Dukkah Crusted Labne and Lamb Backstrap Pizza

An awesome ex-student of mine gave me some dukkah and lamb herbs for Christmas last year and I finally got around to using them. This was delicious and simple and I can thoroughly recommend giving it a go yourself. Labne is a cheese you make from yoghurt (seriously this only takes 10 minutes). The fiddliest part of this is rolling the cheese into balls and then dusting them but even then, that only takes 15 minutes. I made my own pizza bases here but I would imagine that using toasted Turkish bread or kebab bread would be just as great. The amount of oil used will seem terrifying but its only for marinating and can be re-used as part of a salad dressing, used in pesto (a nod to Tracey), or used in confit (a nod to JP). Next time I use dukkah, I think I am going to make my own. You will need to make the labne three days in advance.

1 kg natural yoghurt
2 cloves garlic crushed
1 tsp salt for the labne
45g packet of dukkah (mine was lemon and herb)
1.5 litres of extra virgin olive oil
1 lamb backstrap
Lamb herbs
Individual pizza bases
Garlic oil
Parmesan cheese
Chopped parsley
Mozzarella
Rocket
Salt and pepper
A little red wine vinegar
Some fresh parsley

Combine the salt and crushed garlic for the labne into the yoghurt. Place a muslin wrap over a bowl doubled over, pour in the yoghurt. Bring the sides of the muslin wrap in and tie around a wooden spoon then hang in a bowl. Place in the fridge for three days re-adjusting the height of the bag if necessary so that the yoghurt is not sitting in the extracted liquid.

Remove the yoghurt from the hanging bag into a clean bowl. Pinch tablespoon sized quantities out and roll into a balls, place onto a clean plate. It helps if from time to time you rinse and dry your hands, the
yoghurt does become sticky. Roll each cheese ball in the labne then place carefully into another clean bowl, throw in a little fresh parsley then cover with the olive oil.

Pre-heat an oven to 180C. Paint the pizza bases with garlic oil, sprinkle on some chopped parsley, grate over some parmesan then top with a little mozzarella. Bake until they have great colour.

Season the lamb fillet with some lamb herbs, salt and pepper. Sear on a barbecue to your liking (mine were rare). Allow the meat to rest for 10 minutes under some foil then slice very thinly. While this is happening dress the rocket in some garlic oil, some more grated parmesan and a little red wine vinegar.

Smear a labne ball on a pizza base, load up some lamb and rocket then tuck in.

Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb with Sage and Anchovy

Cooked anchovy rules. Hard. I was watching a cooking podcast from Strada and the dude did lamb rump with an anchovy, oil and rosemary sauce which I thought was a great concept so I tweaked it to get this. My wife who does not dig on anchovy loved it (best ever lamb roast apparently) and the kids smashed it too. Anyhow, quick and easy to prepare and could be applied to any cut of lamb I would imagine.

5 or 6 anchovy fillets
1 handful sage leaves
6  garlic cloves
3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
Pepper
1 leg of lamb (mine was boned out)
1 leek chopped
2 piece celery chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 cup sparkling white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock

Blitz anchovies, sage leaves, 3 cloves garlic, pepper and olive oil along with some of the oil from the anchovies. Paint the lamb with about half of the flavoured oil. Sear the lamb on all sides in your roasting dish on the stove top then remove. Add in the leek and celery and remaining garlic and soften a little in the flavoured oil then deglaze with the wine, cook out the alcohol for a minute then add in the chicken stock. Add a lid then place into a pre-heated 140C oven for 2 hours. Remove the lid, paint with some more of the oil then return to the oven for another 45 mins. Rest the meat and strain the sauce. I served this with fresh beans and mash and if you want an extra hit of anchovy, spoon some more oil over your meat.

Boned Leg of Lamb Stuffed with Ricotta and Corn, Almonds and Mushroom

Mothers Day din dins. For maximum effect make a trivet of veg for the lamb and half fill with water to sit on and blitz at the end to make your gravy

1 leg of lamb boned
3 tbs Barbecued Corn and Ricotta Dip
1 handful almonds
2 handfuls chopped mushroom
5 cloves garlic
1/2 tbs thyme
1 handful sage
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Water
Root veg

Blitz the almonds, 2 cloves garlic, mushroom and thyme, some salt and pepper and enough extra virgin to make it moist. Paint the Barbecued Corn and Ricotta Dip on in the inside of the meat then evenly spread out the almond/mushroom mixture. Carefully and firmly tie the lamb back up, shoving as much stuffing back inside as you can. Oil, salt and pepper and sage the lamb and rub well. Place on a trivet of veg and remaining garlic, pouring in enough water to come up to the bottom of the lamb and cover with foil. Cooking a preheated 220C oven for 20 minutes then reduce the temperature to 180C and cook for 20 mins per 450 gms. Remove the foil 20 minutes from the end. Once finished, remove, cover, rest, make gravy, stuff yourself.

