A Romantic New Year's Eve Dinner
Why bother with the big crowds and crazy traffic on New Year's Eve? Forget having lots of folks over.
The Early Show's resident chef, Bobby Flay, has a better idea: Spend some quality time with your loved one in the comforts of your own home.
But that doesn't mean eating leftovers or ordering in. Flay has a recipe for a romantic, sophisticated, but easy-to-prepare lamb chops dinner.
Lamb chops vary a lot in tenderness and flavor, depending on the section of the lamb from which they are cut. Chops can come from the shoulder, rib, loin or leg. Chops are usually sold bone-in and should have a clear pink-to-red color. Dark, purplish red indicates mutton, which is less tender and has a stronger flavor, but could be a good choice for a highly seasoned, long-cooking recipe that might overwhelm the milder taste of young lamb.
The most tender and expensive chops come from the rib and loin. The slightly fatter rib chops have a bit more flavor, but many people prefer the leanness of the loin chops. Rib and loin chops should be cooked quickly, using dry heat cooking methods such as grilling, broiling, or pan-broiling. They should not be overcooked; there should be some pink visible in the cooked meat. Rib and loin chops will be dry and tasteless if they are cooked until the center is gray.
Rib and loin chops may be marinated for a very short time to add flavor, but long exposure to the acids in a marinade will cause the tender meat to become mushy. Rib and loin chops should be at least 3/4" thick, but 1" or more is ideal.
Shoulder chops are less tender and less expensive than rib or loin chops. They are also from a more complicated muscle, so there are several "sections" in a shoulder chop, with more fat and connective tissue, making it less elegant and "chop-like" in appearance.
Shoulder chops can be tenderized by marinating or moist heat cooking and are the best choice for recipes calling for the meat to be baked, braised, or simmered with other ingredients, as in a curry.
Leg, or sirloin chops are larger, meatier and may be less tender than rib or loin chops, but are still a good choice for grilling or broiling.RECIPES
Roasted Baby Lamb Chops with Black Currant Sauce & Black Truffle Potato Gratin
Serves: 4
Black Currant Sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 shallots, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1 cup sherry vinegar
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup black currant puree
6 cups homemade chicken stock
5 black pepper corns
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons black currants
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until soft. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Increase the heat to high and add the vinegar and sugar and cook until reduced by half. Stir in the black currant puree, chicken stock, black peppercorns and thyme and bring to a boil. Continue cooking until reduced to 2 cups. Strain, return to the pot, add the black currants and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the butter, taste for seasonings and serve.
Black Truffle Potato Gratin
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 small black truffle, thinly shaved
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Butter a gratin dish with the 2 tablespoons of butter.
2. Place a layer of potatoes on the bottom of the dish, drizzle with 1/4 cup of the cream and a few of the truffle slices and season with salt and pepper. Repeat to make 8 layers. Cover the gratin dish with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are just cooked through and the top is brown and bubbly. Remove and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.
Roasted Baby Lamb Chops
Olive oil
8 cloves finely chopped fresh garlic
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
2 racks baby lamb chops, six ribs per rack, Frenched
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Whisk together 1/4 cup olive oil, garlic and thyme in a baking sheet. Add the racks of lamb, turn to coat, cover and let marinate at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours in the refrigerator.
2. Remove the lamb 15 minutes before cooking from the refrigerator. Heat oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. Brown each rack of lamb on all sides, transfer to a baking sheet and roast to medium-rare doneness, about 10-12 minutes. Remove and let rest 5 minutes before slicing. Serve 3 chops per person; drizzle with the black currant sauce.