Text 19673, 114 rader
Skriven 2014-11-21 07:07:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av DAVE DRUM
Ärende: Blue cynicism 327
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 DD> I am given to understand that the strains of "Old Moldy Vat" injected
 DD> into the blue vein cheeses are very specific and carefully
 DD> maintained/protected. 

There are two or three species of blue Penicillium that
make blue cheese; also two or three species of white
Penicillium that make the white moldies such as Brie
and Camembert. Within these species, there are no
doubt proprietary strains that have been chosen or
bred for whatever desirable characteristics - hardiness,
aroma, you name it. The care with which these are
bred, coddled, and guarded is open to debate - I'm
pretty sure that most of it is hype, and anyway, if you
wanted to steal Carles's strain, just pay $5 for an
ounce of the stuff and culture your own off that.

 ML> Easy, hire a thief to do the day-to-day.
 DD> So long as you can find a reliable one who supplements his meagre
 DD> salary by only 5% of the receipts. And build that calculation into your
 DD> pricing structure.

If one builds the additional personnel (h'm) costs into
the pricing structure, it doesn't matter how much the
thievery amounts to. How else does one explain phenomena
such as the profitability of Starbuck's?

Rack of lamb with blue-cheese polenta
cat: fancy, main, dairy
Serves: 4

h - For the roasted lamb
2 racks lamb, 1 1/2 lb each, frenched
1/2 c olive oil
8 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
1/4 c fresh rosemary, chopped
1/4 c fresh thyme, chopped
s, p
4 fresh rosemary sprigs for garnish
h - For the blue-cheese polenta
4 c chicken stock
1 c whipping cream
1 c polenta
2/3 c good blue cheese, gorgonzola or stilton
s, p
h - For the grain-mustard sauce
1 1/4 c reduced lamb or veal stock
1/2 c red wine
4 Tb grain mustard
2 Tb Dijon mustard
1/4 c fresh rosemary, chopped
1/4 c fresh thyme, chopped
1 Tb Worcestershire sauce
s, p
h - Garnish
kale or other seasonal vegetable
fresh rosemary sprigs

Oven-roasted Salt Spring Island rack of lamb
with blue-cheese polenta and grain-mustard sauce

CHEF'S NOTE. When cooking a meal like this,
timing is everything. First make the grain-mustard
sauce and keep it warm on the stove. Next prepare
your vegetables and set them aside, ready to cook,
and gather the ingredients for the polenta. Sear
the lamb and after placing it in the oven, begin
your polenta. When the lamb is done and resting,
cook your vegetables and finish off the polenta.
Perfection!

When buying your lamb, ask the butcher to French
the racks by scraping off any sinew and meat
from the rib bones. M sez: do it yourself and
fry up the trimmings for a treat.

Mix together olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and
thyme in a lg bowl. Add the lamb and coat well.
Grind some coarse black pepper and salt over
all. Wrap well and marinate the racks in the
refrigerator for 4 hr to overnight.

Remove the lamb from the marinade and scrape
off as many herbs as possible. Preheat the
oven to 400 F.

Heat a large saute pan over high heat and add
2 Tb olive oil. Sear lamb racks on both sides,
3 min each side. Transfer to a baking dish and
into the oven for 10 min for med-rare. Cover
the rack with foil and allow to rest 10 min
before cutting.

For polenta. In a saucepan bring the stock and
cream gently to the boil. Add the polenta and
stir till quite thick and creamy. Stir in blue
cheese and season with salt and pepper.

Combine all sauce ingredients in a saucepan
and gently bring to a boil. Simmer 20 min or
until sauce has reduced and thickened
slightly. Keep warm till ready to serve.

Cut each lamb rack into individual servings,
one bone per chop. Arrange a layer of polenta
on each plate, top with chops and drizzle with
grain-mustard sauce. Garnish with fresh
rosemary. Serve with seasonal vegetables
such as wilted kale.

Marcel Kauer, Hastings House, Salt Spring Island, BC

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