Courtney McDonald, one of the chefs at Auburn's Carpe Vino Restaurant, is developing some delicious new lamb recipes for us.  Keep checking back for more information!

Flying Mule Farm Moroccan Lamb Kabobs (click here) 

Flying Mule Farm Curried Lamb Ribs

Serves 6 (Prep time: 20 minutes; cook time: 2 hours)

Ingredients:

• 3 small packages lamb riblets, 2 slabs of ribs per package
• 1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 10 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 2 jalapenos, stems removed and coarsely chopped with seeds
• 2” piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
• zest and juice of 2 limes
• 1/3 cup hot Madras curry powder
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 2 Tbsp. salt
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 Tbsp. ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp. ground coriander
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In the bowl of a food processor, puree the onion, garlic, jalapeno and ginger to a paste.  If you don’t have a food processor, chop these ingredients by hand as fine as possible.

Transfer paste to a medium mixing bowl.  Add the lime zest and juice, curry powder, honey, salt, cilantro, cumin and coriander and mix well.  Slowly stir in the olive oil.  Rub the lamb riblets with half of the curry paste and let marinate, covered and refrigerated, for at least 4 hours. 

Preheat oven to 325F.  Arrange the lamb riblets on baking sheets lined with foil.  Rub more of the curry paste onto the lamb riblets, pour a little water or chicken stock into the bottom of the baking sheet for steam and loosely cover the ribs with foil.  Transfer to the preheated oven and bake, periodically adding more of the curry paste, until riblets are cooked through, about 1 ½ hours.  Increase oven heat to 400F.  Remove foil from the ribs and continue cooking until the curry paste begins to caramelize, about 20 minutes.  Remove ribs from the oven and serve over steamed basmati rice.

Flying Mule Farm Roast Rack of Lamb with Fresh Mint and Rosemary

Serves 4 (prep time: 15 minutes; cook time: 40 minutes)

Ingredients:

• 2 whole racks of lamb, frenched
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 stick (4 oz.) unsalted butter
• 8 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh thyme
• 1/4 cup whole grain Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup dry red wine
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Heat a well-seasoned cast iron pan over high heat on the stovetop.  Season the lamb racks generously with salt and pepper.  Add the vegetable oil to the hot pan and continue heating the oil to smoking point.  When oil has just begun to smoke add the lamb racks, fat side down, and sear until well caramelized.  Turn and sear the bottom and back sides of the racks.  Remove lamb racks from the pan and remove pan from the heat.  Drain off any remaining oil and wipe out pan with a paper towel.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the chopped mint, rosemary, thyme, mustard and wine.  Stirring gently, slowly add the olive oil.  Season generously with salt and pepper.

Coat the seared lamb racks with half of the herb mixture.  Return the lamb to the warm cast iron pan, fat side up.  Add the butter and the crushed garlic.  The butter should melt slowly from the residual heat of the pan.  Transfer the pan to the preheated oven and roast, basting frequently with the butter-garlic mixture, until lamb is cooked to desired doneness (125 for medium rare, about 25 minutes).

Remove lamb from the oven and let rest at room temperature for at least 10 minutes before carving.  Coat with the remaining herb mixture and serve over soft polenta, steamed quinoa or roasted potatoes.

Click here for Flying Mule Farm Lamb Shoulder Confit (as served at Carpe Vino).

Click here for Flying Mule Farm Lamb Sirloin recipe.

Flying Mule Farm Braised Lamb Shanks (Italian-Style) - (From Courtney McDonald)

Serves 6 (Prep Time: 30 minutes; Cook Time: 4.5 hours)

Ingredients:

• 6 lamb shanks
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 4 carrots, peeled and diced
• 4 ribs celery, diced
• 3 stalks green garlic, trimmed and cut into ¼ inch rounds
• 3 dried bay leaves
• 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 cup dry red wine
• zest and juice of 3 oranges
• 2 cans diced tomato
• 3 large artichokes
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 3/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped
• salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Generously season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper.  When the oil is hot, add the shanks and sauté until well caramelized on all sides.  Remove the shanks and set aside.

Add the onion, carrot, celery, green garlic and bay leaves to the hot oil.  Season with a generous pinch of salt and cook until the vegetables are soft and caramelized, about 12 minutes.  Add the flour and stir to combine.

Deglaze the pan with the red wine, orange juice and zest.  Add the lamb shanks back into the pot along with the canned tomato.  Bring all ingredients to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until shanks are tender, about 3.5 hours.

While shanks are cooking, remove the tough outer leaves of the artichokes and trim the stems.  Quarter the artichokes lengthwise, remove the choke and place in cold water with a little lemon juice.  After the shanks have been cooking for about 3.5 hours, add the artichokes, olives and parsley to the pot and continue cooking until artichokes are tender, about 30 minutes.  Serve over soft polenta.

This recipe can easily be made in the crock pot!

