Workin’ it:
It’s been a wee bit nuts in my part of the world for the past few weeks. It’s high yard-sale season so I’m not only doing my “day” job but also my days “off” I spend 6-8 hours in the car scouring for goodies to flip.
A lot of what I’m looking for falls into the category of power tools. I’m not a tool specialist or even close. I’ve gone with the spousal unit often enough to know what most tools are when I see them, and obviously know if something’s got paint chipped and it’s rusty, it ain’t new. But don’t ask me to guess if there are parts missing, which happens frequently when hunting on these terms. Overall, though, my hit-to-miss record isn’t too shabby.
My husband loves old tools if they’re in good condition – and not just power tools. Yesterday I bought a 45-lb bench vise for $5. It needed an oil bath and sanding to eliminate the surface rust in a few spots, but hubby said it’s working fine and looks pretty good now. It was one of those cases where I stopped at the sale, saw some old tools but nothing too terribly interesting, and asked, “I don’t suppose you have…?” They did have, and I bought it.
In addition to the yard sale glut, though, this year I have a LOT of publishing-related work. And it’s not even the end of NaNoWriMo. I have the kick-me-for-doing-it editing job, plus one of my regulars needed formatting done for a bunch of manuscripts she regained the rights to. It’s nice money, just insanely time-consuming.
And my PITA editing client wants to hire me again for her next book. Since she’s paying me regularly and it’s a decent chunk of change, I’ll grit my teeth and deal with it – though a writer friend said I should’ve quoted her $1000 instead of $500.
Obligatory food porn, sort of, minus pictures:
Dangerspouse, I gotta pick your brain for a minute. My spousal unit isn’t a fan of turkey, so we’re not doing a holiday meal with a bird. I also have to work a half-day on the holiday, so we’re not invading the kids’ homes for the day. Therefore I’m cooking actual non-fowl food.
What’s more, I traded my cheap crappy kitchen stool for a nice upholstered version that’s easier on the backside and the legs – so I’m fine with taking a little more time with things.
I scored a whole boneless leg o’ lamb (3.5lb) today at our local grocer, for about half the price per pound of the regular itty-bitty bone-in chops. I didn’t know such a thing existed! They aren’t a regular feature in the butcher case, and I was dumbfounded at the price. If you have an Albertson’s or Safeway nearby, check to see if your store offers a similar deal. I dunno what the chain name is where you live. Safeway used to be Lucky in the midwest, back eons ago. But it’s been Safeway here for at least 20-30 years.
I’m considering another run at the raspberry-brandy flambé version you shared before, but I’d like to know if there’s anything else you’d suggest given this is a roast-size hunk of meat. I’d have to cut it up to do justice to the raspberry recipe and my kitchen knives suck.
I know lamb is usually best served on the rare side, so also keeping that in mind, too.
Any ideers?
Please be seated:
The above are a couple of chairs we’re considering for the living room. We have a recliner now – it doesn’t look awful but it was cheap and we both agreed we’re overdue for an upgrade. We also agreed that comfort is our primary concern – to a point. We have an itty bitty place, meaning we can’t do a chair-and-a-half, for example, nor a chaise. The chair on the right looks sink-in-and-fall-asleep comfortable – but might not fit into the available space. I love the more traditional style seating on the left, but it’s on the cusp of what hubby would be okay with. (He’s all about clean lines and loves him some mid-century modern.)
There’s a little bit of tradeoff involved, though. I want the version shown at left above if it’s comfy. The traditional paisley pattern hits some weird obscure domestic note in my recessive genes and this one is a compromise on color – subtle but still a nod to my tastes.
The husband chose our uber-modern sofa. I agreed to it for two key reasons:
- You can take off ALL cushion covers and toss them into the washing machine. (And I have, more than once.)
- The cushions were firm enough I knew we wouldn’t be sinking into the frame after a couple of months.
All the above reasons still hold true. I’m not a fan of leather or leather-look, and I loathe its skinny chrome legs. The polyester upholstery has the look of leather but it’s a slightly velvety fabric finish. My husband considers those details to contribute to its cool factor. Of the chairs shown above, the one on the right is the same type of faux-leather material. It won’t have the same machine-washable option as with the sofa, but I have a steam cleaner for when it inevitably needs a scrubbing. And since it’s woven instead of tanned, it’ll come clean.
I still want the paisley, dammit – provided the comfort is there. I’m hoping we can go check both out, in person, in the next couple of weeks, to give them the butt test. Our colors are grays and blues so we can work with either option for the color. I think the version on the right is ugly, but I will yield to the cushy factor if/when facts are in.
Hey babe! Or should I say, “Baaa-aaa-aa-aa-be”!
Ah, you found a leg from the rare Boneless Lamb species, eh? You are one lucky gal. BECAUSE I’M GONNA COME DOWN AND EAT IT WITH YOU! Yes, I love lamb that much.
Ok listen, just a point or two up front:
1. If you’ve got the time and resources, lamb will benefit like many meats from a good brining. But it’s no biggie if you don’t, so forget I said anything.
2. The “serve lamb medium rare, you Philistine!” dictum is a good one, especially for certain cuts of meal like those shoulder steaks. But it’s certainly not universal. In some parts of the world even a hint of pink in the finished dish is looked on as under done. So don’t sweat it if you want to try something like a long braise or extended spit roast. Just call it “Greek” or “Turkish”, and people who pretend to appreciate good cooking will nod their heads in approval. And it’ll still taste good.
So.
