mint & cumin spiced lamb chops

 This...or These actually...the Lamb Chops.

Wow!

This was our main course for the July TK dinner. These are amazing! 

There does seem to be a lot of ingredients needed to pull the marinade together but actual hands-on time is minimal and the results are phenomenal.

Please try these.

YOU WILL NEED:

MEAT THERMOMETER - now I am not one for lots of kitchen gadgets (where do people put all this craziness anyway?) But I HIGHLY suggest you have a couple of good thermometers in your supply of absolute kitchen essentials. Just spend the money. Take care of them properly. They will make your life so much easier.

1 rack of lamb or 2 smaller racks - about 5 pounds or so

2 medium red onions

1 cup fresh cilantro

1 cup fresh parsley

1 cup fresh mint

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon paprika

2 teaspoons allspice

1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt

pepper

TO DO:

In a food processor toss in the onions, herbs, spices and a little salt and pepper.

With machine running slowly drizzle in the olive oil.

Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Rub the spice/herb mixture all over the lamb meat.

Cover the entire tray and stick in the fridge for a few hours.

(or do as I did once - I prepped all the racks of lamb - covered and put in the fridge then went to school - took the tray out when I got home to bring the meat to almost room temperature before throwing on the grill)

Remove the tray of lamb from the fridge and leave on the counter.

Heat your grill to medium high heat.

Remove whatever you had covering the lamb tray.

Cover the tips of the bones with aluminum foil.

(Yes - this is a bit tedious but necessary)

Turn the grill down to medium heat.

Oil your grill grates then grill the racks 3 to 6 minutes each side - depending how raw or well done you like these. I usually do them with the curved side down first.

We like ours at an internal temperature of around 130-135. I usually remove after about 6 minutes on each side.

Cover and let rest a few minutes before slicing.

Lay them on a platter and garnish with thin slices of red onion and fresh cilantro.

Serve and watch them disappear!

Not sure why I love this carcass photo but I do...I think I mentioned in a previous post that I love to see everyone has eaten and enjoyed the food?
Yes that's exactly why I love this carcass photo.....so there ya have it! HaHa

original recipe found in bon appetit magazine - july 2014 issue

zucchini soup

It is hot. We do not have air conditioning in this house. I do not want to be in the kitchen. But then the new issue of Food & Wine shows up so here I go, into the kitchen. 

I had picked up a few zucchini from Hearty Fork Farm last weekend which I did not use during the last TK dinner event. And then today my neighbor left another bag of zucchini on my porch. 

How cute are my neighbors?

I've made a few recipes out of this issue already (for last weekends TK event) But decided I would share this soup recipe first. I know. I just said it is HOT and here I am making soup. Welcome to my addled little brain.

I imagine you can add whatever additional ingredients you love with your zucchini. I added lots of pepper, a dollop of sour cream and some fresh dill. I had a moment where I thought it should have a little cream in it and maybe some more spices, but then decided no, I enjoyed the purity of flavor and the uncomplicated ingredients list (and did I mention it is HOT in my house?)
And then a friend of mine said "it NEEDS bacon!" 
Noted...next time.

recipe below adapted from July 2014 Food & Wine magazine


you will need:

tablespoon butter
couple tablespoons olive oil
1 sweet onion - diced
2 garlic cloves - thinly sliced
4 medium zucchini - washed, halved lengthwise and sliced into moons
2/3 cup vegetable stock
1 cup of water
salt
pepper

for garnish:
julienned raw zucchini
sour cream
chopped fresh dill

to do:

In a medium soup pot, heat the butter and olive oil.
Add the onions and garlic.
Add 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper.
Cook until the onions are translucent.
Add the zucchini moons (see below)

Cook about ten minutes.
Add the vegetable stock and water.
Bring to a boil for five minutes.
Turn heat down to medium and simmer another ten minutes or so.

Remove from the heat.
Puree the entire thing - I used my immersion blender, but you can use a regular blender and just do it in batches.
Taste, then add more salt and pepper as desired.

Ladle into bowls, garnish and serve.
Enjoy!

Roasted Beet Salad w/Orange Juice reduction dressing

The bounty of the Farmers Markets! I try to always find bunches of fresh beets, butter leaf lettuce (the family favorite) yummy cheeses and whatever else looks pretty and shiny in the early morning light. This salad can be a bit time consuming to prepare because of roasting and washing and slicing and watching orange juice boil...but worth it! Once the beets and dressing are ready there will be plenty for several salads and assembly will be quick going forward.


YOU WILL NEED:


1 bunch fresh beets (see note below) *
1 head butter leaf lettuce (arugula and spinach good also)
a little goat cheese (or whatever mild flavor cheese you prefer)
olive oil
salt
Orange Juice Reduction Dressing (recipe follows)


OJ Dressing:   
Pour 4 cups of orange juice into a medium/large sized saucepan (save yourself the time and purchase the orange juice at your local grocery) Bring to a boil at medium high setting then leave it alone. It needs to boil down to about 1 cup of liquid - this part takes FOREVER! When ready it will be rather dark.                   
Don't worry - after a little soaking and light scrubbing the pot looks good as new.                                      
Turn off heat. Using a fine mesh sieve, strain liquid into a small saucepan - add the juice from 1/2 fresh lemon (save the other half for later) add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Back to stove on medium high heat - bring liquid to boil and let reduce until "light syrup" consistency (you should have about a half cup of liquid). Turn off heat. Strain again into a bowl or measuring cup big enough to add olive oil and work with a whisk. Let cool for a few minutes. Add 1/2 a cup of good olive oil - the juice from the other half of the  lemon - salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Taste. Dressing should be tart - but if too strong for you add more olive oil. Salt and pepper if needed. Let cool completely.
I now pour this into a canning jar with those nifty seals and lids. That way when I need to dress the salad I can just give it all a good shaking then drizzle on my salad.


* HOW I PREPARE FRESH BEETS                                                                                                    

They look like this when I get them. Lovely aren't they?  Wash and dry. Cut off leafy parts and stems. Completely cover a baking pan - or baking sheet - in foil. Place beets in - drizzle with olive oil - sprinkle with bit of salt - completely cover entire pan with beets in foil - roast in 350 oven for hour to hour and a half depending on size of beets. These were about the size of baseballs - I roasted them for an hour and twenty minutes. Out of oven - leave covered and let cool about half hour. Peel and set aside until ready to use.                                              

Slice or cube the beets when you are ready. Cover and refrigerate leftover.


If you did all this in the same afternoon you have probably ordered a pizza by now!  If not, grab a big bowl, add washed and dried lettuce (I prefer Butter leaf for this) add sliced beets, drizzle with OJ dressing, sprinkle with goat cheese then sit down and relax and eat!