Recipes Collection: gratin

Showing posts with label gratin. Show all posts

Monday, May 19, 2014

Palm Sunday Dinner of Spring Lamb Roasted Yukon Gold Potatoes and Fresh Spinach Gratin

Spring lamb is something I look forward to throughout the long winter months. Fortunately, Spring has arrived and Palm Sunday Dinner is the perfect opportunity to enjoy this richy delicious meal.

We purchased a small, boned lamb roast as we were only serving a few people. Most of family does not enjoy lamb, and since they were off visiting other family members, we took advantage of the situation and prepared a fantastic roast. Actually, my uncle who lives in North Carolina, fixes the most delicious lamb roast, so I consulted with him on the technique. First, I cut little slits directly into the flesh of the roast and studded it with about 7-10 small cloves of garlic. Then, I rubbed the outside of the lamb with a few tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and olive oil and seasoned it with a combination of kosher salt, freshly ground pepper, chopped rosemary and garlic powder. The lamb roast was place on a rack in a shallow backing dish and roasted in a 375 degree oven for 2 hours. After the lamb resting for about 20 minutes, it was sliced thin and was the most tender, flavorful and succulent meat you could imagine!

While the lamb was roasting I cleaned and dried about a dozen medium sized Yukon Gold potatoes, cut them in half and placed them in a large mixing bowl. I seasoned the potatoes as I did the lamb, drizzling over balsamic vinegar, olive oil and a spice combination of rosemary, kosher salt, pepper and garlic powder. Aftering stirring well to coat each potato I placed in the baking dish, directly under the lamb so they could absorb the delicious lamb drippings. The potatoes reach the perfect degree of crispy skin and tender flesh in about 45 minutes.

In preparing to make the fresh spinach gratin, I washed, dried and chopped 1 large bag of leafy spinach. Not the baby spinach, but the more mature variety which will hold up better to the cooking process. I preheated a large sauce pot and added 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter as well as 1/2 small chopped onion. They cooked together for about 5 minutes and the onions were translucent. Next, I added 1 minced clove of garlic and allowed those flavors to cook together for another minute or two. To the onion, garlic, olive oil and butter I added 2 tablespoons flour and cooked them together just long enough to remove the raw flour taste, or about 2-3 minutes. The next step is to add about 1 1/2 - 2 cup of milk while wisking the flour mixture to avoid lumps. Bring this to a simmer and let cook for about 5 minutes until thick and creamy. If it gets too thick add a little more milk. Season with salt and pepper, a pinch of cayenne and a smaller pinch of nutmeg. Add the chopped spinach, turn off the heat and stir to combine. Transfer the spinach mixture into a baking dish and top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and panko bread crumbs. Top with a sprinkle of paprika and bake in the same 375 degree oven with the lamb for about 20 minutes or until bubbly and brown. Serve with the sliced lamb and roasted Yukon Gold potatoes for the perfect springtime holiday meal!

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Green Bean and Blue Cheese Gratin Dont Even Try to Count the Calories

The holidays are when we get to do things we deny ourselves the rest of the year. We give and get gifts we cant afford. We get drunk and tell relatives and friends what we really think of them. And, we eat things so rich, decadent, and delicious that we would never think of making other times of the year. Heres one of those I recently produced for About.com.

This amazingly delicious Green Bean and Blue Cheese Gratin video recipe is such a great combination of flavors. I had this dish at a restaurant in San Francisco called Brunos and it was love at first bite. Green bean gratins and casseroles are nothing new around the holidays, but the addition of the tangy blue cheese makes for a very memorable side dish. Sure its rich and loaded with butter-fat, but who cares? Did you hear what Aunt Edna just said about you!? Enjoy.

Click here for the transcript and ingredients.