Apricot & Mustard Glazed Rack of Lamb
About six months ago I had bought a couple of racks of lamb at Costco, which were marked down for some reason. They looked fine so I brought them home, repackaged them and froze them to use at a later date. This weekend I thawed one out and roasted it for our Sunday lunch.
It was absolutely beautiful. I can't think why it had been reduced, perhaps the original packaging had been punctured or some such. In any case there was nothing wrong with it at all.
Lamb is not something we ever ate when I was growing up. Mom did try to cook some lamb chops once, but they were not popular with any of us. I suspect strongly that they were mutton and not lamb as they smelled like she was burning a pair of mittens when she was cooking them!
When mom was in the hospital having my brother (over 60 years ago!) she had remembered having a lamb stew and she always talked about how delicious it was. Until moving here to the UK, chops that smelt like burnt mittens and mom's memory of lamb stew were my only experiences with lamb.
I have come to love and enjoy lamb very much here in the UK. We have some of the most beautiful tasting lamb in the world. Our hillsides are covered with sheep, everywhere you look. That was one thing I noticed when I first moved over here and had a chance to wander about in the countryside. Sheep, sheep everywhere.
We also pay a lot more for local lamb than we do for New Zealand lamb. I am not sure what is up with that, but I can tell you, local lamb is worth the extra cost. It's is simply wonderful.
I decided to use a recipe for a glazed rack of lamb that I found on Linger. It sounded delicious with a fabulous Apricot and Mustard glaze.
The original recipe was for the use of two racks of lamb. I cut it in half successfully.
It called for a full 4 cloves of garlic for the full recipe. I tried it with two, but I could tell that it was going to be obnoxious as soon as I had minced it all with the thyme. The smell was far too strong. I cut both in half yet again and that was perfect.
She talked about the glaze becoming somewhat of a sauce to spoon over the lamb. I didn't end up with a sauce. My glaze was simply a glaze, but it did taste beautiful and I feel it was a smart move on my part to cut back on the garlic and the thyme.
The full whack would have totally over-powered the natural taste of the lamb. I like to taste what I am eating. Any complimentary flavours should do just that. Compliment, not overpower.
Just my opinion of course! But if you are paying a huge price tag for a beautiful piece of meat, lets taste the meat!
The timings were spot on. I ended up with beautifully roasted lamb, nice and pink just like we enjoy it.
I loved the glaze just as I did it. It was fruity and mellow and went perfect with the lamb.
We both really enjoy this delicious entree. I served it with the Balsamic Roasted New Potatoes & Asparagus I shared the other day with you. This was a perfect Springtime menu.
Apricot & Mustard Glazed Rack of Lamb
Yield: 4
Perfctly cooked and glazed rack of lamb, with beautiful flavours. Elegant and yet very simple to execute.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 pound rack of lamb, french trimmed
- 1 tsp fine seasalt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 heaped dessertspoon of apricot preserves (about 1/4 cup)
- 1 heaped dessertspoon of grainy Dijon mustard (about 1/4 cup)
- 2 tsp minced fresh thyme leaves
- 1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely minced
Instructions:
- Line a baking sheet with aluminium foil. Spray the foil with some canola cooking spray. Lay the rack of lamb on it. Season on both sides with the salt and pepper.
- Stir together the apricot jam and the mustard. Stir in the thyme and the garlic. Spread 1/3 of this mixture on both sides of the lamb.
- Let the lamb sit for one hour undisturbed until it comes to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 230*C/450*F. gas mark 7.
- Spread 1/3 of the remaining apricot jam mixture on the top of the lamb. Place the baking tray with the lamb into the oven and roast for five minutes. Spoon over another 1/3 of the jam mixture. Roast for a further five minutes. Spoon on the remainder of the jam mixture and roast for 20 minutes longer. (50*C/120*F rare) or for 25 minutes (52*C/125*F medium rare) or for 30 minutes (55*C/130*F medium).
- Remove from the oven to a cutting board. Tent lightly with foil and leave to rest for 14 minutes. Cut each portion alotting two ribs per serving size.
If you have some lamb and are looking for a beautiful and delicious way of preparing it, this would not be a bad choice! I think this would make an excellent dinner party entree with two racks and maybe a Potato Gratin on the side. Bon Appetit as they say!
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