Flying Mule Farm Braised Lamb Shoulder Arm Chops

Serves 6 (prep time:30 minutes; cook time:2 1/2 hours)

Ingredients:

• 3 pkg. lamb shoulder arm chops, 2 per package
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 4 ribs celery, diced
• 8 small farm-fresh carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme
• 4 dried bay leaves
• zest and juice of 2 oranges, separate
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 12 oz. bottle porter or stout beer
• 3 cups lamb, chicken or beef broth
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 2 small turnips, peeled and diced
• 2 cups cooked barley
• 2 handfuls baby arugula or spinach
• salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized dutch oven over high heat.  Generously season the arm chops with salt and pepper, add them to the oil, and sear both sides until well caramelized.  Remove lamb from the pot and set aside.  Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrot, thyme, bay leaves and orange zest and reduce heat to medium.  Add a generous pinch of salt and cook until onions are sweet and translucent, about 8 minutes.

Return the lamb to the pot with all of the vegetables.  Add the orange juice, soy sauce beer, broth, sugar and vinegar and bring to a simmer.

Continue simmering on low heat until lamb is easily pierced with a fork, about 2 hours. 

Add diced turnips and cooked barley and simmer another 20 minutes or until turnips are tender.

Finish stew with the arugula or spinach to wilt, and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve.

Flying Mule Farm Lamb Shoulder Arm Chops with Quinoa and “Salsa Verde” (3/20/09)

Serves 6 (prep time:30 minutes; cook time:30 minutes)

For the lamb:

• 1/4 cup dry red wine
• 2 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• 4 sprigs fresh oregano, bruised
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme or lemon thyme, bruised
• 3 pkg. lamb shoulder arm chops, 2 per package
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• salt and pepper, to taste

Mix all ingredients except for the canola oil, salt and pepper together in a medium-sized bowl.  Add the lamb chops and turn over in the bowl so that all sides of the lamb are covered in the marinade.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

For the salsa verde:

• 1 bunch fresh chives, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
• 1/2 bunch fresh thyme or lemon thyme, stems removed and chopped
• 2 sprigs fresh oregano, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped capers
• 1 stalk green garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the quinoa:

• 2 cups dried quinoa
• 3 cups water
• zest and juice of 1 orange
• salt, to taste

Mix all ingredients for the salsa verde together in a small mixing bowl.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

For the quinoa:  In a medium saucepot, place the quinoa and the water, a generous pinch of salt, the orange juice and zests and bring to a boil.  Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes.  Remove pot from heat and let stand 5 minutes.  Uncover, fluff quinoa with a fork and set aside until ready to serve.

While quinoa is cooking, heat a cast-iron skillet over high heat.  Add the canola oil and heat until oil is almost to the smoking point.  Add the marinated lamb chops, season generously with salt and pepper, and cook to desired doneness (for medium-rare, about 5 minutes on each side).  Serve lamb over quinoa and spoon salsa verde over the top.

Roast Leg of Lamb with Braised Fennel and Potatoes (March 7, 2009)

(Prep time: about 30 minutes; cook time: about 1-1/2 hours)

Serves 6

Ingredients:

For the Lamb

• (1)  3 ½ to 4 pound bone-in leg of lamb
•  ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, broken into 4 pieces
• 10 sprigs fresh thyme, broken in half
• zest and juice of 1 orange
• zest and juice of 1 lemon or meyer lemon
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, thyme, orange and lemon juices and zests in a medium bowl.  Trim the layer of fell (the thin, loose, slippery layer) from the leg of lamb, but leave the layer of fat underneath.  Add the lamb to the marinade and coat with the ingredients.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Place marinated lamb onto a baking sheet lined with foil.  Generously rub with salt and pepper and roast until internal temperature reaches 130 degrees for medium rare lamb (about 40 minutes).  Remove from oven and let rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing.

For the Fennel and Potatoes

• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ large yellow onion, peeled and sliced thinly with the grain
• 1 stalk green garlic, root end removed and sliced thinly crosswise (white and green)
• zest and juice of 2 oranges, zest and juice separated
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme, whole
• 1 pinch saffron threads (optional)
•  ½ cup dry white wine
• 3 medium bulbs fennel, stalks removed, trimmed and cut into 8 wedges
• 1 ½ pounds small yellow finn potatoes, washed and quartered
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 ½ cups water
•  ¾ cup pitted and quartered kalamata olives
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste  

While lamb is in the oven, heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat.  When oil is hot, add the onion, green garlic, orange zest, thyme and saffron (if using).  Add a generous pinch of salt to the mixture.  Sauté, stirring, until onions are sweet and translucent, about 8 minutes.  If onions begin to brown, reduce heat to low.  Once the onions are ready, add the white wine and orange juice.  Increase heat to medium-high and cook until liquid has reduced by half.  Add the sugar and stir to dissolve.  Now add the potatoes and fennel and stir to coat with the onion mixture.  Add the water, another generous pinch of salt, and freshly ground black pepper.  Cover the dutch oven, bring pot to a boil, and reduce heat to low.  Let simmer until both potatoes and fennel are pierced easily with a paring knife, 25-30 minutes.  Throw in the kalamata olives and stir.  Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if necessary.  Be careful when adding the salt, however, because the olives also add salt to the dish.  When vegetables are cooked, turn the heat off and let stand, covered, until lamb is ready to serve.  Slice the lamb and serve over the potatoes and fennel.  Enjoy!

