Cotes d'Agneau Champvallon / Lamb Chops with Potato and Onion

We're caught up on our posts, so I guess that means it's time to start cooking again. Scott was in the mood for lamb, and this recipe didn't seem like it would take too long after a visit to the gym. There are only three main ingredients: lamb, potatoes and onions.

Procedure is pretty easy. Sprinkle the chops with salt & pepper and sear on each side. Remove them and set them aside. Add the sliced onions to pan an sauté them until they're tender and starting to brown. Mix the onions with thinly sliced baking potatoes, fresh thyme & parsley, chopped garlic, salt and pepper. Place the lamb chops between two layers of potato mixture, pour enough chicken broth to almost cover and bake until the potatoes and chops are tender.

The bake time is between 45 and 75 minutes. Not all of the broth absorbed, but I think the remaining potato, onion and broth mixture would make a great soup with a little smoked sausage. I'm looking forward to it for lunch this week.

The end meal was amazing. I think this was one of the best recipes we've had from the book lately. The lamb was tender and didn't taste too much like we chewed on a wet sheep's wool. The potatoes were tender with the subtle flavor of the thyme and garlic. The onions had almost melted into the broth. Mmm...

The wine pairing proved to be a bit challenging. The lamb was rich enough that it needed red wine, but the potatoes and onions called out for white wine. Instead of splitting the difference and pleasing neither side of the dish, we opted to pair dinner with Maui Brewing's Big Swell IPA. The potatoes enhanced the fruitiness of the beer. It wasn't a perfect match, but it was pretty good.

Definitely a successful evening. Dinner went mostly according to plan, and we didn't have any of the mishaps that have plagued us recently. Another bonus? I have somehow managed to post dinner the night after eating rather than three weeks later. Yay for actually staying on track!

Spring break is officially over tonight. We go back to work and school tomorrow. I'm sure we'll fall behind on cooking soon, but it was nice to take a bit of a break.