Cooking Fresh Winter 2019
Athena Calderone is the voice and curator behind EyeSwoon, an online lifestyle destination for food, entertaining, fashion and interior design. In her debut cookbook, Cook Beautiful, Calderone shares ...
Ingredients
SERVINGS: 4 to 6 Serving(s)
For the Chermoula
- 2 cups lightly packed fresh cilantro
- 2 cups lightly packed fresh parsley
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted
- 2 teaspoons coriander seeds, lightly toasted
- 2 teaspoons hot paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 lemons, zested and juiced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
For the Lamb
- 4 medium beets, peeled and cut into 1-inch wedges
- 2 fennel bulbs, quartered, cored and cut into 2-inch wedges, fronds reserved
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- Salt and freshly cracked pepper
- 2 racks of lamb (about 1½ pounds each)
- 2 teaspoons canola oil
- 1 lemon, juiced
Preparation
Make the Chermoula
1. Place the cilantro, parsley and garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to roughly chop. Add the spices and olive oil and process until a paste forms. Add the zest from 1 lemon (reserving the remainder for serving) and 2 tablespoons of the juice to the food processor, pulsing until combined. Add the salt and season with pepper.
2. Divide the chermoula evenly between 2 bowls. Combine the remaining lemon juice with 1 bowl of chermoula; you’ll use this for serving. Reserve the less-lemony chermoula for coating the lamb.
Make the Lamb
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Spread the beets and fennel bulbs on a baking sheet, drizzle them generously with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss until the vegetables are evenly coated. Roast until the vegetables are browned on 1 side, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. While the vegetables are roasting, pat the lamb dry and season it generously with salt and pepper. In a large cast-iron or other heavy-bottomed skillet, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the lamb fatty side down, in batches if necessary, and sear on all sides until well browned, 12 to 15 minutes total. Transfer the lamb to a baking sheet and rub the racks on all sides with the less-lemony chermoula.
4. Reduce oven to 400°F. Stir the vegetables and place the racks of lamb directly on top of them. Roast until the vegetables are tender and caramelized and the lamb registers 125°F to 135°F on an instant-read thermometer for medium-rare, about 20 minutes.
5. Sprinkle the lamb and vegetables with the reserved lemon zest and drizzle with the juice of the remaining lemon. Garnish with the reserved fennel fronds and serve with the reserved chermoula on the side.
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