Greek Cheese Fries

This year I got Sunday Ticket and ended a 14 year tradition of watching Chicago Bears games at Buffalo Wild Wings when in Richmond.  After 14 years of Coors Light, wings and fries every Sunday, I've been trying all sorts of different snacks this year.

For the game a couple of weeks ago Shells asked me to do something Greek, so I went with Greek style lamb fries.

Greek Style Lamb Fries:

2/3 lb lamb shoulder, boneless

1/3 cup crumbled feta

2/3 cup shredded Halloumi cheese

3 tbsp Tzatziki sauce

1 tbsp diced mint

Ore-ida Waffle Fries (about 25 fries, enough to cover the plate in 1 layer)

1/2 tbsp Greek seasoning mixed with 1 tbsp olive oil

Season the lamb with the seasoning by rubbing the oil mixture all over the lamb.  Preheat the oven to 350F and roast the lamb, wrapped in foil, for about 1.5 hours.  Remove the lamb, raise the oven temperature to 425F, transfer to a new plate and cover.  Once the oven comes to temperature, cook the fries per the instructions, removing from the oven about 5 minutes before they are done.

While the fries are cooking, shave and/or roughly chop the lamb.  Layer the fries on an oven proof plate and then top with the Halloumi cheese, lamb and feta.  Return to oven for 10 minutes to melt the cheese (or until fries start to blacken on the edges).  

Top with Tzatziki sauce and mint, serve and enjoy!  Oh, and watch the hot plate!

It's getting cold ... time to start braising things!

Every year as it starts to transition from fall into the ice-age I find myself drifting a little further down the meat counter, away from the nice lean fillets that go on the grill while sitting outside and towards the heavy shanks and osso bucco cuts.

Lamb shanks are one of my favorites because of a solid meat to fat ratio as well as the subtle flavor that develops during the long cooking process.  For this dish, I used a very simple, one pan, approach to cook these shanks.

Braised Lamb Shanks
2 Lamb Shanks
1/2 box Pomi crushed tomatos
1 14.5oz can Cannelloni beans
4 cloves of garlic (crushed)
1 small yellow onion (chopped)

First things first, preheat your oven to 325F, we're cooking low and slow (so make sure you have a few hours to prep this dish).

Start a braising pan (or a dutch oven or other covered pan that is oven proof and large enough to fit all ingredients) over medium high heat with a little bit of olive oil.

Once the pan is hot, sear the lamb shanks for about 1 minute per side and then remove the pan from the heat.  Add the tomatoes, onions, beans and garlic to the pan (try and aim for a somewhat even distribution).

Cover the pan, place it in the oven and then set your timer for about 2.5 hours.  Once the timer is done, remove from the oven and remove the lid.  At this point the meat should have pulled tight and look like it's falling off the bone.

Use tongs to remove the shanks to a cutting board to sit for a minute.  Use a slotted spoon to transfer the beans, onions and garlic to the plates and then top with the lamb.  Finally, pour the tomoato sauce from the pan over the top and serve, enjoy!