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. 

Salzburger Nockerl

Aside from the apple studel, Topfenstrudel and Kaiserschmarrn, the Salzburger Nockerl is the most famous and legendary dessert of Austria. 

It is said that the "Nockerl" was invented by Salome Alt, the concubine of Salzburg's Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raintenau in the early 17th century.  It is supposed to resemble the mountains of Salzburg.

We were in Austria in 1991.  The Trout found a guide who took him fly fishing in a most beautiful area of the country.  Unfortunately, the time was short as the mountain snows started melting in the late morning and the blue colored water washed down the mountain and into the streams and  the fishing was over. 

It was also before I realized that my paternal grandmother's ancestors came from an area of Austria called Spittal.  We were there.  But, it was many years later before I realized that my ancestors had also been there.  Such a missed opportunity.  I do remember the beautiful landscapes, the mountains, the food.  We must go back.  We must.

While in Austria, we dined beautifully on the typical food of the area.  This dessert, Salzburger Nockerl has always lingered on my mind.  I made it many years ago, shortly after returning from Austria, but it wasn't until this week that I remembered it.  All the ingredients were in the kitchen.  It just had to be.

You will find that this is a rather simple dessert, not too difficult to put together, but it does need to be served immediately after coming out of the oven.  It is light, very flavorful and puts on quite a show by itself. 

Salzburger Nockerl

serves 2 persons

6 egg whites (room temperature)
4 egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
1 whole lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For a 10 inch oval skillet

1 oz. butter
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons raspberry jam

powdered sugar

Heat oven to 450 degrees

Instead of a skillet, I heated the butter, cream and raspberry jam in the microwave.  Then spread it into the bottom of a casserole dish.

Beat the egg whites until stiff and gradually add 3 tablespoons sugar while the mixer is running.  Then add the vanilla extract. 

Remove the mixing bowl and fold in by hand with a wire whisk the egg yolks, flour and lemon zest.  Mix as little as possible.

With spatula, form four individual peaks, one at a time (the mountains of Austria) and place into the casserole with the raspberry mixture.

Bake in a hot oven, 450 degrees for 9 to 10 minutes.  Nockerl should be soft in the center and browned on the top. 

Remove from the oven and sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve at once.

Scallops and a Spanish White

Saturday always starts out early for us.  We headed to the downtown market by 8:15 a.m. to pick up some loose leaf lettuce, then to the seafood store to pick up scallops and shrimp and then to the gym to work with our trainer.  He works us hard but we really need it.

We had these scallops tonight in a recipe from Fine Cooking.  It was perfect with the loose leaf lettuce with a simple lemon and olive oil vinaigrette. 

Seared Scallops with Herb-Butter Pan Sauce

1 lb. dry large sea scallops
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Sauce:

3 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
2 tbsp. finely diced shallot (we used scallions)
1/4 cup dry white vermouth or dry white wine
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs, such as flat-leafed parsley and chives
1/4 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 lemon wedges for serving

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the oil and butter and heat until quite hot.  Pat the scallops dry once more time and put them in a single layer in the hot skillet.  Season with salt and pepper and sear undisturbed until one side is browned and crisp 2-3 minutes.  Using tongs, turn the scallops and sear until the second side is well browned and the scallops are almost firm to the touch.  Take the pan off the heat and transfer scallops to a plate and let them sit in a warm spot.

Return the pan to the heat and add a piece of butter and the shallots and sautè until the shallots begin to soften, about 1 minute.  Add the vermouth or wine and simmer until reduced by about half, another minute or two.  Add the herbs and lemon zest.  Reduce the heat to low and add the remaining butter, whisking constantly until the butter melts into the sauce.  Return the scallops to the juices in the pan and gently roll them to cover with the sauce.  Taste for salt and pepper and serve immediately with lemon wedges.

Last night we went to a wine tasting  of Spanish wines in Tampa.  We found a white wine we really liked.  Bodegas Shaya Verdejo 2009, was the perfect pairing for the scallops.  In fact, as we were tasting the wine, I told the server than this wine was "screaming for shrimp."  He laughed and used that phrase quite often after that until he had too many people asking where the shrimp were.

We did add 4 shrimp to the scallops tonight to just let the wine prove itself.  The experts, as in Robert Parker, say "This wine offers up an alluring aroma of baking spices, spring flowers and peach.  On the palate it has a creamy texture, vibrant acidity, and intense flavors leading to a lengthy, fruit-filled finish.  It is a great value in a dry, aromatic white wine, that over-delivers in a big way."  At $15.95, we found this wine a real pairing with the scallops (and few shrimp.)

We had to finish this off with a spectacular dessert.  Since dessert has not found our lips in a long time, this was quite the treat.  A dessert from Austria that I think you might like.  Check back  tomorrow to find out all about it.