Mint & Honey Lamp Chops

Last Monday I decided to swan around Union Square farmers market. It was a magical afternoon surrounded by the gifts of nature. With a brief stop at Eve’s cidery to quench my thirst, I moved on to the Hawthorne valley farm tent looking at the prettiest and tinniest Sungold cherry tomatoes that were so pretty, they should have been set in a ring…fearing my next stop may be at the jewelers, I moved on swiftly.

Pulled by my eyes and nose I arrived at the lush green tent filled with foliage, boasting of potted lavender, basil, mint and oh so many more herbs. I wondered how charming it would be to have my apartment smell like this. But as usual, my voice of reason went off and I reminded myself that i didn’t inherit dad’s green fingers and I owed it to Mother Nature to not kill off yet another one of her plants. After much deliberation, I picked up the bundles of mint, cilantro and parsley and decided that even if I can’t grow them, I can cook them. I pulled out my Ottolenghi book as I knew Sami and Yotam (the culinary geniuses behind this fantastic cookbook) had a recipe in there using all three herbs in a rack of lamb dish. And there it was: marinated rack of lamb with mint and honey. I was so excited to make this and I got to be Yotam and Sami for a little while. With limited deviation, I made this rack of lamb and after one bite, all I could say was ‘bless these boys for their contribution to the world of ‘serious eaters’.

Ingredients

1 kg rack of lamb
1 cup of flat leaf parsley
1 cup of mint
1 cup of cilantro/ coriander leaves
4 cloves of garlic
1” piece of ginger
2 green chillies
½ tsp salt
50ml lemon juice
60ml soy sauce
120ml olive oil
3 tbsp honey
2tbsp red wine vinegar
4 tbsp water

Method

1) Slice the rack of lamb into pairs or single pieces
2) Blend together the remaining ingredients in the food processor
3) Pour the marinade over the rack of lamb and allow to sit in refrigerator overnight
4) Preheat oven to 200 degrees
5) On the stove top, heat a large skillet and sear the lamb chops for 5 minutes on each side (if you sliced the lamb chops in to single pieces, sear for about 3 minutes on each side), reserving the extra marinade for later
6) Transfer the chops to a baking tray and bake for about 10-15 minutes depending on desired level of cooking

Serving Suggestions

1) This can be served with any side dish one could possibly think of. Here are some suggestions:
2) Golden beet and feta salad
3) Rice with cashews and raisins
4) Roasted butternut squash
5) Baby field of greens, sliced onion and cannellini beans
6) Wine ~ Spinetta’s Barbera Ca di Pian

Pearls of Wisdom

When searing the lamb chops, do not place more than 3 -4 chops at a time or it will become watery and you will lose that crisped skin