Pumpkin Seed & Bean Purée with Roasted Lamb Chops & Oil-Poached Garlic

I've always been a bit dismayed by recipes that combined to types of protein; beans and meat. I was raised in the era of nutritionists assuring everyone that while we need protein, too much is not good. Furthermore, I spent my early adulthood seriously lacking in money. Serving multiple types of protein at once not only seemed a bit profligate, but was generally beyond my means.

Now that I'm trying to eat more protein and fewer carbs I have to re-think this whole attitude. I'm trying to keep my meat consumption at about what it was before, since when it comes to meat, the too much is not good idea still holds a fair bit of water. Essentially that means upping my bean consumption.

Long story short, here's some lamb chops on a bean purée. Very good too, if a bit fancy for everyday. However, as usual, nothing difficult and lots that can be done in advance. The bean purée is essentially a hummus, and if you don't serve it all, the leftovers can be treated as such, and served with chips or crudités. I'm likely to make it again for just that purpose. The garlic and garlic oil too, will have other uses, which is good, since you will only use about 1/4 of them in this recipe. The oil, if put in a very clean jar should last well, but I would try to use the garlic up within a week or so. Keep refrigerated.

4 servings
to make Oil-Poached Garlic - 1 hour - 20 minutes prep time
to make Pumpkin Seed & Bean Purée - 15 minutes prep time,
    not including cooking beans or toasting pumpkin seeds
to roast the lamb chops - 25 minutes - 5 minutes prep time

Make the Oil Poached Garlic: 
3 to 4 heads of garlic
1 cup mild vegetable oil

Peel the garlic and trim the root ends off. Put them in the top of double boiler with the oil. Bring the double boiler up to a boil, then reduce the heat slightly so that it is boiling at a slow but steady clip. Cook the garlic for 45to 50 minutes, until soft but not mushy. The oil can show small streams of bubbles, but should not be hotter than that. Check that the water level does not drop too low.

Strain the garlic from the oil, and put each in suitable separate storage containers, as you will have a fair bit of each left over. 

Make the Pumpkin Seed & Bean Purée:
1 1/2 cups pumpkin seeds, toasted
4 to 6 oil-poached cloves of garlic
2 to 3 cloves raw garlic
1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 tablespoons garlic-flavoured oil (from poaching)
the juice of 1 large lemon
2 cups cooked white beans (1 cup raw)
salt if required

Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet until lightly browned if they are not already roasted and salted, and let them cool on a plate.

Put the pumpkin seeds, cooked and raw garlic, paprika, pepper, and oil into a food processor and process until very finely chopped; puréed is what you are aiming for but I don't think you are going to achieve it quite yet. Stop and scrape the sides down several times. When the mixture is very fine, add the lemon juice and process some more.

When the lemon juice is in well and you cannot see any flecks of pumpkin seed, begin adding the white beans and blend thoroughly. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

I used this right away and it was good, but we both agreed that the leftovers were better, so if you can make this from several hours to the day before, that will be good.

Roast the Lamb Chops:
8 (900 grams; 2 pounds) lamb chops
salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Have your skillet or grill in the oven to pre-heat too. If using a roasting pan, put a little water in the bottom of it to prevent the drippings from smoking.

The lamb chops should be removed from the fridge to come to room temperature before cooking them.Season the chops on both sides with the salt and pepper. Place the chops in the pre-heated cast iron skillet or roasting pan, on their edges with the fatty sides down. Cover loosely with foil. Roast for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove the foil from the chops and continue roasting for another 5 to 7 minutes. Let sit in the pan for another 5 or 6 minutes to rest.

The beans should be heated while the lamb is in the oven; grease a shallow pan into which they will fit, and put it in the oven while the lamb cooks. The exact time will vary according to the depth of the pan and the temperature of the beans to start with. My beans were just warm and spread fairly shallow, and were hot within 10 minutes. Otherwise, they may take longer. It wouldn't hurt to cover them with foil too, and they will need a good stir once they come out as they will crust over a little.

Serve Up:
Put a good dollop (1/4) of the warm bean purée on each plate. Top with 2 of the cooked lamb chops. Slice or mince a clove of the poached garlic over each plate to garnish. Serve at once.  

Posted in: Ontario Food