Monday, February 21, 2011

Lamb Chops with Cherry Marsala Sauce

The Trout found this recipe on Blue Kitchen blog and since we had the dried cherries in the pantry, lamb chops in the freezer, rosemary growing outside the door, this sounded perfect for a Sunday dinner.

I also found out that February is National Lamb month.  As far as I am concerned, every day could be national lamb day.  We really love it.

Along side this beautiful lamb chop in cherry sauce was a lettuce salad with a lemon vinaigrette and wild rice which we bought while traveling through northern Minnesota last summer to attend a wedding.  Wild rice is not a true rice, rather a seed of a grass.  It has a wonderful nutty taste and can be quite expensive.  It goes wonderfully with wild game or poultry also.

We really liked this sauce.  We did change it a bit and were very happy with the end results.

Lamb Chops with Cherry Marsala Sauce

1/3 cup dried tart cherries
4 lamb loin chops, about 1 inch thick
salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup finely chopped shallot or scallions
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup dry Marsala wine

Place the dried cherries in a small bowl and cover with boiling water.  Let rest 15 minutes and then drain.

Grill the chops to your liking, cover and let rest until the sauce is done.  "Blue Kitchen" sautèed the chops on the stove top.  We prefer grilling them.

Melt butter in a pan and sautè shallots until just tender, about 3 minutes, stirring to avoid burning.  Add garlic and rosemary and cook, stirring until fragrant, 30 seconds.  Add broth and Marsala to skillet.  Stir in cherries and cook for 2-3 minutes, until sauce is slightly reduced and thickened.  I did add another pat of butter at the end to add some body, flavor and gloss to the sauce.

Spoon sauce over the lamb chops.  A very nice change for a perfectly grilled lamb chop.  Other than the kitchen looking like the 'perfect storm' had hit it, we did enjoy this Sunday dinner. 

11 comments:

  1. I still have masses of frozen cherries sure they will work just as well. Yum yum. Diane

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  2. We're big lamb lovers too. In fact my husband's entire family lovse lamb. Lamb and rosemary make a happy pair together.
    Sam

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  3. We love lamb! And cherry Marsala sauce sounds like the perfect pairing!

    Best,
    Bonnie

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  4. I adore lamb. Love, love, LOVE it. My husband doesn't, unless I braise them in a tomato sauce. Still, I think he'd eat this dish. You're killing me! I've bookmarked another recipe, as lamb and rosemary go very well together indeed.

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  5. This sounds sooooo good!
    Whenever we go out I order lamb, if it's on the menu, because my husband won't eat it. Too many years at the Royal Military College with too many Sunday dinners of mutton and mint jelly. To this day he can't bear the smell of mint.

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  6. Cherry marsala... ahhhh... =)

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  7. I'm another lamb lover! I used to buy a lamb in the spring from a farmer nearby. I didn't want a whole lamb, but bought it with one of my daughters, but it turned out that neither of their husbands liked lamb and then the farmer stopped selling them! Well, it was lovely while it lasted. Delicious local organic lamb. Now I get my lamb from the grocery store, and it's still wonderful. I'll try your recipe soon!

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  8. I dod LOVE lamb chops and rack of lamb. What a great combination of ingredients to create this dish;love it.
    Rita

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  9. It always smells so good over here. LOL Thanks for your visit. I've been gone and not blogging too much this month.

    Fyi...found out that Mike (the cafe' owner) is working up at the ski area, but still serving breakfast and lunches a couple times a week at the cafe'. He wants to sell the business, but stay on as the chef. And...Doe Brothers might have a buyer...so I hear. I'll keep you posted on anything new.

    Hello to Trout!!!

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  10. You're talking about some of my pleasures, Susan. Lamb for one (am about to have some for dinner tonight!), and the cherries and marsala together..what a super combo for the lamb. And to top it all off with a side of wild rice! Wow. Some dinner. I don't cook it often anymore, but loved it with duck and poultry and made a salad with it recently...with dried cherries! :)

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  11. It's funny, I'm not a fan of roasted lamb, but I enjoy lamb chops and this recipe sounds delicious, especially with the cherry marsala!

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