Lamb Shoulder Roast With Spinach Pine Nuts Recipes

SUPER TENDER LAMB SHOULDER ROAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 170°C (340°F).
• Lightly cover bottom of baking pan with some cooking oil, I find it easier to do using a pastry brush. Completely cover oiled pan with fresh rosemary branches, leaving about 5 or 6 branches to put on top of the roast.
• Peel all the outer skin of the whole garlic knob and break off the cloves. Do not peel garlic cloves; spread about 3/4 of them over the rosemary on pan bottom.
• Place roast on top of this and lightly paint it with some more of the cooking oil, lightly sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of flour over the top of roast and gently rub it in with your fingers. Cover with the remainder of the rosemary and the garlic cloves. Completely cover pan with cooking foil and tuck it in firmly all around. Place into preheated oven and cook for approx 4 hours (depending on size of roast). Do not remove foil during cooking time, when cooked properly meat should be moist and tender and should also fall away from bone very easily.
• About 1 hour before roast is cooked peel potatoes and carrots. Cut into large cubes, put into saucepan with salt to taste and cook until it is soft enough to roughly mash.
• Whilst potato is cooking prepare silverbeet or spinach leaves. Cut off most of the white stalks and roughly chop green leaves. Place into cold water salted to taste. Bring to boil, turn heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
• When potato and carrot are cooked, drain off all the water & roughly mash. Mix with 3/4 tablespoon of butter, finely chopped fresh parsley and finely chopped mild onion. Place in warm serving dish. Place in warm oven (at 100 - 150 degrees Celsius to keep warm whilst preparing remainder of meal.
• Drain silverbeet or spinach of all water, mix in 1/4-tablespoon butter and 1/4 teaspoon of cracked pepper. Take 2 garlic cloves from the meat and gently squeeze until garlic comes out of its skin, mash it and put into silverbeet or spinach and mix thoroughly. Place into warm serving bowl and put into warm oven along side of potato & carrot.
• Remove roast from pan and place on warm serving dish, pull out all the bone that can easily be removed. Place Rosemary around meat to garnish. Remove all garlic cloves and put them to one side. Cover roast with cooking foil. Put into oven with vegetables to keep warm whilst making gravy.
• Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of juice from baking pan. Pick garlic cloves up in your fingers (careful they may still be a little hot) gently squeeze them and the cooked garlic will come out of the outer shell. Mash some of it (about 6-7 cloves) put into baking pan, mix in rest of flour, gently mix in the chicken stock so that you do not get any lumps. When this is done, place all the fresh mint into the gravy and put pan over a light to medium heat and stir continuously until it thickens. Turn heat down to lowest level and allow to simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Serve your meal on warmed dinner plates and enjoy!

RACK OF LAMB WITH SPINACH PINE-NUT CRUST AND MINTED PEA SAUCE

Steps:

• Make crust mixture:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. In a baking pan toast pine nuts in middle of oven until golden, about 10 minutes, and cool.
• Discard stems from spinach and coarsely chop spinach. Rinse spinach and drain in a colander. In a large heavy kettle cook spinach in water clinging to leaves, covered, 1 minute, or until just wilted. Drain spinach well in colander, pressing out excess liquid with back of a large spoon, and cool. Tear ham into pieces. In a food processor pulse spinach with nuts, parsley, ham, and butter until finely chopped and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in remaining crust ingredients until combined well. Crust mixture may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.
• Increase temperature to 425°F. If leaving strip of fat on racks, score a diamond pattern on fat with tip of a sharp thin knife. Halve lamb racks to form six 4-rib pieces. Pat lamb dry and season with salt and pepper.
• In a large heavy skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and lightly brown pieces 2 at a time, on all sides, about 1 minute total for each batch. Transfer pieces as browned to a large shallow roasting pan and arrange meaty sides up. Spread meaty side of each piece with 1 teaspoon mustard. Divide crust mixture into 6 portions and pat over mustard coating on each piece, gently pressing to help adhere.
• Roast lamb in middle of oven 25 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted 2 inches into center registers 135°F. for medium-rare. Transfer lamb to a cutting board and let stand 10 minutes.
• Cut lamb into individual chops and serve with sauce.

LAMB WITH HERB PASTE AND SPINACH

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 425º. Remove as much of the surface fat as is practical from the lamb. Combine the parsley, dill, oil, anchovies and garlic in a food processor (if you're not using the anchovies, add some salt). Purée, adding a little water if necessary. Rub the lamb with this mixture.
• Put the lamb on a rack in a roasting pan with about 1/2 cup of water. Roast for 30 minutes, then check; if the lamb threatens to burn, turn the heat down to 350º; otherwise leave it at 425º. If the bottom dries out (the rendering lamb fat should keep it moist), add a little more water. After about 1 hour (total), check the internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer. When it reaches 130 for medium rare (125 for very rare) in its thickest part (check it in several places), it's done. Total cooking time will be less than 1 1/2 hours. Remove and let it rest.
• Pour off and reserve all but 2 tablespoons of the fat and put the pan over a burner (or two, if it fits better). Toast the bread crumbs over low heat, stirring and seasoning with salt and pepper until they're lightly browned. Remove; add another couple of tablespoons of the fat to the pan. Add the pine nuts, raisins and spinach and cook over high heat, stirring frequently, until the spinach is very tender and most of the liquid has evaporated. Carve the lamb and serve it on a bed of spinach, sprinkled with the bread crumbs.

LAMB SHOULDER ROAST WITH SPINACH & PINE NUTS

Steps:

• Clean spinach by discarding roots, coarse stems, and yellowed leaves. Wash well. Stack leaves, then cut crosswise into about ½-inch-wide slivers. Set aside.
• In a 5- to 6-quart pan over medium heat, combine oil and nuts; stir often until nuts are golden, about 6 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to a plate and set aside. Add onion to pan; cook, stirring often, until limp but not browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and spinach. Stir just until spinach is limp, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and mix in crumbs and nuts.
• Trim fat from lamb. Lay meat flat, boned side up, and cover with plastic wrap. Using a flat mallet, pound meat gently and firmly to flatten evenly. Spread spinach mixture over the meat, leaving about a 1 ½-inch margin on all sides. Starting from the most irregular long side, roll meat up snugly. Use string to tie snugly at about 1 ½-inch intervals.
• Arrange meat, fat side up, on a rack in a 12- by 15-inch roasting pan. Sprinkle generously with pepper. Insert a meat thermometer in center. Roast, uncovered, in a 350°F oven until thermometer registers 145°F for medium-rare, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Slice roast ½ inch thick. Add salt to taste.