French Baked Lamb with Crispy Potato Topping

How glorious is the weather? I am really enjoying the arrival of spring and yet
there is just one thing that is causing me concern …written by my mate, Kim Brill.

I haven’t had enough time cooking my warming winter dishes to comfortably move onto lighter spring-like offerings. So, I may be busting out the thongs and singlets on the streets
but in my kitchen I am ignoring the fact that spring is with us to allow me more
time to get my autumnal cooking urges out of my system.

My favourite dinner of this week was a lamb stew/pie creation (Actually called French Baked
Lamb with Crispy Potato Topping, thanks to Delicious Mag, September 2013).

Pros about this dish: It is quick and easy to make, requiring only a
few ingredients and tastes like you have been slaving for hours.
Cons: Zero.

Next time I make this recipe I will make my own sugo
(passata) and chicken stock but if you are looking for a quick and
delicious midweek dinner, this is it. If you want to make it more seasonally
appropriate perhaps whack some zucchini on the side. We can call this
‘trans-seasonal cooking’.

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

French Baked Lamb with Crispy Potato Topping

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

4 waxy potatoes such as dutch cream
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to brush ( or you could use coconut oil or ghee)
6 x 200 grams lamb chump chops
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 rosemary sprigs, leaves finely chopped, plus extra sprigs to serve
1/2 cup (125ml) chicken stock
1and 1/2 cups (375ml) passata

Preparation

Place potato in a saucepan of cold, salted water.Bring to the boil then reduce heat to medium and cook for 5-10 minutes until par-cooked. Drain, cook and thinly slice.

Preheat oven to 190 degrees. Heat oil in a large frypan over high heat. Season the lamb then cook, turning, for 8-10 minutes until browned. Remove from pan and reduce heat to medium.

Add the onion and carrot, then cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the rosemary and cook for a further 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the stock and pasta sauce, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Bring to a simmer, then season and cook for 3-4 minutes until slightly reduced.

Place lamb in a baking dish and pour over the tomato sauce . Layer potato over the top and season, then brush with your oil of choice. Bake for one hour or until potato is golden.
Rest for 5 minutes then serve garnished with extra rosemary sprigs.

Thank you to Kim Brill for sharing this recipes – mum of two, wife of one and fellow food lover who adopts a 70/30 rule to good health.