Curried Lamb Leg with Roasted Grape Relish and Smashed Chickpeas

I know. Lamb is really cute. But you know what else it is? DEEElicious. It may make some people think of spring lamb, but I think of autumn grills and winter braises. Lamb represents the richer end of the red meat spectrum, so it’s perfectly suited for long marinades and slow cooking. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. As much as I love sitting by the fireplace in the depth of winter with a hearty roast, we’re still just crossing the border into fall. Let’s save the deep roasting for later in the year. That doesn’t mean we can’t have succulent lamb now, though!

With a bold marinade, a healthy sear and a little time to finish in the oven, lamb is a great transition from summer to fall to winter.  Throw in a couple of summery flavors and you’ve got this great blend of seasons on your plate!

Curried Lamb Leg with Roasted Grape Relish and Smashed Chickpeas
Serves 4

Chickpea Smash
1 ½ pints Dry Chickpeas
¾ Cinnamon Stick
1 ½ tsp Fennel Seed
Pinch Whole Black Peppercorns
1 ½ tsp Whole Cumin
3 tsp Kosher Salt, divided
2/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Pinch Lemon Zest
½ tsp Lemon Juice
1 tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
½ cup  Chicken Stock
½ cup Smoked Flagship

Lamb Marinade
3 Tbsp Garlic Clove, very roughly chopped
2 Tbsp Madras Curry Powder
2 ½ tsp  Whole Dried Oregano
½ tsp Cayenne Powder
4 Tbsp Olive Oil
3 Tbsp Seasoned Rice Vinegar
1 ½ tsp Kosher Salt
4 trimmed legs of lamb, 7 oz each
2 Tbsp Canola Oil

Roasted Grape Relish
4 cups de-stemmed, halved red and green grapes
1 Tbsp Canola Oil
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
1 tsp Kosher Salt
2 Tbsp Capers in juice
3 Tbsp Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar
1 ½ tsp thinly sliced Red Onion
Dash Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Pinch Kosher Salt
1 Tbsp Mint, very coarse chiffonade
1 Tbsp Italian Parsley, very coarsely chopped

Soak beans overnight. Rinse and sort well. In a wide stockpot, cover beans with cold water.  Create a cheesecloth satchel with the spices, except the salt, and add to the pot.  Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium and cook until done but not mushy, about 1 hour. While cooking, remove starch as it rises to the surface. The last 15 minutes of cooking add 2 teaspoons of the kosher salt. Strain the beans and reserve 1/3 cup of the cooking liquid.  Combine beans, reserved liquid and olive oil in a food processor and mix coarsely, leaving plenty of chunky texture. Put mixture in a large bowl and mix in lemon, ground pepper and remaining salt. Transfer it all to a large pan and combine with chicken stock and Smoked Flagship cheese over medium heat until cheese is melted, stirring regularly.

Combine the garlic, curry powder, oregano, olive oil and kosher salt for the marinade. Add the lamb and toss to coat well and marinate for 3 – 8 hours. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F and heat a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Once hot, add 2 tablespoons of canola oil but don’t let it get hot enough to start smoking. Remove lamb from marinade and put it in the pan, searing until a nice, caramelized crust forms, about 3-4 minutes. Turn the legs over in the pan and cook for a few more minutes. Transfer lamb to the oven either in the same pan or an oven safe dish and finish for about 4 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 130 degrees F. Remove from the oven and let the meat rest for about 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 200 with convection fan on high. Toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and the canola oil. Pour onto a baking sheet and bake. Check at an hour that they’re not over-cooked. It will likely take about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Remove grapes and toss them well with all remaining ingredients.

Plate by spooning about ¾ cup of the chickpea smash into the middle of the plate. Spoon 3 tablespoons of the relish alongside the chickpeas. Cut the lamb in two on a bias and place on top of the chickpeas, next to the grape relish. 

I recommend making the roasted grape relish while the lamb is marinating so you don’t have to worry about conflicting oven temperatures. The pictures here are with the lamb sliced, but in playing around with it, I decided I liked the two big chunks of lamb described in the recipe better. Let me know what you think in the comments!

