An extremely simple, fast and delicious dinner:
Broiled asparagus and pan fried lamb chops.
We are in the midst (here in New York State) of asparagus season and I found beautiful organic ones ($ 4.59 lb / origin New York State) at the Park Slope Food Coop. I bought 1.40 lb and that was enough for two.
I wash the asparagus and cut the stem when it becomes stringy and hard (never more than a 1/3 from the bottom) — which will depend on the quality and the freshness of the kind you purchase. I place them in an oven proof dish big enough to be able to able to toss them easily. I sprinkle them generously with a good pungent olive oil, salt, pepper, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1 or 2 cloves of garlic chopped fine. Toss it all very well and place under the BROILER for 10/20 minutes -depending on your boiler. I do toss them every 5 minutes to make sure they cook evenly.
Meanwhile I preheat my cast iron skillet and 5 minutes before removing the asparagus I pan fry my lamb chops –a great source of lamb is d’Artagnan— in a little bit of olive oil, not much is needed because the fat will give you enough grease. I like my lamb rare so about 5/6 minutes on each sides is enough for me. Add salt and pepper to taste.
The simplicity of the preparation will let you taste all the subtle flavors of these ingredients.
Next post I will give more info on asparagus. Bon Appetit!