Easter recipes


Roast Lamb with Peppercorn Crust (6-8)
From Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins, The Silver Palate Cookbook.
Tested, entered, and proofed by Jean B. who adds:
This is soooo good! We cooked this lamb for mom's birthday one year and for several Easter dinners thereafter, and it is the best lamb we've ever tasted.
I don't recommend any revisions to this recipe; it is already perfect. JB

3 Tbsp crushed dried peppercorns (1 Tbsp each of white, black, and green)
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary (or 1 1/2 tsp dried)
1/2 c fresh mint leaves
5 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 c raspberry vinegar
1/4 c oriental soy sauce (we probably used Kikkoman's reduced sodium)
1/2 c dry red wine
1 boned but untied leg of lamb, ca 5 lbs AFTER boning
2 Tbsp prepared Dijon-style mustard

Combine 1 Tbsp of the peppercorns, the rosemary, mint, garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, and red wine in a shallow dish.
Marinate the lamb in this for ca 8 hours (covered in the fridge, of course), turning occasionally.
Remove lamb from marinade and drain; reserve marinade.
Roll the roast, tying it with kitchen twine. (I wonder if you could use kampyo [Japanese dried gourd strips], which would be edible?)
Preheat oven to 350F.
Spread mustard over meat (note: I'm not wild about really sharp mustard, but this wasn't a problem).
Pat remaining 2 Tbsp of the crushed peppercorns into the mustard.
Set roast in a shallow roasting pan just large enough to hold it comfortably and pour carefully around but not over roast.
Bake 1 1/2 hours or 18 minutes per pound for medium rare (and another 10-15 minutes for well-done), basting occasionally.
(Well, we've consistently found you have to bake it 22 minutes per pound for medium-rare meat, but oven temperatures vary. You should probably use a meat thermometer.)
Let stand 20 minutes before carving. Serve pan juices with lamb.

Clootie Dumpling (spiced fruit dumpling)
Contributed by Sinclair
Ingredients

4 oz wholemeal flour
6 oz fine brown breadcrumbs
4 oz beef suet, finely chopped or butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 oz sultanas
4 oz currants
2 tablespoons black treacle
2 eggs
1 large cooking apple
Juice and zest of one lemon
Fresh orange juice to mix
A square of cotton or linen cloth, about 22 inches square,

Boil the cloth for a few minutes and then spread it out on a table quickly
sprinkle with about a tablespoonful of wholemeal flour and toss the flour to
coat the main centre of the cloth quite thickly.

Stir the treacle into the eggs and then place into a bowl with all the other
ingredients and mix to a stiff consistency with a little water. Place in the
centre of the cloth. Bring up the edges and tie with a string, leaving a
little space for expansion due to the inclusion of the baking powder. Hold
the tied ends and pat the cloth into a round shape.

Place the pudding into a pot of boiling water, which should come halfway up
the side. Cover and simmer gently for 4 hours. Occasionally check and top up
the water if necessary.

Once the pudding is cooked plunge it into cold water for about one minute to
release it from the cloth. Remove the pudding to a bowl and untie, cover
with a plate and reverse it. Peel off the cloth and place the pudding into a
hot oven to dry off the skin.
Serve hot with any accompaniment to like (custard, brandy butter etc.). Any
left-over Clootie dumpling may be sliced and fried..