The Hubs Loves his Lamb

If I want to make my husband very happy, all I have to do is suggest lamb for dinner.  We had bought a rack of lamb from Trader Joe’s a few weeks ago and tossed it into the freezer.  I had kind of even forgot we bought it until Thursday evening when I was poking around in the freezer trying to determine what I was going to make for dinner.  I set it in the fridge to thaw, and told the hubs the good news that lamb would be on the menu for us on Friday night.  That with a nice big Cabernet Sauvignon from California made for a good Friday night at home date.

Rack of Lamb with Onion Jam and Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts

Onion Jam

• 2 red onions, thinly sliced long-ways
• 2 cups red wine
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 lemon (both the zest and the juice will be used)

Heat pan on medium heat with some olive oil.  Add onions with a pinch of salt.  Let cook about 10 minutes.

Add red wine and let cook until reduced by at least half, about 20 minutes.

In the meantime, heat honey on stove until it becomes frothy.  Add vinegar and let cook another 2-3 minutes.  Remove from heat.

Add honey mixture to onions and season with salt and pepper.  Keep cooking until liquid is almost all down and onions start to have a jammy-like consistency, about another 10-20 minutes.

Once you have reached the right consistency, add the lemon zest and juice.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

• About 1 pound red skinned potatoes, cut into 1/4s
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed with side of knife
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, warmed on stove
• 2 tablespoons butter, room temp, cut into little nubs

Cover potatoes and garlic in pot with water.  Bring to a boil and let cook for about 20 minutes, until potatoes are cooked  through.   Drain thoroughly.

Put potatoes and garlic in mixer.  Mix on medium speed until fairly mashed up.  Add some of cream and half the butter.  Mix on low until incorporated, then bring up speed to medium if you feel like.  Season with salt and pepper.  Taste.  Adjust amounts of cream, butter, and salt and pepper until you are happy with taste and texture.

BrusselS Sprouts

• About 1 pound brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and cut in half
• 1 tablespoon butter, cut into little nubs
• 1/2 cup chicken broth

Heat over to 375 degrees.

Heat pan over medium high heat and add some olive oil.  Place brussels sprouts in pan, cut side down, in single layer.  Season with salt and pepper.  Let sear about 3-4 minutes

Add broth to pan to deglaze.  Sprinkle in butter nubs and give brussels a quick stir.  Add to oven and let cook about 8 minutes, or until done

Rack of lamb

• 1 rack of lamb, cut in half into 2 fairly equal sized portions

Season lamb generously with salt and pepper.

Heat olive oil in skillet over medium high heat.  Add lamb, fat side down, to pan.  Let sear about  3-5 minutes. 

Turn over and place in 375 degree oven.  Let cook about 10 minutes for medium rare.

Let stand about 10 minutes to rest.  Cut each portion in half.  I like to serve one piece of meat off the bone (run knife right along bone to remove meat) and one piece with the meat still on the bone.

Serve with potatoes and brussels and top with onion jam.

my notes:

• For the potatoes, I don’t worry about making them “lump free”.  I like them a bit more rustic – skins left on with lumps and all.
• I think adding some fresh thyme to the onion jam would have been good, but I did not have any.  Next time.  Also, I had a lot of the onion jam left over, but I’m sure I’ll find lots of things to put it on to finish it up.

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