A Delicious Discovery: Lamb Chops with Rosemary Roast Potatoes

I think families are extremely influential on an individual's eating habits. My family enjoys a relatively large range of foods and cuisines, but up until last year, I had never tried lamb. We would never cook it at home and, with my parents' warnings of its funky, animal-y flavour ringing in my head, I would shy away from it on menus.

Then last year, at a dinner party, I finally (hesitantly) nibbled on a lamb chop and enjoyed it immensely. Sure, the meat is more strongly flavored than chicken or pork, but when marinated and roasted just so, I was sold (and frankly, a little peeved that I had been missing out on something so tasty for so many years).

Now, lamb makes the occasional appearance at home. I find lamb (rib and loin chops especially) pretty forgiving to cook and it stays juicier and more tender than other types of meat. This is my new favourite way to prepare them.

A note on shopping: I haven't had much experience shopping for lamb. However, I learned that if you are looking for the classic frenched chops (with the bone running the length of the chop), look for rib chops. I ended up buying loin chops which also have the bone in, but it does not penetrate into the meat part as deeply, making for a less sturdy lamb "lollipop".


Recipe after the jump...

Lemon Panna Cotta with Blueberry Sauce

I bring odd souvenirs home with me when I travel. A tube of curry ketchup and a box of coconut "sheets" studded with raisins (to be eaten on toast) from Amsterdam. A little bottle of pandan extract from Singapore. Pearl sugar from Belgium. And, amongst other things, sheet gelatine from Barcelona. This last one is a bit strange, because sheet gelatine isn't even unique to Barcelonan cuisine. It's a little hard to find in North America and I'd never worked with it before, so I thought why not?

I finally used this gelatin to make a simple but sophisticated Italian dessert: panna cotta (or "cooked cream"). It's important to add just enough gelatin to make it set, but not so much that it's bouncy and flubber-like. Heavy cream is used to lend a silky, luxurious texture to the finished dessert. There are dozens of ways to flavour panna cotta, from simple vanilla to earl grey to rosewater. Since I had plenty of great blueberries to make a sauce with, I thought of the classic pairing with lemon. 

Tips and recipe after the jump...

Chocolate Petticoat Tails

The amazing thing about shortbread is that really, you only need three ingredients to make a darn delicious cookie: butter, flour, and sugar. A few additions like cocoa and salt are nice additions but not absolutely imperative. This buttery chocolate shortbread was baked in a fluted tart shell to give it a pretty scalloped edge.

Tip: Cutting the wheel into the "petticoat tails" can be a little tricky to do without breaking the narrow points. Allow the shortbread to cool for about 15 minutes before cutting straight down using a chef's knife. The cookie should be cool enough so that it "sets", but not so cool that it becomes crunchy and crumbly.  

Mmmmmac and Cheese

It's been oddly cool in Vancouver for the past few days, so I don't feel that mac and cheese is quite so out of place during a season typically filled with light, fresh, zesty summer fare. In all its ooey, gooey glory, this pan of comfort is enjoyed by my family year round (and is one of my grandmother's favourites!) I wasn't one of those kids that had ketchup with their Kraft Dinner, but I put thinly sliced tomatoes on top for a little freshness to cut the richness. I put panko on everything these days and here it works well for a some crunch on top of the pasta.
I used cavatappi (which was labelled "scoobi doos" on the package. I have no idea why.) I'd recommend sticking to old school elbows though, since the cavatappi tends to be a little too thick and chewy for the cheesy sauce.

Sweet Saltines: Toffee Crunch Bars

I love the buttery, sweet, salty crunch of English Toffee. This is a quick way to get a similar result without fiddling with a candy thermometer. It's also the most delicious use for the humble saltine crackers that I know of...

PATCh Pasta

Hurrah! It's time for a new post after a very, very, very long break. Here's a bright, colorful pasta perfect for summer dining. 
This combination was inspired by what seems to be a British dish: Crab, Rocket and Chili Linguine. A little Googling brings up many variations of the same flavour combinations and Tesco even has a prepared packaged version. Despite the simplicity of the preparation, all the ingredients play very nicely with each other. The rocket (also known as arugula) has a mild peppery bitterness that cuts through the tomato's sweetness. Everything is warmed through with the chili. The result is big flavour payoff for a pretty small handful of ingredients.
Recipe after the jump...

Where to Eat: Hong Kong Edition

Oh, Hong Kong. The city is, in my opinion, as food obsessed as it can get. Indeed, there seems to be a restaurant, cafe, or food stall on every street and tucked behind every corner to satisfy every taste. The dishes and styles can range from inexpensive and comforting to sumptuous and luxurious. This is already apparent in the food markets. Traditional/wet markets are busy and noisy, touting piles of fresh meats, seafood, and produce. Contrarily, there are specialty food markets like Great or Citysuper where the shelves overflow with gourmet, imported (many European) products. These are the places to hit when searching for super-rich Hokkaido milk (which, incidentally, makes delicious soft serve ice cream) or fresh bread from Poilane (incredible sourdough bread… There are only three bakeries worldwide: two in Paris, one in London).

Poilane's famous sourdough (taken in London)

The markets are just the beginning though. There are so many exceptional spots with food from all around the world that it is possible to forgo home cooking altogether. Perhaps the fact that people eat out so frequently explains why they care so much about the quality of their food. Everyone and their mother seems to have an opinion of where to get the freshest and best of everything.

The fresh factor is an important one. If you've been to a traditional Chinese restaurant, you may recall the big blue fish tanks where you can literally observe your dinner in action before it lands on your plate. There are wet markets in Hong Kong today where you can buy live chickens too. How’s that for fresh?

It is impossible for me to cover everything delicious available in the city. In the short time that I was there, I'm positive I didn't even come close. I went to too many restaurants to count (dim sum, Cantonese, Shanghainese, Vietnamese, Japanese, the list goes on...) but rather than singling out a handful of random spots, I'll give a few quick snapshots of some highlights and where I got them.

Australia Dairy Co.

Real all-day breakfast: packed at 11pm

When I first heard the name of this place, I imagined a hokey Ben and Jerry's-type ice cream shop. In fact, this little restaurant in Kowloon has nothing to do with Australia and doesn't serve ice cream. However, as the top rated "HK style" restaurant at OpenRice.com (HK's version of Yelp and the like) I knew I had to try it.

The meal was...an experience in itself. The turnover is probably insanely high; I was in and out in under 30 minutes. Expect to order really, really quickly. (Case in point: the waiter literally walked away while I was mid-sentence in my order. By the time I finished the sentence the food had already landed on the table.) And while they don't actually rush you, this is not the kind of place where you'd feel comfortable kicking back and leisurely sip tea. I scarfed down the macaroni soup (a little salty with overcooked pasta, but that's the way it's supposed to be) and moved onto the scrambled eggs. The eggs are what make this place famous and they really were quite something: fluffy and buttery, soft and moist, served with ham and a very generously buttered thick piece of white toast. The meal was topped off with your choice of a hot drink (I had a Horlicks malted milk). The bill? 60 HKD for two servings, which is equivalent to just under 8 USD. Beat that.
   

Twenty minutes later

(more after the jump)