BBQ Planked Salmon with Roasted Corn Risotto and Fresh Herb Salad

Wow, Seattle has really thrown us a curve ball in terms of weather, hasn’t it? It seems like we’ve actually got a full-on summer now, albeit a little later than usual.

I am more than fine with that though, because of the bounteous options that result from summer overlapping autumn like this. There’s a crazy explosion happening right now, where the fresh flavors of summer are still happening right alongside the earthy delights of autumn. That’s where this recipe comes from.

Fresh summer salmon with delicious roasted corn meets a light autumn risotto and hearty lobster mushrooms.

Bennett’s served it last week, and will continue to do so through the week, only now they’re using wild Bristol Bay Sockeye salmon as part of DineOut for Bristol Bay to help them save their wild salmon runs in Alaska.

I hope you enjoy the recipe – let me know how it works out for you!

BBQ Planked Salmon with Roasted Corn Risotto and Fresh Herb Salad

Serves 5

5 cedar plank boards

2 cups cleaned and torn (1 to 2-inch pieces) Lobster mushrooms
10 tsp canola oil
2-1/2 tsp Old Bay

2 lbs salmon, trimmed, cut into 5 equal pieces
5 tsp canola oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Roasted Corn Risotto (recipe follows)

Fresh Herb Salad (recipe follows)

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Set cedar planks in water to soak for at least 1 hour.

While the planks are soaking, prepare the mushrooms. Toss the mushrooms with oil and Old Bay. Bake on a baking sheet until they begin to brown and start to soften, about 8 minutes. Set aside.

Prepare your grill by scraping it, oiling it, and heating it to medium-high. Put the wet planks on the grill for a few minutes. Brush the salmon with the oil (about 1 tsp per piece) and add a sprinkle of salt and pepper to each side of each piece. Place the salmon on the planks and cover. Cook until the juices turn opaque and solid on the top of the fish and it is just cooked through, about 8 minutes.

To plate, scoop some Roasted Corn Risotto into a bowl, then lay the salmon on top. Top with the Fresh Herb Salad and place the mushrooms around the bowl.

ROASTED CORN RISOTTO

2 ears of corn, cleaned and kernels cut off the cob
2-1/2 tsp canola oil
pinch of Kosher salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper

7 to 8 cups low-sodium chicken stock
2-1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cups minced white onion
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
2-1/2 cups Arborio rice
1-1/3 cups dry white wine
1-1/2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
2/3 cup Beecher’s Brad’s Parmesan, large grated
2/3 cup cream
1-1/3 Tbsp freshly chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley
2-1/2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1-1/3 Tbsp grated lemon zest

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

First, prepare the corn by tossing it with the oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast until done and slightly brown (about 20 minutes).  Set aside to cool.

Heat the stock to a simmer in a medium saucepan.  If using an unsalted broth, add 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt. Reduce the heat to very low. 

In a large heavy-bottomed skillet at least 10 inches wide, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and salt.  Cook slowly for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often with a wooden spoon until softened.

Add the Arborio rice to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, to coat the rice with the oil, about 3 minutes.  Pour in the white wine and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes or until it is mostly absorbed.  Ladle 2 to 2 1/2 cups of the stock over the rice and stir constantly.  (Adjust the heat to maintain a gently simmer.)  When all of the liquid has been absorbed, (your stirring spoon leaves a trail showing the bottom of the pot), ladle in another 1 ½ to 2 cups of stock, again stirring until the liquid has been absorbed.  After the third and final addition of stock, after the liquid has been absorbed, taste the rice for texture to determine whether it’s al dente and pleasantly creamy.  (If you prefer a softer risotto, add more stock until it has the desired consistency.)

After the last ladle of stock is added, remove from the heat and stir in the cheeses and cream.  Fold in the parsley, 1 1/4 cups of the roasted corn, lemon juice and lemon zest.  Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

FRESH HERB SALAD

1/2 cup shallots, thinly sliced
2 pinches of Kosher salt
2 Tbsp + 1 tsp sherry vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
3-1/3 cups canola-olive oil blend
pinch fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup rough chop mix of fresh dill, chive, parsley and basil (tear basil, don’t cut)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the shallots in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, cover with the vinegar and stir until well combined. Let the mushroom mixture sit for at least 15 minutes. Strain out the shallots and set aside, leaving the vinegar in the bowl. To the vinegar, add the lemon juice, canola-olive oil blend, remaining salt, pepper and sugar.