I’m going to start with how I (usually) prepare my bone-in leg of lamb:
My absolute favorite way to cook leg of lamb is the way Graham Kerr advocated way back in the 70’s in his book “The Galloping Gourmet”. He hopped on the slow roast thing way before anyone else I ever heard of. Up until that point I, like everyone I know, started the leg at 450-ish to crust the top, then dropped the temperature a hundred degrees to finish.
Graham argued that doing it that way not only creates an unevenly cooked joint of meat (grey, well done ring on the outside, pinker towards the bone), but caused a lot of moisture loss as well
Here’s what he recommended, and what I’ve been doing ever since: Preheat your oven to 300 degrees, 325 tops. Cut slits in the meat and insert slivers of garlic. Salt an pepper all over. Then dust the entire leg with flour and place it directly on the rack in your oven. That’s right, straight onto the rack. No baking sheet, roasting pan, pizza stone, nuthin. Directly onto the open bars of the rack, so there will be even heating all the way around. You can put a rack underneath with veggies, or just some water to keep it from scorching. But you won’t get a lot of dripping because…dum dum dummmmm….the flour you coated the leg with will goop up and then crust over any liquid that leaks out. It’s genius!
Just roast it at that slow, even temperature until your desired degree of doneness. I prefer my legs medium rare also, but if you gotta go more well done to suite some heathen’s palate, this is not a bad way to do it. It stays more moist than other methods.
So, why did I start with a bone-in recipe when you have boneless baby? I dunno, just vanity I guess. Oh, and because you can do the same thing with boneless.
Now one thing about boneless lamb roasts is that – unless they did something called “tunnel boned” it – you should be able to open up the roast like a thick, smelly sheet of paper. If you feel like going to the trouble, you can smear that flat sheet o’ meat with any number of aromatics, then re-roll and re-tie the roast. It’ll flavor from the inside as it roasts. You can even, if you have the gumption, pipe in a forcemeat to create a fully stuffed roll. But that’s, of course, Tom Level stuff I wouldn’t expect you to bother with.
And if you don’t want to go to the trouble of untying and smearing and re-tyine, just doing the Galloping Gourmet treatment I described above will produce wonderful, sheepish results. No need to guild the lamby if it’s too much bother, you’ll still be happy.
Likewise, if you have a covered Dutch oven a braised boneless leg of lamb can be terrifically savory. Although as I intimated near the top, this will not produce a medium-rare product. Still, with the right combination of flavorings and making sure to keep the temps very low (around 225, and no more than 250) this can be a showstopper of an entree. What I sometimes do is buy a full bone-in leg, de-bone it, make a stock from the bone while the meat marinates in some concotion, then make a demiglace from the stock and use that as the braising liquid. That’s my favorite way, but it is time and labor intensive. Just some wine, stock, even things like fruit juices, produce excellent results. Toss some herbs or other aromatics, finish with butter or a roux/slurry at the end, and you’ll still have a dish that is head and shoulders above the usual way most people desecrate lamb. Serve it chunked over a large platter of something like polenta or orzo, and you’ll be hailed a god.
Howzat? Helpful, or just pompous?
🙂
You had to give me a multiple-choice, didn’t ya? Thank you, regardless. I wouldn’t have thought of cooking it nekkid on the rack, but will do that, with some veggies roasting on a tray under, as an insurance policy against drips. Rolled with aromatics sounds magnificent – gotta restock though because I’m out of a few basics. I found a place where I buy my herbs in as-needed quantities, so I only buy about the equivalent of a quarter of a jar at a time.
And we prefer rare to medium-rare at my house, thankyouverymuch.
Brining will happen, thanks for reminding me. Now I’m working human hours I have time in the mornings to get stuff done, and don’t feel like death warmed over at the end of my shift, either.
Woo hoo, fooled another sucker! HA!
Hey, a couple more things I should add now that I’m awake. First, the filling doesn’t have to be confined to just herby things. You can do something like make a paste of garlic and oil with herbs and spread that over. I sometime use good jellies/jams/preserves bolstered with other flavors (Trapist brand makes a great fig preserve I like for this, as well as a Red Wine Jelly that is excellent also). Even just salting the open side, sprinkling with wine, and letting it all soak in for an hour before popping it in the oven is great. As is a duxelles of mushrooms. Basically, imagine would go good with lamb, then stuff it in there. Just make sure it’s not TOO wet or it will leak out.
Which is why you have that roasting pan underneath. Good girl 🙂
Oh, and one final thing. Realize that a rolled roast will not slice like a bone-in roast. It won’t be all neat, whole, single slices. Especially if it’s stuffed. But that’s half the fun…which is the excuse you should give if any cretin has the temerity to complain.
Glad to hear you’re keeping hours more conducive to actually enjoying life! I’m very jealous.
1) I am not even mildly worried about how this slices. I know us – it’ll get more ripped apart than sliced.
2) I’m down for ANYTHING with mushrooms, particularly if you add a bit of onion and garlic, so the duxelles sounds like my kind of option.
3) Thank you. I’ll figure out the rest. It’s basically gonna be a free-for- all with my favorite ingredients; add some buttered gemstone potatoes or a simple noodle side dish, a veggie, and we’ll nosh out. I also thought about doing an apple-feta stuffing, but I’m game for almost anything that doesn’t trigger anaphylactic shock.
Oh yeah – don’t forget the wine. As in: drink lots of it if the lamb turns out badly. It’ll help 🙂
I have seven bottles of wine. Will that do?
Okay, they’re the itty bitty bottles, single-serving size. But considering I’m drunk on half a glass, I still figured that would be plenty.
I like the chair on the left also. I hope its comfy. Wish the chair on the right came in the paisley print as it looks comfy.
Thanks Terri. I hope so too – I think the one on the right will probably be too big for us.