Cashew and Macadamia Nut Satay

I watched a TV chef recently smash together a satay sauce in about 2 minutes and I thought well I want to do that too. My recipe differs quite a bit from his but as my research after the fact discovered, it don't matter. I think satay is one of those 'satays are like opinions' scenarios. They can be simple or complicated. In any case, what I have done here is very very good and I can thoroughly recommend trying it. My bother in law who doesn't like satay had two helpings and was kind with his review. There is enough satay to marinade 1 - 2 kg of the meat of your choice, have enough left for being a sauce and, an additional purpose like making satay and coconut milk rice for the kids.


2 handfuls salted cashew/macadamia nuts
2 heaped tbs crunchy peanut butter
Rind of 1 lime
Juice of 2 limes (maybe more)
2 cloves garlic
1 thumb ginger roughly chopped
1/2 bunch coriander, roots and all
200 ml of coconut milk (or to taste)
1 long red chilli
1 tbs palm sugar (or brown)
2 tbs light olive oil or peanut oil
1/2 cup water


Leaving out the water, blitz the lot until it is in a smooth paste. Check for flavours and add more lime juice, coconut milk or sugar until you reach a tasty result (there should be enough salt from the nuts). Aim for a good balance of nut, sweet and importantly, lime. Pour in half of the water, blitz, check the consistency and add the remaining and more if required.

Cardamom, Cumin and Poppy Seed Spiced Lamb Fillet

This took about 5 minutes to prepare, I let it sit for an hour and BBQ'd for like, 10 minutes. Very little work heaps of enjoyment. I love dry spice rubs, they pack buckets of flavour and you can use almost any thing you have in your cupboard - experiment and see what you come up with.



1 lamb fillet (mine was 500gms)
1 tbs ground coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seed ground
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 handful cardamon pods, seeds removed
1 tbs poppy seeds
Salt (I used porcini salt)
Pepper
Olive oil


Spread the dry ingredients evenly about a plate, sprinkle on some oil, place the lamb fillet in and cover it the spiced goodness. Put on a clean plate and transfer to the fridge to let the flavours hang out until you are ready. Heat a barbecue to very high and cook the lamb for about 5 minutes each side or until medium rare. Transfer to a clean plate and cover with foil and rest for 5 minutes or so. Slice thinly at an angle and divide amongst serving plates. Spoon over a little of the resting juice and some nice extra virgin if you have it. I served this with a garden salad and some lentils.

Harrisa Lamb Cutlets with a Corriander Tomato Sauce

I can distinctly remember the first time I ate harissa, it has on a sandwich and it was wonderful - that was almost ten years ago and my wife and I still talk about that sandwich. Since then I have bought harissa a heap of times and they have all been disappointing in comparison. I have been toying with the idea of making my own - until I found this gear - it is amazing. All natural, no preservatives and you can literally taste every single ingredient listed on the side of the bottle. I can honestly say that I have never experienced this phenomenon before. Oh, I should say, if you don't like hot stuff, don't eat harissa. That's an important tip...

Lamb cutlets (3 or 4 per person)
2 heaped tsp harissa paste
1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
2 shallots thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic sliced
A slug of red wine
3 tbs chopped coriander
1/2 bottle tomato passata
Salt
1 tbs sugar

Mix the harissa paste with the olive oil and 1/2 of the coriander then paint onto the lamb cutlets. Set aside until required. When required, barbecue over a very high heat and cook to medium rare - allow to rest covered for 5 or so minutes.
Heat the extra virgin olive oil to medium high and fry the garlic and shallots until fragrant and slightly coloured. Deglaze with the red wine and simmer for a couple of minutes before pouring in the passsata. Pour in the sugar and a little salt and simmer until required. Add in the coriander to the hot sauce a couple of minutes before using. I served this with some fried potato and sweet potato, a little marinated feta and some lettuce. Very nice indeed.