Before serving, in a small bowl, toss the reserved shallots and with the mixed herbs and vinegar dressing. Salt and pepper to taste.

Petite Filet with rhubarb, smoked grits and portabello-leek straw

All the wine went in the sheet pan.
No sips. I swear.

The sun is out again today! I have to admit that every sunny Spring day in Seattle I secretly believe that it will now be that way the rest of the year. Yes, my 52 years of personal weather data in the Northwest tells me otherwise…  But at least it brings Rhubarb.
At Sugar Mountain, we recently held a fundraising dinner to help out the Mercer Island Boys & Girls Club (you can see pictures on my facebook page). We put together a number of courses for the event, but the petite filet with roasted rhubarb was a particular hit.  So, we chose it to be this week's special at Bennett's and the featured recipe here on the blog.

This recipe has several parts, but don't get discouraged by the components. It turns out to be pretty simple.

The chopped rhubargb

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

3 stalks of rhubarb
1 cup plu 3 Tbsp sugar
1-750ml bottle redfruit-forward red wine
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 large head of celery
8 tsp canola oil
3 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 cups water

Cut & dressed celery

1 cup grits
6 oz smoked flagship, grated
1/2 tsp chile powder
1/4 Tbsp garlic powder
1/4 Tbsp celery salt
6-6oz petite filets
1 portabello cap - gills removed
1 leek (1 1/2 inches diameter)
1/2 cup flour

Directions:

Preheat to 375 degrees F. 

Glistening, roasted rhubarb

Cut the rhubarb into similar 3 1/2 inch pieces, reserving trim. Place the 3 1/2 inch pieces onto a sheet pan and sprinkle liberally with one cup of sugar. Pour the red wine into the sheet pan, being careful not to wash the sugar from the rhubarb. Roast the rhubarb for approximately 15 minutes, until barely softened. Remove the rhubarb to a separate bowl and leave the wine in the sheet pan. Place the rhubarb trim onto the same sheet pan, add the remaining sugar and return the pan to the oven for 10 minutes, until it's not quite a syrup. Transfer the mixture to a saucepan over medium heat, whisk in unsalted butter and reduce to a syrupy consistency while stirring.

Roasted celery

Increase the oven heat to 450 degrees F.

Clean and trim the celery into 3 1/2 inch pieces. Toss with 2 teaspoons canola oil, 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and a couple grinds of black pepper. Place the celery on sheet pan and roast for approximately 15 minutes, until the celery has softened a little and has a small amount of brown. Reserve as a garnish.

Boil the water in a saucepan with a teaspoon of salt, and slowly stir in the grits. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for four minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the cheese and cook until the grits have reached your desired consistency (about 1 to 2 additional minutes).  A little “texture” is preferable.

Mix the remaining canola oil,the remaining salt, chile powder, garlic powder, celery salt and a pinch of black pepper, and rub the mixture into the petite filets. Sear filets in large a pan over high heat for about 1 1/2 minutes a side, until brown.  This step can be done as much as a day ahead.

Place the steaks on a grill over high heat, cover, and cook to temperature. Let the steaks rests for several minutes.

The Portabello-Leek Straw

Slice the bottom half off of the portabello cap to remove gills. Ideally using a mandolin, cut into very thin straws, about 2 1/2 inches in length. Clean the leek and cut into pieces identical to the mushroom straws. Toss each separately with just enough flour to make them dry to the touch. Fry briefly in canola oil at 385 degrees F in a pan or a fryer. Straws should be lightly brown and crispy. Salt to taste while still warm.

For plating, I recommend a rectangular dish. Scoop grits into the center. A Tablespoon of  the rhubarb reduction under the steak. Cut steak on a diagonal to create three triangular pieces to be arranged on the sauce. Lay a piece of roasted rhubarb against the other side of the grits and cross it with a piece of roasted celery. Top with a hefty portion of the portabello-leek straw.

Voila!

The staff at Bennett's really liked the way this one turned out too. You can see more pictures of the process on Bennett's facebook page. Love to hear what you think!

