Lamb Rack with Orange, Mint & Dried Fig Salad

Orange, Mint & Dried Fig Salad
1⁄3 cup lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 oranges, peeled with sharp knife, removing the pith, and sliced
4 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced (on a mandoline if you have one)
1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
6 Dried Figs, slised
1⁄3 cup pitted black olives
1⁄3 cup firmly packed mint leaves
120g marinated feta, crumbled

For the lamb and to serve
3 lamb racks (8 cutlets in each)
olive oil for rubbing
2 cups firmly packed baby spinach



Orange, Mint & Dried Fig Salad
Combine the lemon juice and oil and season to taste. Arrange the orange slices on each serving plate and top with radishes, onion, dates, olives and mint leaves. Sprinkle with feta and drizzle with the dressing.

For the lamb and to serve
Rub the lamb with oil, season and chargrill or barbecue over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes each side for rare. Rest, loosely covered, in a warm place for 5 minutes. Divide the watercress among the plates alongside the salad, top with sliced lamb and serve the couscous in a bowl on the side. Serves 6.

Roasted Lamb Rack with Mint & Cucumber Salsa & New Potato Salad

Ingredients
Mint & Cucumber Salsa
1 cup mint leaves, coarsely torn
2 small Lebanese cucumbers, diced (peeled if desired)
12 anchovy fillets
1 tablespoon caster sugar
2 tablespoons malt vinegar
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Potato Salad
500g baby potatoes, washed
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 small red onion, finely sliced
150g cow’s milk feta
½ cup flat-leafed parsley leaves
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

For the lamb
2 x 8-bone lamb racks, trimmed of any sinew
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons finely chopped thyme or oregano leaves
2 tablespoons olive oil

Method
Mint & Cucumber Salsa
Combine all the ingredients and season with salt and black pepper to taste.

Potato Salad
Boil the potatoes in plenty of salted water until cooked through. Drain, peel and slice the potatoes. Place in a serving bowl with the remaining ingredients and serve warm.

For the lamb
Preheat the oven to 220°C. Rub the lamb well with all the remaining ingredients. Brown the lamb racks in a heavy-based frying pan then transfer to an oven dish and roast for around 15 minutes, or a little longer if the racks are large.

Rest the lamb in a warm place for at least 7 minutes. Carve the lamb into cutlets and serve with the potato salad and salsa. Serves 4

Aromatic Lamb-Stuffed Pasta with Apricots & Spinach

 Ingredients
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
large pinch of hot chilli flakes
1 tablespoon toasted ground coriander seeds
finely grated zest and juice of ½ orange
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
650g minced lamb
salt and freshly ground black pepper
18 precooked cannelloni shells
6 dried apricots, thinly sliced
250ml water
500ml beef stock
2 large handfuls spinach leaves, wilted in boiling water, cooled in cold water and squeezed dry
250ml plain unsweetened yoghurt
½ cup toasted pine nuts
mint leaves for serving

Method
Heat the oil in a frying pan over moderate heat. Add the onion, garlic, chilli flakes, coriander seeds and orange zest. Fry gently for about 10 minutes until the onion is soft and golden. Set aside to cool a little then put in a bowl, add the cinnamon and lamb, season and mix well. Stuff the cannelloni shells with this mixture, pushing it in from each end with your fingers.

Preheat the oven to 190°C. Place the stuffed cannelloni side by side in a shallow metal roasting dish. Sprinkle the apricots in between and pour the orange juice, water and stock over the top. Cover and place in the oven for 40 minutes until the cannelloni are tender. Remove from the oven and carefully lift the cannelloni on to a warm serving platter.

Place the roasting dish on the heat and bring the liquid to the boil. Add the spinach, teasing it out as it heats through. Taste and season. Pour the spinach mixture over the cannelloni. Drizzle some yoghurt on top and serve sprinkled with pine nuts and mint leaves. Serves 6



Enjoy!

Lamb Cutlets, Minted Pea Purée, Ribbons of Parsnip & Carrot

There's no need for sauce with the fresh minty flavour of the purée. If you prefer you can add a little stock to the purée to make it softer and more moist. Serve with Chardonnay or a light red wine.

