Happy Easter! (Ed’s Grilled Leg of Lamb)

Ready for a glass
of wine and family

It is warm, sunny and a tad humid today; and the backyard is leafed out and perfect for a late afternoon family get together.  Steve and I just finished preparing the deck and screen porch (i.e. blow off and hose off yet another layer of pollen!) for the sitting and chatting that will take place before and after the dinner of grilled leg of lamb my brother Ed and I are making for Easter Dinner.

The inside table is ready, too.

Ed makes a fantastic leg of lamb – boned and butterflied; then marinated overnight in wine, Worcestershire, garlic and rosemary.  I’ll provide that recipe now.  Later on I’ll share the recipe for the salad that will precede the lamb – featuring grapefruit and avocado salad with a vinaigrette made from blood-orange infused olive oil.

Ed’s Grilled Leg of Lamb

Measurements are proportions, not exact.

You will need: 

• One leg of lamb, boned and butterflied
• A big bunch of rosemary
• Garlic. Lots of garlic.
• An onion, optional
• One lemon
• Worchestershire sauce
• A quarter to a half a bottle of red wine. Use what you like to drink; cuz that's what you'll do with the rest of the wine while you grill the lamb.
• Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper

Bah Bah Marinade

Combine in an extra large plastic bag or 13” x 9” baking dish

• 2/3 red wine
• Other 1/3 equal parts (or use your own judgment, I don't measure: olive oil and Worcestershire sauce)
• About 4 cloves of minced garlic
• A handful of chopped rosemary (good amount)
• Zest from one lemon
• Salt
• Pepper

Prep the lamb -- do this the night before if possible

• To the marinade mixture above, add  1 leg of lamb, boned and butterflied. It may come tied up like a roast.  If so, snip and remove the strings.
•  Marinade the meat overnight in plastic bag; rotate when you get up in the morning and every now and then throughout the day.
• About 30 minutes before you plan to grill the meat, pull it from the marinade,  blot it dry and let it loose some of the chill from the fridge.  At this time you can also poke holes in the meat and shove slivers of garlic and/or onion in.  I highly recommend this, but it is not mandatory.
• It’s also good to run metal skewers through the meat in a criss-cross fashion to hold the meat out flat. Again, not mandatory – don’t let a lack of skewers keep you from doing the dish.

Grill time

• Heat a gas grill, all burners on high until screaming hot.  Sear the lamb, fat side down; then flip and sear the other side. Then lower the heat to Medium Off Medium.  Top with rosemary sprigs for added flavor and grill indirect method, until the meat is done to medium rare. 
• I’m hesitant to offer specific times, because each piece of meat is different (depending on how thick, and how many pounds the roast is, etc.).  I’ve seen anywhere from 30 minutes total to 40 minutes or even an hour. Just remember, that the meat will continue to cook on the plate as it rests.  And nothing is worst than overcooked lamb!
• For my money, I remove from the grill when an instant read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the roast registers 130°F (for medium rare).  Then tent loosely with foil and let the meat rest at least 10 minutes. 

 Time to serve

Our game plan for tonight is let it rest during the salad course.  Then I’ll steam some asparagus and carrots and finish up the parsley potatoes while Steve carves the lamb. 

Enjoy!

Valentine's Day Walk - Lemon Scented Lamb Shanks with Rosemary

Happy Valentine's Day!

It’s a beautiful, crisp day in Chapel Hill.  The sun is shining from a perfect Carolina blue sky. Birds are devouring seed from the feeder in our backyard while the kids next door play a serious game of basketball. 

I have to laugh -- the highs are in the mid-40s and back in California I would have been bundled up grousing about the weather.  Instead, Steve and I took CurveBall for a quick “once around the neighborhood” (short dog = short walks) and then headed out to investigate a walking trail that is about 5 minutes from our home.

We had a great hour-long walk on one of many trails that wind thru deep green pine trees and leafless hardwoods.  Not a sound to be heard, except for birds and our footsteps. Now and then a small plane would take off from the little airport nearby.  My thoughts soared up with them and I imagined their view of the lake, our nearby creek, and the contrast of the pine trees against the stark white remnants of last week’s snow. 

Back home Steve settled in to watch a bit of golf as I prepared our Valentine’s Dinner.  It’s a bit of a tradition for me to make something “that cooks all day” for holidays like this.  A trip to the meat counter at Whole Foods earlier today determined exactly what that would be:  lamb shanks that were just too perfect to resist. I’m trying something new this time and have added rosemary and sliced lemons.  I’m cooking it early and then will reheat it later (a good trick for braised meats).  The dish will be served atop pappardelle pasta (think fettuccini pasta on steroids) tossed in olive oil, parsley and lemon zest.

The recipe I created for this dish is below.  I hope you give it a try.

Lemon Scented Lamb Shanks with Rosemary

Serves 2 - cooking time 1 3/4 to 2 hours

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 lamb shanks – seasoned with salt and pepper and dusted with flour
• 2 carrots, chopped into ½ inch dice
• 1 medium onion, chopped into ½ inch dice
• 2 ribs celery, chopped into ½ inch dice
• 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and slightly smashed (whack an unpeeled clove with the flat side of a chef’s knife to loosen the skin and crush the clove slightly
• 1 lemon, sliced into ¼ inch slices and seeded
• 1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme (you can leave whole and pull the stems out later)
• 3 cups organic beef broth (low sodium, if you can get it)
•  
• 2 servings of pappardelle pasta
• 1 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 – 2 Tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley (also called Italian Parsley)
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

• Heat a large Dutch oven over high heat
• Add olive oil and reduce heat to medium high.
• Brown the lamb shanks on all sides, remove and keep warm
• Add the chopped onion, carrot, celery and whole garlic cloves; sauté until the onions are soft
• Add the rosemary and thyme, stir to combine
• Now place the lamb shanks in the middle of the pot. 
• Place two lemon slices atop each shank; place the rest amid the sautéed veg
• Carefully pour the stock into the pot.  It should come up about ½ way up each piece of meat. Do not submerge the meat completely.
• Raise the heat to “high” and bring the liquid to a boil.
• Cover and place in oven.  Braise for 1 hour, and then turn the meat.  Cover and cook for another 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the meat is very tender.
• After 2 hours remove from the oven.  Remove the meat and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Remove the stems from the thyme, throw away
• Remove the lemon slices, reserve if you like and serve with the final dish
• If there is a lot of liquid, Put Dutch oven on the stove over a medium/high heat and cook liquid until reduced by half. Otherwise, proceed to the next step.
• Purée with a hand blender for a smooth sauce. If it seems a bit thick, you can add some broth or some pasta cooking water if you've already boiled the pappadelle
• Season to taste with salt and pepper
• Add the lamb shanks back into the sauce
• Serve immediately or cover to keep warm for up to 2 hours and reheat in a 350 degree oven for 20 - 30 minutes before serving

Serve with pappadelle pasta cooked al dente in salted water then tossed in olive oil, chopped parsley, and lemon zest

Enjoy.