Prawn & Rockfish Pasta Verde

I know what you're thinking. When you read "Pasta Verde," you think, "Oh, jeez, not another chef talking about how great tomatillos are." And although I do like tomatillos, there are none in this recipe.

Like last week's asparagus soup, the verde sauce for this recipe was inspired by the bounty of vegetables in the produce crate delivered to our house. This time, cucumbers were abundant and the sun was (finally) peeking out, getting me in the mood for a crisply flavored, summertime type of dish. To see the weekly process of how I put together a dish over the course of the day, check out my facebook page. Every Wednesday is dedicated to a new special for Bennett's Pure Food Bistro or one the Pasta & Co.'s.

Now, I think cucumbers are shamefully underrated. Not only do people misattribute them to the vegetable family, they're often left only with the mild supporting roles of slices to dip in tzatziki or as a salad component. Even more so, when they are used, they're stripped of their most interesting and nutritional part - the skin. Usually peeled off, the skin of the cucumber holds the majority of the fiber, vitamin A and Vitamin C of this clean-flavored relative of the squash. If that weren't enough to encourage you to use a bit more of the skin, it also adds a tannic complexity to the flavor that is completely lost without it. 





If you'd like a great article
about cucumbers check out
gapersblock.com blog post.

Of course, the problem with leaving the skin on is that most cucumbers you find in the store (with the exception of English cucumbers) are coated in wax that is difficult to remove. I mean, sure, I like candles as much as the next guy, but they don't belong in my food. So to keep that tannic flavor element and all those good nutrients, I soak the cucumbers in almost hot water and then scrub the squash with a brush to remove all that unwanted wax.

Now that your cucumbers are wax-free and flavorfully liberated, let's head into this week's recipe.

Makes six entrees.

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh vermicelli, capellini or 2/3 lb dried
2 cucumbers, soaked in hot water to remove wax,
               cut into 1-inch pieces
2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp. olive oil
½ cup rice vinegar
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp Old Bay
1 Tbsp. plus ½ tsp. Kosher salt
1 ½ tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 very large yellow onion, chopped
1 ½ lb rockfish

1 ½ lb prawns
4 shallots, sliced and separated into rings
3-4 Tbsp. cornstarch for dusting shallots and rockfish
Salt & Pepper to taste for fish and shallots
Canola oil for sautéing and cooking shallots
1 bunch spinach leaves, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Fill a large pot with salted water and bring to a boil. Get the pasta ready to cook but hold off until you are ready to assemble the dish. Cook the pasta until al dente.

Combine cucumber and jalapenos with 1/3 cup olive oil, rice vinegar, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon Old Bay, 1 tablespoon kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper in a food processor and purée until it is the texture of thick salsa. Set aside.

Toss the onion in the remaining olive oil with ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon ground pepper. Spread the onions out on a baking sheet and roast in the oven until they are slightly soft and barely crisped at the corners, about 15 minutes. Set aside.

Toss the shallots with 1 tablespoon cornstarch, salt and pepper and fry in canola oil until crispy and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined dish. Set aside.

Cut the rockfish into six four-ounce portions. Season with salt and pepper and dust lightly with cornstarch. Heat oil in a large sauté pan over high heat until shimmering (before it smokes), place the rockfish pieces in the pan and cook until golden brown. Turn the fish over and cook for one minute on the other side, remove from pan .

Season the prawns with the remaining 1 teaspoon of Old Bay. In the same pan used for the rockfish, cook the prawns on one side until the edges are pink, turn over and cook briefly until the very center is opaque. Remove from the pan.

Cook the pasta according to package instructions.     

Using the same pan again, toss the pasta with the onions and cucumber sauce. Cook over high heat, add the spinach and toss to combine. Cook until the spinach has wilted.

To serve, portion the pasta mixture onto plates. Top with a portion of rockfish, a few prawns and a mound of fried shallots.

The result is a fresh tasting pasta that is light and healthy with that signature clean flavor of cucumber that pairs really well with blue sky and sunshine. Bennett's  (whose patio has been opened up a couple times already this season) will be serving this special through the weekend, until it runs out. So, stop by the restaurant to try it out (and fall in love with it) and then have the recipe at home for when you're craving it again!

Thanks for reading and I'll see you next week (or earlier on facebook or twitter)