Recipes
Grilled Leg of Lamb
1 small boneless leg of lamb, 2 3/4 pounds, ask your butcher to butterfly the leg for you
Coarse salt and black pepper
6 cloves crushed garlic
1 bunch fresh mint leaves, washed
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
Preheat a grill or grill pan. Place lamb on a shallow baking pan. Season both sides of the meat with salt and coarse black pepper. In a food processor, puree the garlic, mint, salt and pepper, then add the extra-virgin olive oil in a slow stream. Pour marinade over the lamb and rub into the meat. Place on grill and cook on 1 side for 10 minutes. Flip lamb, cover with aluminum foil and grill for another 10 minutes.
Remove lamb from grill pan and let rest for 10 minutes for juices to redistribute. Slice and serve.
Lamb Burgers
For yogurt sauce:
1 12-ounce container plain yogurt
1 garlic clove, minced and mashed to a paste with 1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons shredded fresh mint leaves, or to taste
For burgers:
1 1/2 pounds fresh ground lamb from the shoulder
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon crumbled dried rosemary
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chopped salad:
1/3 cup coarsely chopped pitted Kalamata olives
2 ripe medium tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
6 pita, each split halfway around edge to form a pocket
Make yogurt sauce: Drain yogurt in a sieve lined with a dampened paper towel set over a bowl 30 minutes. Transfer drained yogurt to a small bowl and stir in garlic paste and mint.
Make burgers: Prepare grill. In a bowl gently but thoroughly combine the lamb, garlic, rosemary, parsley, salt and pepper. Grill on an oiled rack set 5 to 6 inches over glowing coals 7 minutes on each side for medium-rare.
In a bowl combine olives, tomatoes, parsley, olive oil and red wine vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.
Transfer burgers to pita pockets and sprinkle with goat cheese. Top with chopped salad. Serve burgers with yogurt sauce.
Roasted Garlic and Chile Pork Loin
The Rub:
2 bulbs Roasted Garlic (see Note)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground ancho chile
2 teaspoons dried flaked chipotle chile
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
The Roast:
1 boneless double pork loin roast (about 3 pounds)
4 large cloves garlic, quartered
Kosher salt and black pepper
Squeeze the roasted garlic pulp from each clove into a bowl. Add the salt, ground and flaked chiles, cumin, brown sugar, and olive oil and make a wet rub.
Stab holes into the pork loin and insert a quarter of a garlic clove into each. Massage the wet rub all over the meat, pushing some of it in between the two loins. Do this ahead, cover, and refrigerate overnight for maximum flavor penetration.
Fire up the grill, mounding a hot coal bed on one side. Just before grilling, season the meat all over with the salt and a grinding of black pepper.
Set the meat directly over the coals to sear for 2 minutes, making sure to scrape onto the roast any of the coating rub stuck to the plate it was setting on. Sear the remaining 3 sides for 2 minutes each. Push the meat to the other side of the grill, away from the coals. Cover the grill and adjust the heat so that it's from 325 to 350 degrees F inside. Roast for about 1 hour, till the meat reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees F. Pull the roast off the grill and let it rest for 15 minutes.
Carve and serve immediately, or let it cool completely and then slice for sandwiches.
Note: To make roasted garlic, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Cut the top off of each of two garlic bulb, slicing into the points of the cloves. Place them cut side up on a piece of foil. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Wrap the foil up around the bulbs and bake for 45 to 60 minutes, till they release their perfume. Open the foil and test for doneness. The cloves should squeeze softly when pinched. Bake a little longer if they seem to need it. Roasted garlic keeps for several days in the fridge. Makes 2 bulbs.
Grilled Porterhouse Steaks with Horseradish-Mustard Butter
3 (1 1/2-inch-thick) porterhouse steaks (each about 2 to 2 1/4 pounds)
3 tablespoons mixed whole peppercorns
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
Horseradish-Mustard Butter, sliced into 6 rounds, recipe follows
Prepare grill.
Let steaks stand at room temperature 30 minutes. With a mortar and pestle or bottom of a heavy skillet coarsely crush peppercorns and in a small bowl combine with salt. Pat steaks dry and rub seasoning onto both sides of steaks, pressing to adhere.
Grill steaks on an oiled rack set 5 to 6 inches over glowing coals 7 to 9 minutes on each side, or until an instant-read thermometer registers 130 degrees F. for medium-rare. (Alternatively, steaks may be broiled on rack of a broiler pan under a preheated broiler about 4 inches from heat.) Transfer steaks to a platter and let stand 10 minutes.
Serve steaks sliced with the horseradish-mustard butter.
Horseradish-Mustard Butter:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons drained bottled horseradish
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons minced shallot
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
In a bowl, blend together the butter, horseradish, mustard, and shallot with a fork. Season with salt and pepper. On a sheet of plastic wrap, form the butter into a log about 4 inches long. Chill the compound butter until firm, at least 30 minutes or freeze until ready to use.
Yield: 6 servings
|
2003 Protocolo
2004 Man Vintners Western Cape Shiraz
2003 Leone de Castris Maiana Salice Salentino
2003 Red Flyer
2002 Montevina Sierra Foothills Amador County Zinfandel
2003 Chateau des Erles Cuvee des Ardoises
2003 Nine Stones Barossa Shiraz