Too much Thyme on my Hands

Since Easter, my refrigerator has been in a state of chaos, marked by leftover sweet and savory ingredients.  To add to the madness, nothing seems to be of sufficient quantity to do anything with, and yet there is a little too much to throw away. Argh! 

A good case in point: the small bunch of thyme which was leftover from the rack of lamb I prepared for Easter Dinner.

I normally think of thyme as a savory ingredient.  But recently, I have read multiple recipes which pair it with summer fruits.  I am not sure how I missed this band wagon, but given that I also had leftover berries in the refrigerator, I decided to give the combination a whirl.

I found this recipe on the Vanilla Garlic food blog.  Although the blogger (Garrett McCord) calls this a "Berry Cake with Thyme", this recipe is actually a berry cobbler which incorporates a small amount of thyme in the batter.

This recipe is very straight forward to make.  Milk, vanilla extract and melted butter are basically whisked into the dry ingredients -- including sugar, flour, salt, baking powder and thyme.  The fruit and some table sugar are then sprinkled on top and the cobbler gets baked in the oven.
The recipe was a bit ambiguous about what size baking dish to use. ("Use something bigger than a 9x9 baking dish.")  I used an oval baking dish which is 12 inches long and 8 inches wide.  It seemed to be just right.  I added more fruit than recommended (i.e. one cup each of blueberries and strawberries);  in hindsight, this threw the ratio of fruit to crust off, and I will stick to the program when I make it again.  

This dessert is best if eaten on the day it is made as it tends to get soggy as it sits.  I served it warm with vanilla ice cream. Not bad at all.

Here is the printable recipe.  Enjoy.

Mustard and Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb

For me, it wouldn't be Easter without rack of lamb. And while it might seem like a difficult dish to prepare at home, don't be intimidated.  It is actually a very easy dish to make, especially if you use this recipe.

This year, I was graced with a four year old visiting chef (from New Jersey), so I was not able to take many pictures. (It will definitely be a few years before he lands a job at Per Se, but his current mixing skills are quite impressive.) But, no matter. As you will see, this recipe is very straight forward on it's own.

The crust for the lamb is a combination of plain bread crumbs, herbs and a small amount of olive oil to bind it all together.  The original recipe calls for flat leaf parsley, fresh mint and rosemary, but I have also added fresh thyme and finely chopped sage. Bottom line: use what you like and what is fresh.

The frenched racks are quickly brown on the stove top (2 minutes on each side) before the crust is applied.  This is the only tedious part of the recipe, but I would not skip it as it definitely helps to lock in the juices.  The crust is then "adhered" to the racks using a small amount of dijon mustard.

The racks are roasted in a 400F oven until they reach the desired temperature (approximatley 120 degrees for rare and 130 degress for medium rare).  In my hands, it usually takes about 25-30 minutes to reach 120 degrees, but ovens vary -- so I would definitely check the meat with an instant read thermometer after 20 minutes. Let the racks rest (out of the roasting pan) about 10 minutes before carving.

Here is the printable recipe. For an interesting variation on the theme, this recipe looks interesting.

Easter in New York City 2011

Here is a "snap shot" of our Easter in New York City.  We pulled out all the finery for the Easter table.

Spring flowers, in the house.

Spring flowers in Battery Park.  Dillon was not very excited about getting his picture taken. He wanted to run around and look for the cruise ship.

Ok.  This is definitely more fun. 

Ducks and people floating along.  Bon Voyage!

The main course: rack of lamb.  4 year old Dillon, my sous chef for the day, helped me make the herb crust. His older brother was much more interested in his video game. 

 Dillon wanted a "banilla" cake for "zert". His brother wanted something chocolate.  We split the difference: "banilla" cake with chocolate frosting.  Aren't the chocolate bunnies adorable?

The grown ups had their choice of lemon or mixed berry tart.

It was a super fun day!

Which are more striking?

1. Organic Brown Eggs

2. Easter Eggs

I say it is too close to call. What do you think?