Boned Leg of Lamb with Chicken, Mushroom and Blue Cheese Stuffing

I love this concept. Bone - stuff - secure - roast - over eat. Once you have boned the lamb, look for the extra thick bits and where appropriate - butterfly them out. This will hopefully give you a more even roll, particularly if you fan them out in to the gaps.

1 boned lamb leg (mine was 3 kg)

10 or 12 mushrooms chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

1/2 sprig rosemary stripped

1 honey flavoured chicken sausage

1/2 tbs blue cheese (or more)

1 handful baby spinach

6 slices prosicutto

Salt and pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

Remove the chicken meat from the sausage and discard the skin. Saute the mushrooms, garlic, rosemary and chicken in about 1 tbs of extra virgin (will depend on how thirsty your mushrooms are) with a fair bit of salt and pepper. Remove from the pan and mix through the blue cheese. Check for seasoning.

Line the inside of the boned lamb leg with prosciutto slices, top with baby spinach leaves, evenly spread out the chicken mixture, roll the meat tightly and secure with kitchen string at about 2cm intervals. Season the outside well with salt and pepper and rub in with some oil. Refrigerate until ready, mine was over night. Cook at 180C with 20 mins per 450 gms plus 20 minutes. I used the barbecue and had to do some guess work, if it bleeds when you stab it, cook it some more. As the chicken is already cooked though it shouldn't matter if the meat is medium however.

I made a sauce from the pan juices, resting juices, sugar, red wine and passatta.

Awesome the next day on rolls with some blue cheese flavoured gravy...

Lamb Cutlets with Minted Pesto Crust

Holy moly, this was good. The only difficult part was getting the pesto right - which is as simple as tasting it and adjusting it with more of whatever you need. Here I used a 1:1 ratio of basil and mint but I think that it would be better at 1:2 ratio basil to mint. Experimenting with other herbs or sauces like romesco or chimichurri would be brilliant too, just make sure there is enough oil to moisten the crumb and then crisp it. This would only have been about 5 minutes work and 10 minutes cooking. When you make the pesto substitue 2/3 of the basil for mint and make a smaller batch. Alternatively try my Mint and Parmessan Crusted Lamb Cutlets or Lamb Cutlets with Plum, Red Wine and Mushroom Sauce recipes.

3 tbs pesto, minted

8 lamb cutlets (or more)

4 tbs Panko (bread crumbs)
Salt and pepper
Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 lemon
2 tsp store bought balsamic reduction


Season the lamb with some olive oil, pepper and the juice of the lemon and allow to come to room temperature. Heat a barbecue to very hot. Season the lamb with salt and sear both sides well on the barbecue, remove to a clean plate and allow to rest for a couple of minutes. In the meantime, combine the minted pesto and the bread crumbs and spoon to the top of each cutlet. Heat a grill to very hot and place the cutlets under to crisp up. When they have nice colour remove to serving plates and add some balsamic glaze to the plate for dipping/dragging through.
I served this with some barbecued sweet potato, butter wilted spinach and some rosemary garlic potatoes. Unreal.

Star Anise, Sesame and Corriander Barbecued Lamb

Simple, very few steps, great flavour. I have used about 1/2 of a leg of lamb that I have boned out (the rest went into a stew and I kept the bone to make stock) but a couple of lamb rumps would work equally well. Come to think of it - chicken, pork or dead cow would all work.

1/2 lamb leg boned

2 shallots halved

1 tbs mirin

1 piece lemon grass halved, bashed

1 tbs sesame oil

1 tbs olive oil

2 tbs teriyaki sauce

1 tbs fish sauce

3 star anise

1 thumb ginger

3 cloves garlic
1 tbs kecap manis

1/4 bunch coriander

Combine the sauces, mirin, oils, star anise, ginger, lemon grass, garlic and spring onion in a large zip lock bag. Add in the lamb, gently rub about a bit (careful not to pierce the bag with the star anise), remove as much air as possible from the bag and seal. Allow to marinade in the fridge for 1 or 2 days, turning a couple of times a day. When ready to use, remove the lamb and reserve the marinade. Heat a BBQ with a lid to very hot, place on the lamb fat side down and reduce the heat to low. Close the lid. Continue cooking turning every five minutes and basting until it feels firmish (about 25 minutes). Allow to rest, slice diagonally and pour over the resting juices.

