By Moe Jafari

Spring has Sprung, Welcome Home Ida!
So, its wet and raining, half your tree limbs are broken and your azaleas look like big foot walked through the garden in the middle of the night. But hey it could be worse, you could be a Penguins fan!. JK Angela.

Let’s get ready for Easter Dinner.

No, I am not going to give you a recipe for rabbit.

Although, a good Spanish Paella would not be with out. I am in the mood for lamb and as a family we are getting ready for a large gathering for Easter, about 40 people and my wife thinks Lamb is a pain. In a way she is right but, I have a way.

So I am going to share our menu for 40 guests.

Wine: Start the party off with a little Champagne , drop a raspberry in each glass, and a drop of Chambord wouldn’t hurt either, plus it keeps the chef happy! Make Sable happy, have some diet coke w/lime (boring!!!)

Appetizers: Assorted Cheese and Veggie Crudités, sliced baguette, use part of the Mezza menu published in last month’s newsletter.

The Menu

• 6 -8 racks of Lamb, crusted with cumin, garlic and olives with Mint dipping sauce- do not buy the jar stuff!!!
• 2 Honey Baked Hams, spiral sliced, bone in – we have found Safeway to be a good source.
• 1 Roast Turkey stuffed with Onions, garlic, sage, salt and pepper served with Hot Mustard
• Dinner Rolls – I am not a baker, so again, I am off to Baguette Republic
• Roasted Sweet potatoes with rosemary
• Arugula Salad with shaved Parmesan and dressed in a mustard vinaigrette (Good Seasonings Italian mixed with 1 Tbs of Dijon, white wine vinegar & EVOO)

  Lamb Preparation:
  6-8 racks of Lamb
  15 cloves of Garlic
  4 Tbs of Cumin seed
  A mix of green and black olives (remove pits)
  1/4 cup olive oil

  In a food processor, rough blend the last 5 ingredients into a paste, rub paste on Lamb racks. This can be done the night before and will yield the best flavor.

  Heat Oven to 425 degrees.
  Place lamb on baking sheets and put on top rack for 7 minutes.
  Turn oven down to 350 degrees and move lamb to lower rack and cook for 15-20 minutes more or until lamb is medium rare.

  Slice lamb following the bone , place on platter with small bowl of the mint sauce (recipe below), sprinkle Italian parsley over lamb.
  
  Now, get your fingers out of the way!

  Mint Sauce:
  1 bunch of mint, 3 limes + zest, 1 Serrano pepper, 2 Tbs of honey, 3 Tbs of Cider vinegar. Blend in food processor. Serve immediately, do not make ahead of time, Mint will turn brown.

  Wine Pairing: Try a hearty Melbec, Trapiche 2005 Reserve $15 and worth it, it is hearty and will stand up to the lamb. Or, splurge and get the Augua De Piedra Gran Reserva Malbec 2007 $25, wow!

  Heat Ham according to directions, serve on platter sliced.

  Turkey Preparation:
  10-12 lb Turkey
  Onions; chopped
  Garlic; chopped
  Lemon
  Fresh Sage

  Stuff turkey cavity with Onions, Garlic and a half lemon.
  Rub skin with EVOO, salt , pepper, and sage.

  Roast for 3-4 hours, let rest and slice. Serve with Hot Mustard Sauce (recipe below)

  Hot Mustard:
  4-6 Tbs Colemans Hot powdered mustard
  water
  white vinegar
  Mix in a bowl mix, Add 1 Tbs of Mayo. Dust with Cayenne pepper.
  Tip: if you mix the mustard and vinegar and let sit for an hour or two before mixing in water and mayo your mustard sauce will be even hotter.

  Sweet Potatoes: 8-10
  Dice potatoes 1/4 inch size, toss in EVOO, Salt, Pepper and fresh Rosemary
  Place in baking pan, cover w/foil, bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

  Wine Finds:
  White: Sauvignon Blanc, Kim Crawford, New Zealand
  Red: Try a great Oregon Pinot Noir, I like very hearty ones, St Inoocent $18-22.
  Champagne: Domain Carneros, this is by Taittinger
  Scotch, Single Malt: Caol Ila 12 year old.
  Bourbon Single batch: Woodford Reserve

  Dessert
  Have your guests bring dessert, plan it for them:
  3 couples bring pies – Apple, Cherry and Chocolate
  2 couples bring Cookies/ Brownies
  1 couple brings a fruit salad
  This way everyone helps but they don’t get in the way. Serve with Beanetics Sumatra Coffee, my favorite, no they didn’t pay me!!!

  This menu keeps large parties and the Chef entertained and not working.

  The mezza menu can be done days ahead along with the Lamb. The apps will keep everyone’s hunger at bay and dresses the palate for the main course.

  The recommendations for places to go for wine is just where I go, choose your own, taste and ENJOY!

  Happy Easter!!

Tags: easter menu

This entry was posted on Friday, March 26th, 2010 at 5:26 pm and is filed under Recipes, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.