Boned Rack of Lamb With Mushroom Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 racks of lamb, about 2 1/2 pounds each, boned
• 2 large cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt to taste if desired
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 small carrot, trimmed and scraped and cut into inch lengths
• 1 small onion, peeled and cut into eighths
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
• 1 shallot, peeled and cut in half
• 2 tablespoons pureed shallots and onions (see recipe)
• ⅓ cup dry white wine
• ⅓ cup water
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 large tomatoes, about 1/2 pound each or slightly larger, for garnish
• 6 sprigs watercress
• Woodland sauce (see recipe)
• Zucchini cake mousse (see recipe)

6 servings

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
2. Open up boned racks, fat side down. Arrange slices of garlic along base of the main meat portion. Roll flap around the main meat portion to enclose garlic neatly. Tie each rolled-up rack with string in several places.
3. Heat heavy oval baking dish large enough to hold tied racks plus chopped bones. Add oil and rolled racks. Scatter bones all around. Brown meat on all sides over high heat. Transfer dish to oven and bake 12 minutes.
4. Scatter carrot, onion, thyme and shallot around lamb and continue cooking 5 minutes. Remove racks and cover with foil to keep warm.
5. Carefully pour fat from pan. Place pan atop stove. Add pureed shallots and onions and cook briefly, stirring. Add wine and water and bring to boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Cook 5 minutes. Strain sauce into saucepan and bring to boil. Swirl in butter.
6. Meanwhile, prepare tomatoes for garnish. Drop tomatoes into boiling water and let stand 12 seconds. Drain and peel. Cut each tomato into 6 wedges of equal size. Cut away pulp and seeds of each wedge, leaving only outer shell. Warm these shells briefly without cooking in microwave or regular oven.
7. To serve, cut meat into inch thick slices.
8. Spoon equal portions of woodland sauce onto each of 6 warmed plates. Unmold zucchini cake in center of sauce. Surround zucchini cake with slices of lamb. Spoon hot pan sauce over lamb. Garnish each serving with 3 warmed tomato wedges and 2 sprigs of watercress.

• Boning a Rack: You can bone the racks at home or have it done by an expert butcher. If you do it yourself, start by hacking away and reserving the chine bone. Using a sharp boning knife, carefully cut between the fatty-meaty covering of the ribs, taking care not to separate this from the eye, or main portion, of each rack. This rib covering will be like a flap attached to the main portion. Pull and cut off most of the fat atop the main portion but do not sever the flap. Crack all the bones such as the chine bones and ribs.

30 minutes