When Mr. Jefferson Dined Alone
I live alone and most of my meals are consumed "for one," so I'm always looking for recipes that are quick, nutritious and satisfying for the solo diner. One of my favorite things are lamb chops because I can easily buy a package with two or three chops which are just enough for dinner and cook them quickly under the broiler. They will be tender and juicy with this high heat method.
I buy a package of about three--quarter pound chops--a lot of the weight will be lost to bone and fat so this is about the right amount of meat for me. I marinate them for an hour in olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and a couple of cloves of crushed garlic in a plastic zip bag--the chops will cook more evenly if they are at room temperature, so let them sit in the bag on the counter and turn it over a couple times to make sure the marinade is distributed evenly around the meat.
Make a quick aioli in the food processor:
Garlic Mayonnaise (Aioli)
Yields about 1 cup
4 large cloves garlic, mashed and peeled
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves (optional)
3/4 cup olive oil
Lemon juice to taste
Put the garlic cloves with the mustard, salt, pepper, egg, egg yolk, and basil in a blender. Blend a few seconds. While the blender is on, add ΒΌ cup of the oil, blend thoroughly, then add remaining oil slowly in a thin, steady stream until the mayonnaise thickens. Add lemon juice to taste. It's not part of the classic recipe, but I like to add a handful of parsley rather than basil, it gives the sauce a sharper, "greener" taste and it looks great on the plate.
Take the lamb out of the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels. Then, into the broiler go the chops. I like mine rare, so they need to be turned as soon as the top side is browned, about 2-3 minutes, and they are finished with another 2 minutes on the second side. Serve the aioli on the side for yourself or other diners to spoon onto their plate as a dipping sauce for the lamb. The recipe makes a lot for the solo diner, but I use it in place of mayo in a lot of things (NB: garlic lover alert. I eat this on sandwiches.) Mayonaisses are not fragile flowers. The acid in them means that they keep well and this will survive in an airtight container in the fridge for several weeks.
With this, I like boiled new potatoes with lemon-pepper butter and a salad of mache or rocket and halved grape tomatoes with a parmesan vinaigrette.
I'm thinking spring food because today felt like the first real spring day we've had so far this year, nearly seventy, cloudless skies and no wind (after this week's destructive nor'easter and a lot of cold weather.) It's going to be 80 on Sunday. I have to go find my shorts. I can't remember where I put them.