Pumpkin Risotto With Rocket And Roasted Rack Of Lamb Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Move oven rack to the center position.
• In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, garlic, rosemary, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss in 2 tablespoons olive oil to moisten mixture. Set aside.
• Season the rack all over with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large heavy oven proof skillet over high heat. Sear rack of lamb for 1 to 2 minutes on all sides. Set aside for a few minutes. Brush rack of lamb with the mustard. Roll in the bread crumb mixture until evenly coated. Cover the ends of the bones with foil to prevent charring.
• Arrange the rack bone side down in the skillet. Roast the lamb in preheated oven for 12 to 18 minutes, depending on the degree of doneness you want. With a meat thermometer, take a reading in the center of the meat after 10 to 12 minutes and remove the meat, or let it cook longer, to your taste. Let it rest for 5 to 7 minutes, loosely covered, before carving between the ribs.

Steps:

• In a medium-size heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute, stirring continuously, just until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the rice and continue to stir, using a wooden spoon, to coat the rice with the oil.
• Add the white wine and continue cooking, stirring often, until it has been absorbed by the rice. Pour in enough chicken stock to cover the rice completely, about 3 cups, and continue to cook, stirring often, until all the liquid is absorbed.
• Pour in 1 cup more of the remaining stock and stir and cook until it has been absorbed. Repeat with 1 more cup. Add the remaining cup and cook, stirring, until the rice is al dente, tender but still very chewy, and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
• Stir in the pumpkin puree and the diced pumpkin and reduce the heat to very low so that the risotto doesn't simmer anymore. Stir in the Parmesan and butter to give the risotto a nice, creamy finish. Spoon it immediately into heated shallow serving bowls.

Steps:

• Stand the racks of lamb in a china or glass baking dish, scatter the garlic and rosemary over the top, and drizzle with the olive oil. Leave to marinate for at least 4 hours (or overnight if you have the time), turning occasionally.
• Preheat the oven to fan 200C/ conventional 220C/gas 7. Season the lamb generously with salt and pepper. Heat a large, heavy frying pan over a moderately high heat and brown two of the racks well on the meaty sides for about 1-2 minutes, then turn and brown the other sides for a further 1 minute. Finally, brown the ends briefly so that all of the exposed meat is seared. Remove and repeat with the remaining two racks.
• Put racks in a large roasting tin, standing them in pairs with their bones interlinked. Roast for about 8 minutes for very pink meat, 17-20 minutes for medium and 25 minutes for well-done. To test the lamb stick a skewer or the point of a knife into the centre of the meat, leave it for 30 seconds and then test it against the inside of your wrist, it should feel hot. If it still feels cold then keep cooking the lamb as it will still be raw in the centre. Test again after 5 mins.
• Transfer the lamb to a warmed plate, cover loosely with foil, and allow to rest in a warm place for about 5 minutes before carving (if you have to wait longer than this, you may want to return the lamb to the oven for a minute or so before serving, to bring back up to temperature). Carve into cutlets and serve on warmed plates with a spoonful of the chickpea stew.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. Chop up the pumpkin or squash into 1.5cm cubes (kids- ask for help if it's slippery). Put it on a baking tray, drizzle over some oil, then roast for 30 mins.
• While the pumpkin is roasting, you can make the risotto. Put the garlic in a sandwich bag, then bash lightly with a rolling pin until it's crushed.
• Cut up the spring onions with your scissors.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil with the butter in your pan over a medium heat - not too hot. Add the spring onions and garlic. Once the onions are soft but not getting brown, add the rice and cumin. Stir well to coat in the buttery mix for about 1 min.
• Now add half a cup of the stock, and stir every now and then until it has all disappeared into the rice. Carry on adding and stirring in a large splash of stock at a time, until you have used up all the stock - this will take about 20 mins.
• Check the rice is cooked. If it isn't, add a splash more stock, and carry on cooking for a bit. Once the rice is soft enough to eat, gently stir in the grated cheese, chopped coriander and roasted pumpkin.

Steps:

• Risotto: Pumpkin purée - Cook 300g of the pumpkin cubes with a little bit of water for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are soft enough to make a purée (don't use too much water, you don't want water just the pumpkin to make your purée). Put in a blender for 1 minute until you have the purée Roasted pumpkin - roast the rest of the pumpkin cubes with olive oil, salt, pepper and the rosemary and thyme for about 5 minutes. (I like to remove the thyme and rosemary branches after I cook, in this case just use the full branches, it's easier to remove). Keep this and the purée aside for a moment. Now you are ready to cook the risotto, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, add the onions and fry for about 2 minutes in a medium heat and then add the rice, sauté it for more 2 minutes or until they look translucent (not browned). Pour in the wine and let it bubble up for some moment and then add the pumpkin purée and about two ladles of stock, add some salt and pepper and let it cook in a medium heat for 15 minutes (that will depend on the rice you are using) Now add the roasted pumpkin the parmesan or gruyere cheese and some rocket (rucola) leaves and cook for more 5 minutes, adding more stock as needed until the rice is tender and creamy. Season to taste and serve. Rack of Lamb: Stand the racks of lamb in a china, scatter the garlic thyme and rosemary over the top, and add in some salt and pepper and a little bit of red wine. Leave to marinate for at least 4 hours (or overnight if you have the time). Heat the olive oil in a frying oven proof pan and gently roast all the sides of the rack for 3 to 5 minutes, until you give some colour to the meat. Bring the pan to a pre-heated oven (200°C) for 8 to 10 minutes (depending on the size of the racks). Use your fingers to feel if the meat is rare or well done Bring the pan back to the stove and roast until you have the desired golden colour outside. Carve into cutlets and serve