Mediterranean Lamb Loin Chops with Quinoa Salad

That's right, it's time for our favorite supper...Lamb Jam! This time we are featuring lamb loin chops, which come from the middle, lower section of the rear quarter. They are tender and require minimal cooking time.

We made quinoa salad for the side. I sometimes find quinoa to be bland, but the mix of ingredients in this recipe made it anything but. This was a perfect summer meal - healthy and fresh.

Recipes from LeanOnLamb.com

Quinoa Salad
Makes 4 servings

1 1/4 cup water
1 cup quinoa
1 cup frozen peas
1 1/4 cup feta, crumbled
2 teaspoons fresh mint, chopped
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions
Place quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold water for 2 minutes.

Combine water and quinoa in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce heat to low and cook for approximately 10 minutes.

Add frozen peas, and cook for another 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and let sit covered for approximately 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and stir in feta, mint, extra virgin olive oil, and salt and pepper. We recommend cooking this first, since it can be served warm, room temperature, or cold.

Mediterranean Lamb Loin Chops

1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 lamb loin chops (trim the visible fat)

Directions
Trim the visible fat from the lamb loin chops.

Combine salt, pepper, and smoked paprika. Pat lamb dry and rub with the spice mixture.

Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb and cook until browned, approximately 6 minutes on each side (we cooked it to 145 for medium rare).

Serve with quinoa.

Indian Spice Lamb with Mango Salsa

Indian Spice Lamb with Mango Salsa

Yes folks, it's time for another Lamb Jam. We were challenged with developing our own recipe featuring lamb and other healthy ingredients. The catch: our recipe had to contain 10 ingredients or less (including lamb, but not including salt & pepper).

With a bit of tweaking and taste testing, we came up with what we think is a winning recipe. Not only does it abide by the rules, but both the meat and salsa are incredibly flavorful. This dish would be perfect served with brown jasmine rice or whole grain naan.


Lamb with Mango Salsa 
Serves 8-12

Prep time: 25-30 minutes (excluding marinade time) 
Cook time: 10-20 minutes (depending on how you like your lamb cooked) 
Required cooking utensils: Sauté pan, Ziploc bag (to marinate the lamb), bowl for the salsa, chef’s knife, and spatula 

Ingredients 
Lamb 
36 oz leg of lamb
8 large garlic cloves, minced
4 teaspoons green chile pepper, diced (with seeds for extra heat)
6 teaspoons ground coriander
6 teaspoons ground cumin
4 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons salt
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Mango Salsa 
4 mangoes, diced
1 cup red onion, diced
4 green chile pepper, diced (with seeds for extra heat)
1/2 teaspoon salt Juice from 2 limes

Directions 
1. Cut the leg of lamb into more manageable pieces (we suggest 8"length x 3"width x 1 1/2" height).

2. Mix all garlic, chile pepper, coriander, cumin, ginger, salt, olive oil, and lamb. If possible, marinate in the fridge overnight. If you are short on time, 15 minutes of marinating time is sufficient.

3. While the lamb is marinating, prepare your salsa. Mix mango, onion, chile pepper, salt, and lamb. Allow to marinate in the fridge or serve immediately.

4. Heat skillet over medium heat. Drizzle with olive oil. For medium-rare (internal cooking temperature of approximately 135 degrees), cook lamb on the skillet for approximately 10 minutes, turning 5 minutes into cooking time. If you prefer your lamb medium or medium-well, increase the cooking time. Allow meat to rest for 8 minutes. Slice thinly and garnish with mango salsa.

If you prefer, you can also grill the meat and slice it, or serve it as kebabs.

Looking for a refreshing treat that only requires ONE more ingredient? Look no further than our mango popsicles (recipe below).

Mango Popsicles
Makes 6 popsicles

2 mangoes
1 lime, juiced
A little less than a 1/3 cup of sugar
3/4 cups water

1. Slice the skin off the mangos, remove the pit, and puree the flesh of the mangoes in a food processor.

2. Dissolve sugar in water (this works best when the water is over low heat).

3. Mix pureed mango, sugar water, and lime juice. Pour in a popsicle mold and store in a freezer overnight.

Lamb Jam #3: Braised Lamb Shanks with White Beans and Tomatoes

Braised Lamb Shanks with White Beans and Tomatoes

This post is WAY overdue (apologies). We hosted our 3rd Lamb Jam and served up hearty (but healthy!) braised lamb shanks with white beans and tomatoes. This recipe is full of great vegetables and of course, lean and tender lamb. It is really easy to make for a crowd because this is one of those one-pot-wonders. After your veggies are prepped, everything stays in one pot, keeping your counters clean and yourself free to entertain guests.


