Lamb Chops with Rosemary, Thyme and Garlic

I wanted to make a nice dinner for M's birthday this week.  He chose lamb chops so I went to a new butcher in town and purchased kidney chops.  I found this recipe and thought it sounded like something he'd love.  The only change we had to make (from the original recipe) was to cook the chops in an oven after searing them to even get them to rare.  They had nice flavor and were tender.  The house smelled amazing while they were cooking too!  I served them with balsamic brussel spouts and oven roasted dill potatoes.  Delish!

Ingredients: 
Serves 3-4 people
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp fresh rosemary
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 pinch cayenne pepper
Course sea salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6-7 kidney lamb chops

Directions:
In a food processor, add garlic, rosemary, thyme, cayenne and salt.  Pulse until combined.

Add olive oil and pulse into a paste

Rub the paste on both sides of the chops.  Return to refrigerator for about an hour or more.  Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking to get to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Heat grill pan over high heat until almost smoking.  Add the chops and sear for 2 minutes.  Flip the chops and sear another 3 minutes.

Put pan and chops into oven.  Cook for another 10 minutes.  Remove pan (be careful to use a hot pad) and place on plate.  Tent for about 5 more minutes to allow the chops to rest.

Enjoy!

Hasselback Potatoes with Garlic, Lemon & Rosemary

We were invited to dinner at a friend's house and I offered to bring a side dish.  I have wanted to make these for a while so this was a perfect opportunity to try.  They are a little labor intensive (not as bad as I would have thought though) to cut them without slicing right through the potato.  A trick that's mentioned on the original site was to cut a small slice off the bottom of the potato so it would sit still on the cutting board and pan...worked like a charm!  These were really good but next time I want to try a little Parmesan cheese on them.

Ingredients: 

4 medium russet potatoes2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil2 tablespoons butter2 cloves garlic, halved

1 teaspoon rosemary leaves, do not chop leaves
zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon melted butter
sea salt
1 teaspoon rosemary leaves , finely chopped for garnish

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 450˚F. Line a baking pan with foil. While oven is heating, prepare potatoes. Cut a small thin slice off one long side of each potato. This will give a flat surface so potatoes will not roll around.Place a potato on a work surface with the cut side down. With a sharp knife cut thin vertical slices from one end to the other, cutting almost all the way through, but being careful not to cut all the way through. You can place small wooden dowels, or chopsticks on either side of the potato to keep your knife from slicing through. For me, it works better to just take a bit of care with each cut and to use a very sharp knife.Combine olive oil, butter, rosemary leaves and garlic in a small microwave safe bowl. Cook on high for 30 seconds, stir and cook another 30 seconds. Remove from microwave, add lemon zest and set aside.With your hands, rub potatoes all over with a bit of olive oil. Arrange potatoes on prepared pan. Place in preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and brush all over with about half of the olive oil/butter mixture, separating the slices slightly with a knife to get some of the oil mixture between the slices. Return to oven for another 15 minutes and repeat brushing with oil.Return potatoes to oven for 15 minutes. At this point you should have used up most of the oil/butter mixture and should have just the rosemary and garlic left in the bowl. Add one tablespoon of butter to bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds.After the 3rd 15-minute stint in the oven, remove potatoes, brush with the melted butter and sprinkle generously with sea salt. Bake for another 10-20* minutes or until crisp and golden on the exterior and soft of the inside. Remove from oven, sprinkle with chopped rosemary and serve.

Note:* ~ Total baking time is approximate. It will depend on the size and density of your potatoes along with your oven. Total baking time is 55-65 minutes.

Crispy Parmesan Rosemary Potatoes

I'm always looking for different ways to make potatoes.  I think it makes me feel like since I'm making them a different way, it's not so bad that I have them so much!  :-)  What can I say, I love potatoes! 
Anyway, I had a girlfriend over for dinner last night and made my chicken stuffed with spinach & cheese.  I wanted a potato that would go nicely with that.  I found this recipe and thought it sounded perfect.  The potatoes were amazing and had a great texture.  I'm guessing it's the cornmeal that gave it the texture (I've never used it before) but these are worth trying!  Hardest part is remembering to use a hot pad when removing the steaming hot skillet from the oven.  Thankfully, no burns last night! 