Ingredients
12-18 small lamb cutlets trimmed of fat
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 sprigs chopped fresh thyme
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1kg frozen minted peas
3-4 sprigs of mint
2 tablespoons vegetable or chicken stock
3 large carrots
3 parsnips
1 tablespoon butter
300mls chicken stock

Method
Put the lamb cutlets in a shallow bowl and toss with the oil, thyme and salt and pepper. Put aside while you prepare the vegetables.

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and tip the peas in with the mint sprigs. Simmer for 5 minutes until tender. Drain well and place in a blender or food processor with the stock. Blend until smooth, season to taste and then return to the pan to keep warm.

Peel the carrots and parsnips and cut into fine ribbons, using a mandolin or a potato peeler. Melt the butter in a pan, toss in the ribbons of carrot and parsnip and add the chicken stock. Cook for about 2-3 minutes until just starting to wilt.

Meanwhile, heat a heavy-based frying pan and sear the cutlets on each side for 3 minutes or until golden and lightly cooked.

Serve the lamb cutlets on the pea purée with the drained ribbons of vegetables to the side.

Serves 6



Enjoy!

Roast Lamb Shanks with a Secret

Step 1 Get them Crispy and brown! (This is where flavor comes from)
4 Lamb Shanks
4 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1 Red Onion
Pinch of Salt Preheat your oven to 220 ° Celsius
Slice onions in thick rings and lay them at the bottom of a roasting tray. (This is to get your Shanks to stand upright on the tray while they cook).
Sprinkle the shanks with the sugar and salt and the onions will absorb the lovely juices that run out.
Cook until Golden brown roughly half an hour.

Step 2 Finishing touches… 
4 Crispy shanks, lie them down flat in the tray (keep the onions)
4 Cloves of Garlic unpeeled
3 Large Carrots cut into chunky "rustic" pieces
1 Stick of Celery cut into similar sized pieces
2 Bay leaves,
4 Peppercorns,
2 Tbsp Paprika,
½ Tbsp Cinnamon,
2 Tbsp Cumin,
1 Tbsp Nutmeg,
½ Tbsp Salt.
1 Whole Tomato roughly chopped
250 ml's red cooking wine
250 ml's Chicken stock
1 Whole Orange quartered including rind
A little water to cover them completely, tinfoil over and into the oven for 3 hours they go.

Serve with mashed potatoes and mint jelly. Very good with a glass of Pinot Noir.



Enjoy!

Sandwich with Barbecued Lamb, Watermelon and Tzatziki

After yesterday’s barbecue, we still had most of a barbecued leg of lamb left over. And I decided to slice it up and put it into white bun with some salad, cucumber and watermelon and toped the filling with some tzatziki. And it was a very good decision. I think you can use any lamb - grilled, fried or baked.

For 1 sandwich:
50 g. Lamb (grilled, barbecued, baked)
1 white bun or 2 slices of sandwiches bread,
few arugula or spinach leaves,
about 30 gr. of watermelon pulp,
couple rings of red onion,
4 cm piece of cucumber,
2 tbsp Tzatziki (or you can mix 2 tbsp natural yogurt with 1 small garlic clove)

Put the arugula leaves, sliced lamb, cucumber, onion and watermelon on the half of the bun and top with Tzatziki. Cover with bun top and serve immediately.



Enjoy!

Barbecue Lamb Salad with cucumber, capsicum and orange dressing

Barbecue Lamb Salad with cucumber, capsicum and orange dressing is a refreshing simple summer salad. You can make it with warm or cold barbecue lamb. 

Serves 4
500g lean lamb leg steaks, trimmed of excess fat (or you can use already cooked meat)

Marinade:
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
1/4 cup sweet sherry
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
3 teaspoon salt reduced Worcestershire or soya sauce

2 cups mixed salad leaves
1 Lebanese cucumber, sliced
1 yellow or red capsicum, slised
1/2 red salad onion, sliced

DRESSING
½ orange, for juice and zest
2 tablespoons red wine or sherry vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Trim any visible fat from lamb and place in a large dish. Combine marinade ingredients and pour over the lamb, turning to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight. Heat a barbecue, grill pan or non-stick fry pan to high. Remove lamb from marinade and cook to desired effect, for the most tender and moist cut its best still pink inside, about 3-4 minutes each side, depending on thickness.

Remove from heat and allow to sit for 10 minutes, covered loosely with foil. Slice thinly.

Arrange salad leaves in a bowl with the cucumber, capsicum and onion and top with sliced lamb. Shake together the dressing ingredients in a screw top jar and pour over the salad.



Enjoy!