Braised Lamb Shanks with White Beans and Tomatoes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 celery ribs, sliced
1 can diced tomatoes and juice
1/4 cup dry red wine
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons herbs de provence
4 lamb shanks
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 can white beans

Directions:
**Note: We've adjusted the directions for cooking in a large pot over the stove because we do not own a Dutch oven -- still came out great!


1. Heat olive oil in a large post over medium-high heat. Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper and brown lamb shanks on each side in the pot. Remove the shanks from the pot and set aside.

2. Add onion, carrot, celery, tomato paste, herbs de Provence, garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper to the pot. Cook for approximately 5 minutes.

3. Add the wine to the pot of vegetables and be sure to scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

4. Add broth, beans and tomatoes to the pot and bring to a simmer.

5. Add the lamb shanks back into the pot, making sure to nestle each shank among the vegetables.

6. Cover the pot and cook for 1.5 - 2.5 hours, until the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender.

7. Spoon vegetable mixture into a bowl, and top with a lamb shank.

Lamb Jam #2: Lamb Pizza with Peppers and Arugula

Lamb Pizza with Peppers and Arugula

The more we learn about lamb, the better we feel about choosing it for dinner over other meats. Not only does it taste amazing when properly prepared, but lamb is lean, the leanest parts being the loin, leg, and shank. It provides nutrients such as protein, iron, Vitamin B12, and riboflavin, just to name a few.

Lamb comes in many forms, and for the first time we used ground lamb during our supper club. It was similar to cooking any ground meat, easily and quickly sauteed on the stovetop. The entire meal came together in under 25 minutes, from the chopping of ingredients to slicing and serving. The result: a "fresh" tasting pizza with a thin and crispy crust. I use the word "fresh" mostly because it was similar to a salad on top of a crunchy flatbread. We really enjoyed the combination of hearty lamb, hot pepperoncini, complimented by creamy goat cheese and peppery arugula. It was nice departure from our typical saucy and cheesy pizza (although amazing in it's own right).

Pizza is a group-friendly meal because not only do many people like pizza, but also because it requires minimal effort per serving. For us, it's a go-to menu item for last minute guests or a lazy weeknight and we are happy to have a unique version to add to the rotation.

Lamb Pizza with Peppers and Arugula
Serves 4-6

Ingredients
Whole grain pizza dough
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground lamb meat
1 medium shallot, chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup sliced pepperoncini
3/4 cups goat cheese, crumbled
2 cups arugula

Directions

Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Brush a cookie sheet with olive oil. On a separate floured surface, roll out your dough and transfer to the cookie sheet. Bake for 5 minutes, remove from the oven and set aside. This “pre-bake” makes a nice crisp crust.

Prepare your lamb mixture - Heat olive oil over the stove top in a pan on medium-high heat. Add lamb, shallot, garlic, tomato paste, and oregano. Break up the lamb as you would with beef when making tacos. Mix all ingredients and cook until the lamb meat is well-done. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Drain extra juice from the pan. Spread lamb mixture evenly on the pizza dough. Sprinkle with crumbled goat cheese and pepperoncini. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Mix arugula with a drizzle of olive oil. Remove pizza from oven after 15 minutes, or when the cheese is mostly melted and generously garnish with arugula.

Check out LeanOnLamb.com for more information on the health benefits of lamb.

Rosemary Braised Lamb Shanks

Braised Lamb Shank with Mashed Potatoes

Chuck and I love our "wow this is good" meals. As much as we eat, you'd think the odds were in our favor of having "wow" meals. It is actually quite the opposite, it seems the more types of food you try and the more you cook, the less likely you are to be blown away by your meal. TWSF likes to think this means we know our food a bit more than we did before.

A couple weekends ago we had the opportunity to stay in for a night, relax, and prepare an elaborate meal (yes, we consider cooking for 3 hours relaxing). We decided on braised lamb shanks after spotting 3 shanks for $10 at the White House Farmer's Market. TWSF loves braised lamb shanks, especially from Cafe Atlantico and Central. It's something we typically order if offered on a menu, because prior to this cooking adventure, neither of us knew how to transform the tough lamb shanks into tender, fall-off-the-bone pieces of yummy goodness. We were up for the challenge, and only hoped we would find ourselves with a "wow this is good" dish.