Flying Mule Farm Lamb Lasagne (March 1, 2009)

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ lbs. boneless lamb shoulder, kabob, or boneless leg, cut into ½” cubes
• 1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. smoked Spanish paprika
• 1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 1/2 large yellow onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 3 ribs celery, finely diced
• 2 cups crushed canned plum tomatoes, preferably San Marzano
• 1 ½ cups dry red wine
• 2 sprigs Italian parsley
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• 5 cups lamb stock, chicken stock, beef stock or water
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Season lamb with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika.  Heat the canola in a medium-sized dutch oven or sauce pot over medium-high heat.  When oil is hot, add the lamb and cook until well caramelized.  Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic, and cook until onion is sweet and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add crushed tomato and press with a wooden spoon to a uniform size, if necessary.  Cook another 5 minutes, until tomatoes just start to reduce.  Add red wine to deglaze, reduce heat to low, and reduce by about a third to a half. 

Tie parsley sprigs, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves together with butchers twine.  Add this and the stock or water to the tomato mixture.  The liquid in the pot should measure about ¾ of the way up the lamb cubes. Adjust amount of liquid if necessary.  Bring to a simmer, cover the pot and cook until meat is fork-tender and falling apart, about 2 hours.  Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.  The mixture should be thick like tomato sauce.  If it is too thick, add more water.  If too thin, turn up the heat and reduce until it reaches the right consistency.  Once the ragu has finished cooking, remove the bundle of herbs and discard.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  This ragout can be made up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated.  When ready to use, just bring back up to a simmer on the stove.

• 2 pounds no-boil lasagne pasta sheets, or regular lasagne noodles, cooked according to instructions on box and cooled.
• 1-½ pounds sheeps milk ricotta cheese, or substitute good-quality whole milk ricotta, drained
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives
• 2 farm-fresh egg yolks
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• zest of 1 lemon or meyer lemon
• 1 cup quickly sautéed arugula (optional)
• 1 ½ cups grated mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup freshly grated pecorino-romano

To assemble lasagne:

preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a 9x13 inch baking dish, put ¼ of the lamb ragout in the bottom and spread evenly.  Shingle lasagne, slightly overlapping, to create the second layer.  Evenly spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over the pasta layer.  If using the arugula, sprinkle 1/3 over the ricotta mixture.  Repeat until you have 3 layers of lamb ragu, 3 layers of pasta, 3 layers of ricotta and 3 layers of cooked arugula, if using.  Finally, top with one more layer of pasta, then one more layer of lamb ragu.  Sprinkle generously with grated mozzarella and pecorino.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake until bubbling evenly, about 45 minutes.  Remove foil and continue to bake until cheese on top is browned evenly.  Remove from oven, let stand for 10 minutes and serve. 

If you have any lamb ragu left over it can be frozen or served over pasta.  Enjoy with a glass of Ophir Winery Syrah (optional)!

Flying Mule Farm Curried Lamb Ribs

Serves 6 (Prep time: 20 minutes; cook time: 2 hours)

Ingredients:

• 3 small packages lamb riblets, 2 slabs of ribs per package
• 1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 10 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 2 jalapenos, stems removed and coarsely chopped with seeds
• 2” piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
• zest and juice of 2 limes
• 1/3 cup hot Madras curry powder
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 2 Tbsp. salt
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 Tbsp. ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp. ground coriander
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In the bowl of a food processor, puree the onion, garlic, jalapeno and ginger to a paste.  If you don’t have a food processor, chop these ingredients by hand as fine as possible.

Transfer paste to a medium mixing bowl.  Add the lime zest and juice, curry powder, honey, salt, cilantro, cumin and coriander and mix well.  Slowly stir in the olive oil.  Rub the lamb riblets with half of the curry paste and let marinate, covered and refrigerated, for at least 4 hours. 

Preheat oven to 325F.  Arrange the lamb riblets on baking sheets lined with foil.  Rub more of the curry paste onto the lamb riblets, pour a little water or chicken stock into the bottom of the baking sheet for steam and loosely cover the ribs with foil.  Transfer to the preheated oven and bake, periodically adding more of the curry paste, until riblets are cooked through, about 1 ½ hours.  Increase oven heat to 400F.  Remove foil from the ribs and continue cooking until the curry paste begins to caramelize, about 20 minutes.  Remove ribs from the oven and serve over steamed basmati rice.