I served this with a salad made from barbecued potato and broccoli dressed with Persian feta, sliced Spanish onion, a little lemon juice and chopped coriander.

Lamb Cutlets with Plum, Red Wine and Mushroom Sauce

Delicious and simple - cook some meat, fry some shroom, deglaze and melt some plum paste.

3 lamb cutlets per person
Stripped rosemary
Salt and pepper

1 tbs garlic oil
3 large mushrooms sliced
2 tbs dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup red wine
2 tbs plum paste
Olive oil
Patatas bravas
Grilled prosciutto

Cover the porcini with boiling water and allow to rehydrate. Season the lamb with rosemary, salt and cracked pepper and garlic oil. Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan to medium high. Cook the lamb on each side to your liking (I like mine rare to medium rare) and remove to a clean plate and cover. Add the mushrooms to the pan with porcini and saute until they have nice colour. Deglaze with the wine, pour in the porcini water, add the plum paste and reduce until slightly thickened.
Spoon some sauce to a plate, top with cutlets. Serve with patatas bravas, grilled prosciutto and some rocket.

Pulled Slow Roasted Lamb for Pizza

A fair chunk of this didn't make it to the pizza - we ate it well before then. This gear would work equally well to finish a risotto, to fill ravioli, go through pasta, sit on crusty bread or fill pasties/empanadas. The pizzas had either garlic oil and passata bases, included roasted sweet potato and basil leaves and were finished with yoghurt once cooked. One I filled as a calzone. Stuffing around is worth it sometimes.

1 kg lamb pieces

3 or 4 shallots

4 cloves garlic

Fresh thyme

1 tbs balsamic vinegar

1 tbs olive oil

Salt and cracked pepper

1 cup red wine

Mix the olive oil, balsamic, thyme and enough salt and cracked pepper for all of the lamb in a large bowl. Add the lamb to the bowl and rub all over then transfer to something suitable for roasting in. Place the lamb in a preheated 200C oven for 20 minutes then reduce the heat to 140C and roast uncovered for 2 hours. Take from the oven and remove the meat, garlic and shallots to a clean bowl and allow to cool. Return your pan to the stove top over a medium heat. Deglaze with the red wine and quickly scrape up any bits. Pour the liquid into a bowl until ready. When the meat has cooled enough to handle, cut from the bone and either chop with a knife or pull apart with two forks. Remove the garlic and shallots from their skins, chop.  Remove it all to a large clean bowl and stir through the wine gear. Use as you see fit.

Butterflied Leg of Lamb with Chimichurri Marinade

Argentinian goodness. You can use this stuff as a marinade or as a sauce. It is simple and doesn't take long to prepare. As for the lamb leg, run a knife along the bone near the surface then just gently slice the meat away - 5 to 10 minutes. Failing that, get the butcher to do it for you. If you find you enjoy boning lamb legs (it isn't difficult) try the Boned Shoulder of Lamb with Herb Stuffing recipe. This was enough meat for 6 adults easily. The marinade will be better if it is made a couple of days before hand.

1 butterflied leg of lamb

1/2 a bunch of flat leaf parsley

3 tbs fresh oregano

1 tbs of fresh thyme

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp pimenton (smoked paprika)
1 tbs white or red wine vinegar
Juice of half a lemon
Salt and pepper
Chilli flakes
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Chopped basil


Combine the parsley, oregano, thyme, garlic, pimenton, vinegar, half of the lemon juice, plenty of salt and some cracked pepper, chilli flakes and 3 tbs olive oil in a blender. Blitz until it is all combined then check for seasoning adding more lemon juice, olive oil or chilli flakes if necessary. Smear all over the butterflied leg of lamb, cover and refrigerate for a few hours. Preheat a barbecue that has a lid (alternatively use a large roasting tray or some foil) to high. Place on the lamb reduce the heat to medium low and cover with the lid. Turn after 5 minutes, check for flare ups. Turn every 5 to 10 minutes re-closing the lid and keep checking for doneness until it is cooked - about 20 minutes for medium.
Remove to a tray and cover with foil and rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Slice the meat on an angle, arrange on a serving tray, splash over some balsamic and some chopped basil. I served this with smashed potatoes and a green salad.

Lamb Neck Braised with Mushroom finished with Fresh Tomato and Ricotta

Tasty, easy and cheap.

