Pistachio Crusted Moroccan Rack Of Lamb With Israeli Couscous Recipes

PISTACHIO CRUSTED RACK OF LAMB WITH DATE COUSCOUS AND BAHARAT SPICED CARROTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• For the lamb: Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter and add to a bowl with the pistachios and panko. Mix thoroughly to combine and set aside.
• Heat a large cast-iron pan with some canola oil. Sprinkle the lamb liberally with salt and pepper on all sides. Sear the lamb, fat side down, until a crust forms and it begins to turn golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip the lamb and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the lamb and place onto a sheet tray lined with a rack. Spread the mustard evenly over the top and sides of the rack of lamb. Pat the pistachio crust mixture onto the lamb, pressing down to ensure it's nicely adhered.
• Transfer the lamb to the oven and roast until the lamb reaches an internal temperature of 130 degrees F, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest 10 minutes before slicing into double chops. Season the lamb chops with a sprinkle of salt.
• Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat with some canola oil. Add the thyme, bay leaf, shallot and black peppercorns and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallot begins to soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red wine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the wine has almost completely reduced, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the veal demi and bring back up to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer and cook until reduced by half, another 5 minutes or so. Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer into a saute pan. Turn the heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Add the pomegranate molasses and continue to reduce the sauce until it's thickened, another 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the red wine vinegar and the remaining 1/2 tablespoon (1 1/2 teaspoons) butter.
• For the couscous: Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat with the vegetable stock, dates, butter, cinnamon and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, then whisk in the couscous. Turn off the heat and cover. Allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and season with more salt if necessary. Fold in the chervil, parsley and tarragon.
• For the carrots: To make the baharat spice, add the dried mint, cardamom, clove, coriander, cumin, nutmeg and pepper to a small bowl. Mix together to combine. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
• Spread the carrots onto a sheet tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season with the homemade baharat spice mix. Transfer into the oven and roast until the carrots are lightly charred and tender, about 20 minutes.
• Serve the lamb and sauce alongside the roasted baby carrots and couscous.

PISTACHIO-CRUSTED MOROCCAN RACK OF LAMB WITH ISRAELI COUSCOUS

Steps:

• Rinse rack of lamb under cold water and pat dry. Using a sharp knife, cut a few slits between the bones and into the meat. (This will allow some of the spice blend to penetrate into the meat) Brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with Ras el hanout and paprika. Allow to stand at room temperature while preparing the couscous.
• Rinse cilantro, parsley, and mint leaves. (Amounts listed above in ingredients are approximate, since I use a handful of each) Dry in paper towels, then roughly chop. Also roughly chop preserved lemon and dried apricot. **For most recipes that call for preserved lemon, thoroughly rinse off the salt and remove the pulp and seeds, using only the rind.** If you do not have preserved lemon, zest a whole lemon to add later while combining couscous ingredients.
• Grind pistachio nuts and combine with bread crumbs. (If your pistachios are salted, there is no need to add salt to the lamb before searing it).
• To prepare the Israeli couscous, melt butter in saucepan and sauté chopped onion until soft. Add the couscous and cook with the sautéed onion, then add the stock. If you do not have stock, use water. Bring to boil, then reduce heat. Cover and continue simmering about 8 minutes, until couscous is soft. Not all of the liquid will be absorbed. Empty contents into a fine-mesh strainer and rinse with cold water, rinsing off the starch that was released during simmering. Return the rinsed and drained couscous back into the saucepan and reheat slightly.
• Prepare your lamb: Preheat oven to 375. If your pistachio nuts are unsalted, sprinkle rack of lamb with salt. Using an oven-proof skillet, heat olive oil over moderately high heat. When oil is hot, sear the lamb rack until browned, about 5 minutes per side.
• Remove pan from heat. Slather both sides of lamb rack with pomegranate molasses. Then with meaty side of lamb rack up, pack nut crumb mixture on top. Place skillet in oven and roast until internal temp reaches 140 degrees F for rare, about 15-20 minutes. Then allow to stand a few minutes before carving.
• Combine couscous, preserved lemon or zest, apricot, pomegranate seeds, and chopped mint, cilantro, and parsley. If desired toss couscous with a splash of olive oil and a small amount of lemon juice from the zested lemon.
• Carve rack into 8 chops. Spoon couscous onto plate and arrange chops on top.
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• Preserved lemon: You will need a glass jar with an air-tight seal. Combine ~ a tablespoon of coriander seed with ~ a tablespoon of fennel seed. Place 1 bay leaf and 1 cinnamon stick in the bottom of glass jar. Have a small bowl of Kosher salt nearby. Slice lemons in quarters ALMOST down to stem end, but leave intact. Place coriander and fennel seed inside lemon and also fill with salt. Place cut side down into glass jar, squeezing as many into the jar as you can. As you squeeze them, some of the lemon juice is released, but not enough to fill the jar. Just continue packing in as many lemons as you can and add additional salt between layers of lemon. Top off with freshly squeezed lemon juice. Then refrigerate for a month. I think this is Jamie Oliver's technique, but there are many out there. He has also suggested doing this with other citrus, like limes and mandarin oranges. Meyer lemons work nicely. Some techniques suggest a layer of olive oil on top, and this works well, too.

PISTACHIO-CRUSTED RACK OF LAMB WITH PANCETTA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• In a food processor, chop the pistachios, thyme and rosemary. Add half of the olive oil, process to a coarse paste and season with salt and pepper.
• Scrape half of the pistachio paste into a bowl and stir in the remaining olive oil. Reserve the other half of the pistachio paste to use to garnish the plates.
• Coat the lamb with half of the pistachio paste that you have just stirred the olive oil into. Wrap the pancetta slices around the rack between the bones, leaving the bones exposed. Spread the rest of the pistachio paste which you added the olive oil to all over the pancetta and set the rack in a small roasting pan.
• Roast the lamb for 40 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the lamb registers 130 degrees for medium rare.
• Transfer the lamb to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Reserve the pan drippings.
• Meanwhile, spoon 1 teaspoon of the rendered pancetta fat from the roasting pan into a skillet and heat until shimmering. Add the scallions and cook over high heat until browned, about 4 minutes.
• Carve the lamb rack into four 2 chop servings and transfer to plates. Spoon some of the scallions over each section of chops and place a spoonful of the reserved pistachio paste on each plate.

PISTACHIO CRUSTED RACK OF LAMB

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Generously season each rack of lamb with herbes de Provence, salt, and black pepper.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Place lamb in skillet and cook, browning on all sides, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer lamb to a foil-lined baking sheet; set aside.
• Stir pistachios, bread crumbs, butter, olive oil, and a pinch of salt and black pepper in a bowl. Spread mustard on the fat-side of each rack of lamb. Pat pistachio mixture on top of mustard. Bake in the preheated oven until the crust is golden and lamb is pink in the center, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.