Instead I butcher the rack of lamb down to the flesh, then halve it, leaving just one rib on each of the cuts since a bit of chewing is always a good idea. The rest goes into a pan to render down for later, along with a couple of spoonfuls of the starter.
Meanwhile I rustle up a mixture of herbs - from the herb garden some rosemary and what’s left of the parsley, and from the kitchen window some mint and chives - and finely chop. Half a small baguette is whizzed to breadcrumbs then the herbs and grated Parmesan is added to the blender with some Parmesan flavoured olive oil to make a fabulous herb crust for later.
Today is a work day so the menu reflects that, and the starter is pre-made, as is the desert, so it’s only vegetable prep left to do now. Grating carrot, I make the soufflé mixture, and painstakingly peel some blanched cherry tomatoes whilst still on the vine - fiddly but worth the effort to ensure proper presentation later.
Meanwhile Hubby is busy cleaning around me, chopping on demand and of course carefully decanting the Margaux - we decided tonight’s French menu had to be accompanied with an all-French wine list too.
Our Dinner Jackets haven’t seen light of day since New Zealand in January, so it’s good to get them out and dress for a change, and before long it’s time for the best sound in the world - the ‘phut’ of a champagne cork being skilfully released by Hubby.
Meanwhile our canapés are coming out of the oven - just pigs in blankets and apple slices done the same way - and our Mac is chiming the FaceBook call from friends also dressed to impress. Soon we are three couples chatting away devouring our same pre-dinner treats.
We move into our music room and Hubby gives a short recital to our friends, the page-turner, me, has carefully curated the play-list earlier, so everything runs to plan except I fail to photograph the occasion so here’s one I did previously.
We take our friends back to the kitchen to discuss main-course prep, as it’s time to fry-off the lamb for a couple of minutes on each side, paint with Dijon mustard and press the herb crust all over. Before long we’re ready for our first course proper.
Properly making French onion soup does take a while, but happily last time I made a batch I did extra so all that’s needed is to grill the croutons and then build the dish. Traditionally the entire soup-bowl goes under the grill but I can’t subject my 1930s dinner service to that, nor indeed would I do it to my Mum’s more modern service.
Soufflé and tomatoes go in and we settle down to enjoy our soup. Next we pop the lamb into the oven for just ten minutes, meanwhile the beans go in the steamer and the by now exquisite jus gets a glaze from some crab apple jelly I made in the autumn.
Although originally three ribs each, I decide to just halve the lamb since there’s only one rib showing now. The combination of colours is just about perfection and worth all the effort. Even the tomatoes stay on the vine today.
Excepting a few variations our friends are all on the same menu so making a displaced dinner party a realistic experience. Now it’s another ‘one I made previously’ as we enjoy tarte tatin with ice cream and Sauternes.
Comments
Post a Comment