Recipe(tried): Spoon Lamb and Moussaka (leftover lamb)

I made this for Easter and served with Garlic Mashed Potatoes, green beans and fruit salad. It isn't really a Spring recipe, but I came across it while surfing through newspaper columns here on the Recipe Link and thought it was interesting. It was from the San Francisco Chronicle archives. There are similar recipes out there, one is in Julia Child's Mastering The Art Of French Cooking. Her recipe used beef stock, I substituted half beef broth (Better than Bouillon) and half homemade chicken broth, a trick I learned from Cook's Illustrated. It gives a fresher flavor than all beef broth, less salty, also. I added a couple of bay leaves and fresh rosemary per Julia's recipe. The lamb comes out really tender and quite tasty.

Tonight I am making the Moussaka that was also in the Chronicle using the leftover lamb. Recipe is below.

SPOON LAMB

6 to 7- pound leg of lamb
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large onions, sliced
2 cups dry white wine
2 ounces pancetta, chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 to 4 cups lamb or vegetable stock, boiling

Trim off all but a thin layer of fat from the lamb, and remove any loose fat. Do not remove the fell, a papery-looking filament that covers the meat.

Heat oil in a heavy saute pan and brown lamb slowly on all sides, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 325 degrees. Remove lamb to a platter and saute onion for 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and add to platter. Discard fat in pan. Add wine and boil rapidly until reduced by half, scraping up any browned bits.

Scatter chopped pancetta in the bottom of an unglazed clay pot or other casserole just large enough to hold lamb. Add lamb, fat side up, and surround with the onions. Add shank bone, if the butcher separated it from the leg, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Pour in enough stock to reach two-thirds of the way up sides of meat. Cover tightly with lid and place in oven. Bake for 45-50 minutes per pound, turning meat halfway through cooking time, about 3-3 1/2 hours total.

Place lamb in a deep, hot platter. Strain and degrease the cooking liquid; there will be approximately 8 cups of good lamb stock. Pour off 2 cups into a saucepan, boil hard to reduce by half, correct seasoning, and pour into a hot sauce boat. (Chill remaining stock, which will turn into jelly.)

Serves 4, with considerable leftovers.

PER 6-OUNCE SERVING: 345 calories, 49 g protein, 1 g carbohydrate, 14 g fat (6 g saturated), 152 mg cholesterol, 116 mg sodium, 0 g fiber.

MOUSSAKA

2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion chopped
1 clove garlic
2 cups braised lamb, cut in small chunks
1/2 cup lamb stock
Salt and pepper
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, well drained
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 small, young eggplant (8-10 ounces) cut in 1/4- inch slices
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup milk, whole or low-fat, heated
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons grated Swiss cheese
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Saute onion and garlic gently until golden, 5-6 minutes. Add lamb and stock, season to taste, and blend in 1 teaspoon flour. Cook gently for a few minutes, stirring, until thickened. Spoon into greased 2-quart baking dish. Cover with tomatoes, sugar, and salt and pepper.

Rinse and dry skillet. Add 1 tablespoon oil, and cook eggplant slices on both sides until limp and starting to brown, about 5 minutes, adding more oil if required. Cover meat with eggplant slices.

In saucepan, heat butter and stir in remaining 2 tablespoons flour. Add hot milk. Season well with salt and pepper. Stir over low heat for 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat. Add 3/4 cup grated cheese. Let cool a little and stir in egg yolks. Pour this sauce over eggplant. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake for 40 minutes, until golden brown.

Serves 4 to 6.

PER SERVING: 285 calories, 24 g protein, 12 g carbohydrate, 16 g fat (8 g saturated), 150 mg cholesterol, 244 mg sodium, 2 g fiber.