Thursday, October 2, 2008

Braised Scillian Lamb Patties with Eggplant

After reading Bon Appetite, I found an intriguing recipe that I had to try out: Sicilian Lamb Patties braised with eggplant pepper and tomatoes. Delicious lamb patties (or flattened meatballs) seasoned with herbs (mint and oregano) and Parmesan, braised in roasted eggplant spooned over creamy polenta makes for a great Italian inspired meal. Click here for the recipe.
Here are my tips and tricks:
Start the polenta as early as possible. Mario Battalli cooks in for 4 hours, Judy Rodgers of Zuni cooks it at least an hour. WHY? For extra creamy polenta. Instant polenta just doesn’t give you the same creaminess. Stir as often as you can, but don’t fret if you forget for a little bit. I bump up the creamy factor by adding a bit of butter at the end.
I did make a few substitutions, instead of pecorino I used Parmesan, just because I had it and I used oregano instead of marjoram, which I think was better suited for this dish. I topped it off with fresh mint. Make sure to get the pan really hot when searing the lamb patties, you want a nice crust.

So you bought a bunch of mint and all you need is a tablespoon: My short list for what to do with leftover mint:

Use it in your vinaigrette or add it to your next salad

Sautéed zucchini with garlic red pepper flakes and topped with mint (eat as is or toss with pasta)

Melon tossed with fresh mint and simple syrup (or agave)

Mint Pesto

Help fill out my mint list… tell me what you would do

10 comments:

Jessica@Foodmayhem said...

Yum, sounds like fall is here. I'm not a huge fan of mint but the few things I use it for are Tabbouleh, mango raita, and mojitos.

Anonymous said...

Mint seems to grow wild in a lot of areas so why not try to root the mint and then grow it in doors. That way you will always have an abundant supply of this very versital herb. Just a little potting soil, some water, light and some love and you have an indoor garden to harvest from. Good luck.

test it comm said...

I really like cooking with lamb and braising it in tomatoes and eggplant sounds really good.

Vera said...

The dish looks amazing! As for mint, the easiest way to get rid of it is to make some tea before bedtime:) Mint ice-cream and chocolate cookies make a wonderful sandwich.

Anonymous said...

yup yup and yup. sounds really nice.. nice to meet you via Don at Mr. Orph's Kitchen.

Anonymous said...

Abby!

Love the slight twists you gave to the Sicillian Lamb Patties!
And I see you like Polenta! Way to go!

Cheers!

Gabi @ Mamaliga.com

grace said...

i adore all things eggplant--i think it's a vegetable that can do no wrong. :)
fabulous dish, and that's all there is to it.

Lori Lynn said...

I'd make a mint vinegar sauce for lamb chops.

This sounds like a great Fall recipe. Comforting. I got a kick out of your description of patties as flattened meatballs.

Emily said...

Hmm, I'm going to have to try cooking polenta for a long time.
Once I tried breading chicken in polenta and that did NOT work. It was so crunchy.

I would make a salad with mixed greens, and toss it with a mint chiffonade. Then I would add watermelon, onion, cucumber and feta. Then a vinaigrette.

Anonymous said...

Pleeeease make this for me!! It looks incredible!