Lizzie came and visited me this past weekend. We cooked like the whole time. It was grand! We both had so much fun. Sunday night, we had most of my family over, and so Lizzie and I cooked dinner for everyone. We made Herb-Marinated Smoked Leg of Lamb, Steamed Broccoli and Carrots, and Summer Fruit Salad, and, of course, we had regular salad and dinner rolls. Oh, a note on the lamb, we smoked it at 380 F for about an hour or an hour and 10-15 minutes. It's done when the internal temperature is 135 F. Another thing, not everyone has a smoker available, and the recipe in my cookbook actually called for roasting the lamb. So, if you can smoke the lamb, great, but if not, I put the real recipe below. Speaking of cookbooks, we used Starting with Ingredients, by Aliza Green, and The Best of Gourmet, by the editors of the magazine, Gourmet. Both these cookbooks are AMAZING! I highly recommend them. Oh, and thanks to Lizzie for taking all these lovely pictures.
Herb-Roasted Leg of Lamb
From Starting with Ingredients
Pages 517 and 518
From Starting with Ingredients
Pages 517 and 518
Ingredients
3/8 cup of olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into eighths
1.5 tbsps. of minced garlic
3/4 cup each: fresh dill and mint
Juice and zest of 2 lemons
1.5 tbsps. of cumin
salt and pepper to taste
2 5-6 lb bone-in legs of lamb, or 2 4-5 lb deboned, butterflied legs of lamb
If a bone-in leg is used, you'll have to debone it. Make sure that all the fat is trimmed off the meat.
Process
Combine all the ingredients in the food processor, and roughly chop.
Rub the mixture all over the lamb, and put it in a bowl in the refrigerator overnight, turning once or twice.
Note: Lizzie and I were short on time, so we just marinated the lamb for about an hour and a half before we cooked it. It turned out great, so it must be absolutely amazing after marinating overnight.
Lamb Stuffing and Assembly
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 head of fennel and lower part of stalks
1/2 cup of each: fresh dill and mint
2 bunches of scallions (a.k.a. spring onions)
2 cups of breadcrumbs
2 tbsps. of olive oil
Process
Combine the garlic, fennel, dill, mint, scallions, and crumbs in a food processor. Process to a chunky paste and reserve.
Preheat the oven to 400 F. Drain the lamb and discard the marinate. Pat the lamb dry and season with salt and pepper. Spread the stuffing over the inner side of the lamb. Roll up the long way, as tightly as possible. Secure the roll with kitchen twine.
Heat the oil in a large cast-iron skillet until shimmering. Brown the lamb on all sides. Transfer to a large roasting pan and roast, turning once or twice, until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the meat reads 135 F for medium-rare, this should take like 40-50. Remove the lamb from the oven, cover with tin foil, and allow to rest for 15 minutes before slicing it. Serve immediately.
Steamed Carrots and Broccoli
An original recipe
Ingredients
1 large bag of baby carrots
5-6 small-medium heads of broccoli
2-3 tbsps. of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsps. lemon juice, if desired
Bring water in a steamer to a slow boil. (If you don't have a steamer, you can make do with a colander in a large pot. Just be sure that the water is at least an inch from the bottom of the food.)
While the water is coming to a boil, cut the broccoli into bite sized pieces.
Once the water has come to a boil, put the carrots in. Steam them for about 15-25 minutes depending on their thickness and how well done you like them. Add the broccoli, stir gently to combine, and steam for another 5-10 minutes, again, depending on how done you like your veggies.
Once the veggies are finish, put them in a serving dish. Mix in the olive oil, lemon juice, if using, and salt and pepper gently. Serve immediately.
Summer Fruit Salad
From The Best of Gourmet
Page 155
Ingredients
4-5 large, very firm nectarines or peaches, sliced into eighths
1 bunch green grapes, halved
3 cups blackberries
1/4 cup of fresh mint, chopped
2-3 tbsps. of sugar
Process
Combine the peaches or nectarines, grapes, sugar, and mint. Add in the blackberries, mix them in with your hands very gently.
Let the fruit stand for 5 minutes, then serve.
1.5 tbsps. of minced garlic
3/4 cup each: fresh dill and mint
Juice and zest of 2 lemons
1.5 tbsps. of cumin
salt and pepper to taste
2 5-6 lb bone-in legs of lamb, or 2 4-5 lb deboned, butterflied legs of lamb
If a bone-in leg is used, you'll have to debone it. Make sure that all the fat is trimmed off the meat.
Process
Rub the mixture all over the lamb, and put it in a bowl in the refrigerator overnight, turning once or twice.
Note: Lizzie and I were short on time, so we just marinated the lamb for about an hour and a half before we cooked it. It turned out great, so it must be absolutely amazing after marinating overnight.
Lamb Stuffing and Assembly
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 head of fennel and lower part of stalks
1/2 cup of each: fresh dill and mint
2 bunches of scallions (a.k.a. spring onions)
2 cups of breadcrumbs
2 tbsps. of olive oil
Combine the garlic, fennel, dill, mint, scallions, and crumbs in a food processor. Process to a chunky paste and reserve.
Preheat the oven to 400 F. Drain the lamb and discard the marinate. Pat the lamb dry and season with salt and pepper. Spread the stuffing over the inner side of the lamb. Roll up the long way, as tightly as possible. Secure the roll with kitchen twine.
An original recipe
Ingredients
1 large bag of baby carrots
5-6 small-medium heads of broccoli
2-3 tbsps. of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsps. lemon juice, if desired
Bring water in a steamer to a slow boil. (If you don't have a steamer, you can make do with a colander in a large pot. Just be sure that the water is at least an inch from the bottom of the food.)
While the water is coming to a boil, cut the broccoli into bite sized pieces.
Once the water has come to a boil, put the carrots in. Steam them for about 15-25 minutes depending on their thickness and how well done you like them. Add the broccoli, stir gently to combine, and steam for another 5-10 minutes, again, depending on how done you like your veggies.
Once the veggies are finish, put them in a serving dish. Mix in the olive oil, lemon juice, if using, and salt and pepper gently. Serve immediately.
Summer Fruit Salad
From The Best of Gourmet
Page 155
Ingredients4-5 large, very firm nectarines or peaches, sliced into eighths
1 bunch green grapes, halved
3 cups blackberries
1/4 cup of fresh mint, chopped
2-3 tbsps. of sugar
Process
Combine the peaches or nectarines, grapes, sugar, and mint. Add in the blackberries, mix them in with your hands very gently.
Let the fruit stand for 5 minutes, then serve.
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