I’m baaaaack.

I still have to catch up with the blog after a few spotty weeks, but I’ll post an update to the Professional Amateur Challenge at the same time this one goes live. Stay tuned…

Can you believe that I haven’t made any red meat since APRIL? Nothing unusual I guess– but clearly I need to shake things up. Enter: lamb shoulder. It’s not glamorous, but with some extra cooking time it’s another great cut. I’ll probably save some to make a stock once winter finally arrives, but today, I’m keeping it simple. Get the meat as dry as possible, sear it well, then braise it with some balsamic vinegar, cardamom, thyme, bay leaves, and garlic. Even with the extra cooking time, I managed to pull off some alchemy and keep the lamb close to medium. Sometimes I even amaze myself.

Jägersoße is a simple pan sauce made from minced garlic, mushrooms, flour, vinegar, and butter. Once you take out the meat, put the pan back on the heat, add in the ingredients, and reduce. Keep it warm while you make the rest…

Sauté some butternut squash with the mushrooms in butter, smother with arugula, and let it simmer on low until the squash softens to your liking. Finally, serve it all on top of gnocchi– I’ll even show you how I make it here.

Gnocchi aren’t that hard to make, but it’s messy and a bit time consuming. If you were in a hurry, or trying to get your blog back on track, you might look for pre-made gnocchi to save time…

Let’s cook.

You’ll need:

2-3 Lamb Shoulder Chops

4 Cups Gnocchi, boiled

1 Butternut Squash, cubed

1 Cup Shiitake, sliced thinly

4 Cups Arugula

1 Cup Parsley

4 Sprigs Thyme, Rosemary

4 Garlic Cloves

2 Tbs Flour

2 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar

2 Tbs Butter

1 Tbs Coriander

1 Cardamom Pod

1/2 Tbs Garlic Powder

1/2 Tbs Dried Rosemary

1/2 Tbs Chili Flakes

1 Bay Leaf

Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Season the lamb with salt, and garlic powder, then sear on both sides, and remove from the heat. Deglaze with your preferred stock, then add fresh herbs, chili flakes, cardamom, garlic and vinegar, and bring to a simmer.
2. Return the meat to the pan, and braise in the oven at 400 degrees for an additional 15 minutes, or until soft.
3. In a separate pan, sauté the squash with garlic and butter until soft, season, and add mushrooms. Stir until the mushrooms shrink, then check for seasoning and add arugula and wilt.
4. Boil Gnocchi in salted water if needed, then drain and transfer to the pan with the squash, mushrooms, and arugula. Stir, and turn off the heat.
5. Remove the lamb from the braising liquid, along with any herb stems. Reduce by 1/2 on med-high heat, then add remaining butter, and flour. Stir until the sauce thickens and season as needed.
6. Plate and serve.

Done.