itinerant foodies

I broke with my No Recipe Clipping policy last week.

I can explain.

Before my trip, I loaded up on magazines for beach-reading material, and one of those happened to be a copy of Food Network Magazine that I’d scavenged from the giveaway table at work.  I’ve resisted that one at the newsstands, and as I flipped through the pages, I smugly congratulated myself on saving my money for other publications. Until, that is, I turned the page and saw this Olive-and-Spice-Rubbed Leg of Lamb.

Briny, pungent olives, earthy cumin and paprika, fresh herbs, and one of my favorite types of meat? My head was instantly turned.

Of course, I made a few changes.

In keeping with the flavors of the marinade, I substituted olive oil for butter. And I missed, somehow, the “kosher” part of “kosher salt” and used plain old table salt instead, and a full tablespoon at that. I doubled the specified amounts of parsley and cilantro to compensate, which seemed to work just fine.

The lamb was supposed to be broiled, but I wasn’t about to turn on the oven in my non-airconditioned apartment, especially as the temperature had finally dropped a bit. No, this baby was destined for the grill. I should’ve adjusted the cooking time a bit more—the olives charred in no time, their flavor almost impossible to detect. The meat cooked much faster than I anticipated; although closer to well-done than the medium-rare I normally prefer, it was still robustly flavored and dripping with juice.

A pot of orzo, simmered with broth, parsley, dill and Parmesan, and thin slices of grilled zucchini turned out to be great foils to the meat. The zukes brought a slight sweetness to the plate, and that combination of dill and lamb is classic for a reason.

I’d originally planned on serving this to a crowd, but it wound up being just the two of us instead; we’re now swimming in leftovers. I stuffed a few slices into a wrap, added some spinach for crunch, a spoonful of orzo for salty-creamy-herby flavor, and a dollop or two of horseradish mustard for something astringent, and voila: lunch.

That barely made a dent, though. The suggestion box is open: What should I do with the rest of this meat?

Olive-and-Spice-Rubbed Leg of Lamb
From Food Network Magazine

3 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons coriander seeds, crushed
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, crushed
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup pitted mixed green and black olives
1/2 cup fresh parsley
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
Juice of 1 lemon
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened [I used olive oil.]
1 5- to 7-pound boneless leg of lamb, butterflied and trimmed of surface fat (have the butcher do this for you)

1. Puree the garlic, paprika, coriander, cumin, 1 tablespoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper into a paste in a mini food processor. Add the olives, parsley, cilantro and lemon juice; pulse to chop. Add the butter and pulse to incorporate all the ingredients.

2. Cut the lamb along a natural seam into 2 equal pieces. Rub the olive-spice mixture evenly all over the lamb; cover and refrigerate for 2 to 6 hours.

3. Bring the lamb to room temperature about 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the broiler and line a broiler pan with foil. Place the lamb smooth-side down on the pan. Broil just until charred, about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven; carefully turn the lamb, using tongs. Return to the oven; broil until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reads 125 to 130 degrees, about 10 more minutes.

4. Transfer the lamb to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil and let rest for 10 minutes. Slice across the grain and arrange on a platter.

Orzo with Herbs
From Food Network Magazine

Cook 2 cups orzo in salted boiling water until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain. Chop 6 scallions; cook just the white parts in a skillet with olive oil until tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in the orzo, 2 cups chicken broth, the scallion greens and a handful each of chopped parsley and dill; season with salt and pepper. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup grated parmesan. 

Tags: Food Network Magazine, grill, lamb, orzo

This entry was posted on August 13, 2009 at 5:01 pm and is filed under Home Cooking. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.