400 gms lambs neck slices
2 cups flour
2 tbs rosemary chopped
Salt and pepper
1 glass red wine
1 cup beer (I used White Stag)
1 lemon quartered
5 button mushrooms sliced
5 or 6 pieces dried porcini
2 cloves garlic sliced
1 clove garlic whole 
4 tbs ricotta
1 handful basil leaves
1 carrot diced
1 potato diced
1 small sweet potato diced
Olive oil


Season the flour with the rosemary and salt and pepper. Cover the dried porcini in boiling water for five minutes, remove then chop, reserving the water. Dust the lamb neck slices in the flour then sear with some olive oil over medium high in a casserole dish. When they have nice colour, remove to a clean plate. Add a little more oil to the casserole dish and quickly saute the mushrooms and sliced garlic until fragrant. Stir in 2 tbs of the seasoned flour and cook for a further minute or so. Add in the lamb necks and their juice, the root vegetables and quartered lemon. Deglaze the pan with the red wine, beer and the mushroom water, removing all bits from the bottom of the dish. Return to the boil, reduce the heat to very low, add a lid and simmer gently for 3 hours.
Blitz the basil leaves, whole garlic clove and ricotta.
After three hours remove the lemon quarters, stir through the ricotta mixture, check for seasoning and spoon into bowls. Serve with nice crusty bread.

Boned Shoulder of Lamb with Herb Stuffing

I went to a mates place yesterday to speak nonsense and ended up watching him bone out a lamb shoulder and shove cool stuff inside it and roll it for roasting. I swung around today to see if he had scraps left to try, thankfully he did. It was perfect, it was a great combination of flavours. Neither of us had boned out a shoulder before but it was very simple, he just ran a knife carefully around the bone and gently halved a lump at one end to make it flat. It was all over in under 5 minutes. If this scares you, buy one boned or use a different cut or a chicken boob. For the cool stuff, we just went and grabbed some herbs from outside and blended it with some stuff from the fridge. The message here is, experiment and have fun with flavours. When I get around to making this, I will add a photo. I also think that this would work very, very well  unrolled in a barbecue with a lid.

 

1 boned lamb shoulder

1/2 bunch parsley

1/2 bunch sage

2 sprigs rosemary stripped

3 cloves garlic

2 tsp capers

1 handful grated Parmesan

Extra virgin olive oil

Rind of 1 lime

1 tbs seeded mustard

2 slices prosciutto

Salt and pepper

Blend the herbs, garlic, rind, capers, mustard, Parmesan and enough extra virgin to make it wet. Paint the herb mixture on one entire side of the shoulder. Lay the prosciutto across the stuffing. Roll the meat up and tie with kitchen string in a number of places along the roast. Season the exterior with salt and pepper and rub with oil. Roast in a preheated 220C oven for 20 minutes then reduce the heat to 180C. Roast for 2 hours or to you liking. Good job bro.

Sage, parsley, lime, garlic, pistachio, anchovie

Kofta

Kofta sounds so much nicer than skinless sausage but essentially that's what it is. Lean and as tasty as you want it to be. Add in pine nuts, use diced eggplant, add some chilli, serve with yoghurt etc etc.

500gms mince

Parsley minced

Oregano minced

Basil leaves minced

Thyme minced

Rind of 1 lemon

2 tbs marinaded feta

2 cloves garlic minced

1 egg

1 cup bread crumbs

2 mushrooms minced

Salt and pepper

Marinated feta

Sour cream

Shredded basil

Juice of half a lemon

Steamed vegetables

Combine the bread crumbs, mince, egg, minced herbs, mushroom, rind, garlic, salt and pepper and feta in a large bowl for 5 minutes. Working the meat makes it bind better. Form the mixture into short sausages. I wet my hands with olive oil as I go so that the mixture doesn't stick to my fingers or each other. Shallow fry over a medium heat turning when they have nice colour. While the kofta are cooking combine the shredded basil, sour cream and lemon juice. Top the kofta with the basil flavoured sour cream and serve with steamed vegetables.

Lamb Shanks with an Asparagus and Ricotta Sauce

Easy and lighter tasting than most shank recipes I have made.

