Lamb Leg Steak with Peas and Onions & Rosemary Parsley Sauce

Rosemary Parsley Sauce:

1 large garlic clove – cut in half

1/2 cup fresh rosemary (.75oz package) – stems removed

1 cup fresh parsley

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh black pepper

1 small lemon – zest and juice

1/2 cup olive oil (or more if you want the sauce thinner)

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and combine until ingredients are a thick sauce consistency. Place in small bowl, cover in plastic and let ingredients get to know each other while cooking the lamb.

note: if you don’t use all the sauce you can freeze the remaining in Ziploc bags for a later use.

Lamb Leg Steak:

1 lb lamb leg steak

Kosher salt and pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 whole garlic clove

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in an iron skillet with the whole garlic. Salt and pepper both sides of the lamb steak. Remove cooking garlic before it burns! Place steak in the heated pan and cook on high for 6 to 8 minutes on each side, remember brown means tasty food. Move pan with the steaks to the oven to complete the cooking. About 10 minutes to medium rare, and if you like your meat more done, just leave it in a few minutes longer.

When lamb steak is done, remove to platter to rest.

Green Peas and Pearl Onions:

1 cup frozen petite peas – defrosted

1 cup frozen pearl onions – defrosted

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

In the iron skillet that the lamb steak cooked in melt the one tablespoon of butter on a medium heat, add the peas and onions and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes (if peas and onions are still slightly frozen cook a bit longer).

Plating:

Spread the sauce on the serving platter, place rested and sliced lamb steak on top and add the peas and onions on the side of the platter and bon appetite.

I have recently had dental surgery and chewing is not really an option, but I was craving vegetables and came up with this roasted vegetable soup. It is chocked full of veggies and is so very flavorful. This soup would also be a great addition to a grilled cheese sandwich, omelet or quiche and a great way to use up extra summer veggies.

Summer Roasted Vegetable Soup with Red Lentils

Lentils

2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup red lentils
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

In a dutch oven cook the red lentils per package instructions. When lentils are done just leave them in the dutch oven awaiting the roasted veggies.

Roasted Vegetables

3 to 4 large red peppers *
2 heads of garlic – tops cut off, placed in foil drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper, closed foil package
3 huge or 6 large heirloom tomatoes – cut into chunky pieces
3 to 4 medium zucchini – cut into chunky pieces
2 large red onions – cut into chunky pieces
1/4 cup olive oil + extras for the garlic
salt and pepper

Instructions

Place all the cut veggies on a baking sheet, drizzle the olive oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Place veggies and garlic package in the heated oven and roast for 45 minutes.
Place roasted veggies on cooling rack for about 10 to 15 minutes so that you can handle them. Smush** the roasted garlic cloves from the the head & puree with the veggies in a food processor and add to the cooked lentils in the dutch oven.

Soup

1 quart vegetable broth (low sodium)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 bay leaf

Combine the soup ingredients to the dutch oven, simmer on low for 20 to 30 minutes. Remove bay leaf and serve.
*Stove top pepper roasting: char the peppers on the open gas flame, put in a ziplock bag to steam. When roasted veggies are done, remove from bag, take paper towel and wipe off the char and remove the inside seeds. If you don’t want to do that or have only an electric stove you can roast them with the rest of the vegetables.
**SMUSH is a technical term meaning to squeeze the whole garlic head to release the roasted garlic cloves