(Here are the potatoes after they came out of the oven)

 (Here's the full meal)

Ingredients:

2 lbs red potatoes

2 tbsp cornmeal

2 tbsp grated Parmesan

2 tsp salt, divided

1/2 tsp pepper

3/4 c olive oil

2 tbsp fresh minced rosemary leaves

8-10 garlic cloves, peeled

Directions:

Cut each pototo into quarters and put them in a pot of cold, salted water.  Bring the water to a boil and boil for 8-10 minutes.  Drain in a colander.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

In a small bowl, combine cornmeal, Parmesan, Salt & Pepper

Remove potatoes from colander and put in a large bowl.  Sprinkle with cornmeal mixture and toss to coat. 

In a large cast iron or heavy bottomed skillet, heat olive oil, garlic and rosemary.  Heat for 1 minute, stirring frequently until fragrant. 

Add seasoned potatoes to skillet and gently stir to coat.  Place skillet on bottom rack of oven for 15 minutes.  Carefully flip potatoes and put back in oven for another 10-15 minutes. 

Remove from pan and serve. 





Herb Balsamic Lamb Chops

I made the roasted butternut squash on Monday with the intention of serving it with dinner Tuesday.  I thought I was going to do a pork tenderloin but when I opened the freezer, I saw 4 lamb chops sitting right in front so I decided to use them.  I found this recipe and knew that I also had some fresh herbs to use so it seemed like a perfect fit!  The only thing that didn't work according to the original recipe was the cooking time.  I like my lamb pretty rare but after pulling the meat off and letting it rest, it was still too rare.  I ended up putting the chops back in the pan with the balsamic, covering it and simmering the lamb for about another 2-3 minutes per side.  They turned out delicious and were a perfect compliment to the roasted squash!

A picture of the lamb chops as I put them in the pan

The final meal

Ingredients:

4 lamb chops

1 tbsp mixed fresh herbs (I used thyme and rosemary)

Salt & Pepper

1-1/2 tbsp olive oil

1 shallot, chopped

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 tbsp butter (I used margarine)

Directions:Rub the chops on both sides with the herbs, salt & pepper.  Let sit for about 30 minutes

After 30 minutes, heat olive oil in pan and place chops in pan.  Cook for about 2-3 minutes per side.  Remove from heat, tent to keep warm.

Add the shallots to the pan and cook until they are soft.  Add in the balsamic vinegar & chicken broth & simmer to reduce.  Once the broth is reduced by about half, add the butter and stir. 

If your chops aren't done to the temperature you like, add them back to the pan, reduce heat, cover & simmer for about another 2-3 minutes per side. 

Once the chops are done to your liking, put them on a plate and spoon the sauce over top. 

Serve immediately.

Foil Packet Potatoes

I was grilling anyway tonight with beer can chicken and decided to make these foil packet potatoes to go along with them.  They were super easy and turned out really great!!  I did mine with salt, pepper and rosemary but you can season them any way you  like!  The trick is to double wrap the potatoes in foil so the olive oil doesn't drip.  I found the recipe here.

Here's a picture of the finished potatoes (along with the beer can chicken and balsamic roasted beets & carrots):

For fun, here's the beer can chicken.  (I'm hoping to replicate Graul's chicken salad with the left overs!)

Ingredients:

4 white potatoes (you can use any type potato and it turns out great!)

2 Tbsp olive oil

Salt, pepper, rosemary (to taste)

Cooking spray

Directions

Heat grill to 350 degrees, medium heat

Combine cut up potatoes, olive oil and seasonings in a bowl.  Toss to coat

For 4 medium potatoes, I started with 2 sheets of foil.  Coat foil with cooking spray and evenly place potatoes in foil (to have a single layer of potatoes)

Fold foil around potatoes so there are no openings.  Double wrap the potatoes in another layer of foil.  

Place on grill and cook for 30 minutes, turning 1x half way through.

Serve immediately.