will make the final decision then. I usually make my own mixes (couldn't see the Nandos and others didn't appeal) so I have a good range of most ingredients necessary. I'll be having a few vegies on the BBQ as well as some salads and of course have to have the usual favourites of pavlova, trifle & rich, creamy homemade ice-cream and fresh fruit salad so have to make sure we leave room for that. We rarely have desserts so they are a treat for us. Once again thanks for the suggestions (and laughter - flying chooks!) and I hope you all have a safe and happy Christmas & New Year.