A cultural exchange

The weekend following the family meals we had another kind of sharing meal.  This time a sharing of recipes and ingredients.  We have visited the home of Georgian friends and we are always served  this amazing Georgian bread called khachapuri.  I wanted to try this at home so our friend came over to teach me and in return I gave her my sourdough culture and the instructions to make bread.  I have had this culture now for four years and I have nurtured it through extended holidays.  It provides me with one or two loaves of delicious bread every week.  I have shared this culture with some of you and it has not ended well   Hands up who still has the culture.  No, I thought as much.
I digress. Khachapuri.  This is a delicious Georgian cheese bread which will be served at any Georgian festive table.  It is not a precise recipe so if you want to try it let me know and I can talk you through what I know.  Essentially make a dough with yoghurt, eggs, a pinch of soda, a little oil and as much flour as you need to make a soft elastic dough. Once you have such a dough you could refrigerate for an hour or so and prepare the filling.  In Georgia they usually use a Georgian cheese called suluguni.  We used 50/50 mozzarella and cottage cheese and a beaten egg.
Take a fist sized chunk of dough and roll on a floured surface into a round that will fit in a 30cm non stick frying pan.  Put the cheese in the centre and bring the edges to the centre in a magical way that you need to see. Fry on both sides until it is done. 
We had another couple for dinner as well and for aperitif I made a delicious smoked fish pate served with thinly sliced grilled sourdough. We did the lamb leg again but this time in the kettle barbeque which was wonderful.  Sear directly over the charcoal on both sides for 5 minutes then cook indirectly for up to an hour or till done to your liking.  I then realised that our other guests were Greek and I did not want to present Greek style food that wasn't really.  I didn't bother with the tzatziki and served the quinoa salad instead of the Greek salad but I thought the skordalia went so well with the lamb that we did that and were not going to mention the word.  The guests did however recognise it as skordalia so I think we got that one right.  I'm afraid we had the granita again too.  When you find a meal which is perfect for the season just keep eating it.
As a result of this evening I am now the owner of The Georgian Feast and am planning my own Georgian themed meal.  As part of this cultural exchange I also have a container of kefir grains.  I had heard of this but wasn't sure what it was.  I am still unsure but it is very good.  Similar to yoghurt but not.  Delicious - kind of sharp and sour but refreshing.  You just add milk to the grains and leave on the bench until it thickens then strain off the yoghurt-like substance to eat, rinse the grains and start again.  No heating milk to a precise temperature, no leaving in a hot water cupboard until set.  Apparently the grains multiply so I will have some to pass on shortly if you think you can keep them alive.
You need to strain off the whey and I used this to make another recipe I encountered recently.  Carrots cooked in whey. I didn't make the whole recipe, just the carrots, which I served with rump steak and other vegetables from the garden. I may try the entire recipe some time.