1 shank per person
Stripped rosemary
Chopped garlic
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 cup red wine
4 or 5 tbs ricotta
1 bunch asparagus thinly sliced
Chicken stock
1/2 tbs fresh basil
1/2 tbs fresh parsley
1/2 tbs fresh mint
2 cloves garlic
Steamed cauliflower

Preheat an oven to 130C. Grind the stripped rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper and some olive oil in a pestle and mortar until you have a rough paste. Rub the paste over each shank. Sear the shanks on the stove in the casserole/roasting dish you are going to use until they have nice colour. Pour in the red wine, add a lid and place in the oven for 3 or so hours. Baste the shanks occasionally.
When the shanks are ready, pour off or spoon out all of the rendered fat. Place the cooking dish back on the stove top and heat to medium. Deglaze the pan with about 1 cup of chicken stock. Mince the garlic, basil, parsley and mint. Add the minced herbs, asparagus slices and ricotta to the chicken stock. Reduce slightly and check for seasoning. Place a shank on each plate, top with sauce and serve with the veg.

Whole Beef Shank Slow Cooked with Sage Tapenade

Not as complicated but easily as tasty as it sounds. Can't get a whole beef shank? - use osso bucco slices. Don't like olives? - leave 'em out (its no longer close to a tapenade however). I fully plan to use this method again but I think that next time I will use a slow cooker or add an hour of cooking time. To be true to the result that I created tonight I will use the cooking time here I used. My recommendation to you however if you want to try this would be to use a slow cooker. As this is a large chunk of meat full of sinew, it needs more love than it would in slices as in osso bucco. What I did was tender but didn't melt.
Should be enough meat for 6 adults. As for the pictures, annoyingly I could not rotate the first 2 no matter how hard I tried...


1 whole trimmed beef shank (see pic)
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 stick celery in small dice
1 capsicum in small dice
1 carrot in small dice
1 onion in small dice
5 medium sized field mushroom in slices
1/2 bottle red wine
4 tbs oven roasted cherry tomatoes
1/2 bunch sage
3 cloves garlic chopped
3 large green olives minced
Extra virgin olive oil
3 or 4 tbs gremolata
2 bunches broccolini halved
2 bunches asparagus halved
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
Parmesan cheese
Some great mash
Some great bread

Olive oil, salt and pepper the shank and sear it on all sides over a medium high heat in a dish with a lid large enough to cook it in, remove and allow to cool for a bit. Combine the chopped olive, sage, chopped garlic and enough extra virgin olive oil to lubricate the mixture. Rub the olive/sage mixture on the outside of the shank. Reheat the cooking dish then toss through the diced carrot, onion, capsicum, celery and sliced field mushrooms through the left over shank seared oil. Deglaze the pan with red wine, nestle in the shank, scatter the cherry tomatoes around the shank, cover and slow cook at 130C for 3 hours.
Prep the rest of the vegetables, and heat the water etc. Make the mash and cover. Remove the shank to a clean plate and cover with foil. Spoon off as much fat with a spoon as you can and discard. Add half the gremolata to the shank sauce and cover for 5 -10 minutes while you finish everything else off.
Steam the greens for 5 mins starting with the broccolini then adding the asparagus 2 mins later (depending on thickness). Drain the greens, allow to steam out for a minute then dress with the extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper, lemon juice and as much Parmesan as you like.
Try to carve the shank off the bone in 2 or 3 large chunks then slice as thick as necessary (I went for 1cm thick slices). Spoon some shank sauce/vegetables onto clean bowls or plates, add some mash and top with slices of meat, more gremolata and greens with pieces of bread on the side. My mash had horseradish in it.

Roasted Lamb Rump With Pomegranate Sauce

Until last night I had not eaten pomegranate. I was on the phone to a mate recently when his lunch of chicken with pomegranate arrived and since then I have ben intrigue, it sounded cool. In any case, this was really enjoyable and was the perfect meal to greet my wife with when she returned home from hospital with a new baby. The only time consuming part was removing the seeds from the fruit but it was worth it.

1 lamb rump
1 sprig rosemary finely chopped
Olive oil
Porcini salt
Pepper
1 tbs butter
1/2 a leek finely diced
1 shallot finely diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup red wine
3 tbs pomegranate seeds
1 tbs sugar (more may be necessary)
3 tbs finely chopped parsley
Sweet potato discs
Mash (I went for sour cream and mayonaise)
Sugar snap peas

Season the rump with oil, porcini salt, pepper, rosemary and massage into the meat. Heat a large frying pan with some oil to medium high and sear the lamb rump on all sides then place into a preheated 200C oven. Roast for 20 minutes, checking and turning half way through. When the meat is ready (it should be medium/medium rare), remove to a clean plate and cover with foil and a tea towel to rest for 10 minutes.
While the lamb is cooking and resting make the pomegranate sauce. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. When foaming add the leek, shallot and garlic and saute until translucent, pour in the wine and 1 tbs of pomegranate seed. Reduce over a high heat for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes strain the sauce through a sieve, discard the leek/seed gear, add the liquid back into the saucepan with 2 tbs of parsley, rested meat juice, the remaining seeds and sugar and reduce until it coats the back of a spoon. Check for for seasoning adding more sugar if necessary.
Slice the meat thickly, arrange on plates and spoon over some sauce and top with parsley. Serve with some sweet potato discs, mash and sugar snaps.  

Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb with Red Wine and Maple Syrup

This was gooood. I've seen maple used with roasts before but usually its pork but I thought I would give it a go and it was worth experimenting with. As an educated guess I would say that a well flavoured honey would work equally as well. Tonight I used about 1 tbs of maple syrup but I think that 2 or 3 would have been better, the flavour really goes to the background but the result is quite complex. The actual best part  of this (apart from the ridiculously tender meat) was the mushrooms, they really absorbed all of the flavours and intensified them.

1 lamb leg (mine was about 2.5kg)
2 cups red wine
2 or 3tbs maple syrup
1 sprig of rosemary stripped
3 cloves of garlic in thick slices
4 cloves garlic whole, skin on
About 10 button mushrooms
1 or 2 tbs cream
2 or 3 tsp porcini salt
Pepper
Olive oil
Potato (I used Desiree)
Thyme sprigs
Steamed snow peas

Make small incisions into the lamb with a small sharp knife all over the lamb. Widen each with either your finger or the non-business end of a spoon or knife. Shove the slices of garlic into the newly formed holes in the lamb, pour a little oil over the lamb, season with porcini salt and pepper and massage the rosemary all over the leg. Add the mushroom, whole garlic, wine and maple syrup into a roasting dish or large saucepan, add the lamb on top, add foil (or a lid) and place into a pre-heated 130C oven for 3 hours. After 3 hours remove the lid, increase the temperature to 140C and baste the lamb with the red wine. Place back into the oven for another 2 hours uncovered, basting every 20 - 30 minutes. Slice the potatoes in half length ways and boil until just tender. Remove the lamb from the oven to a clean plate and cover with foil and a tea towel. Squish the garlic out of its skin into the red wine, add the cream and mix in. Place the red wine on the stove top over a medium heat to reduce a little, adding more liquid if required. Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and add the thyme then the potatoes cut side down. Cook until golden. Carve the meat, serve with the potato and steamed snow peas and the red wine and maple sauce.

Risotto with Greek Lamb Sausage and Oven Roasted Mushroom

Any sausage would be fine, this was just what was available at the butchers.

500gms Greek lamb sausages
2 large field mushrooms
2 cups risotto rice
4 cups chicken stock (more may be necessary)
1/2 an onion finely diced
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 tbs butter
Extra virgin olive oil
1 cup white wine
Salt and pepper
1/2 a handful of parsley finely chopped
2 tbs grated Parmesan cheese

Heat the stock in a medium sized saucepan. Line a baking tray with baking paper, place the mushrooms on top, sprinkle them with white wine, garlic, salt and pepper and extra virgin olive oil and place into a pre-heated 180C oven for about 20 minutes or until collapsed. Fry the sausages in a large, heavy based frying pan with high sides cover with foil and keep warm. Tip out all except about 1 tbs of sausage fat then saute the onion and 2 cloves of minced garlic over a medium high heat. When translucent add the risotto rice and toss to coat, toasting for about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the wine and allow to almost completely absorb. Reduce the heat to medium. From this point add 1 ladle of stock at a time when each previous one is almost absorbed. When the stock is almost all gone, try a few rice grains, if they are still uncooked add more stock to your saucepan and continue until cooked. This should take about 18 - 20 minutes. Chop up half of the sausages and mushroom. When adding the final ladle, add the chopped sausage and mushroom, chopped parsley, the Parmesan, check for seasoning, toss and add the lid and turn off the heat. Allow to sit for 4 or 5 minutes.
Spoon the risotto into warmed bowls, top with slices of the remaining sausage and mushroom and some extra virgin olive oil.