It isn’t often that you can create a marinade and use that same marinade as a sauce. It could be done more, I suppose, except that often the ingredients in a marinade contain things that you wouldn’t want in a finishing sauce (things that tenderize meat, like a brine, or beer, vinegar, other acidic citrus juices, etc.). In this case, once the boneless leg of lamb was marinated in the cherry and Merlot marinade, that same marinade was simmered (to make sure the raw-meat bacteria were boiled), pureed and used as a delicious sauce.
This is another recipe from the cooking class I attended last week at Great News in San Diego, and taught by Phillis Carey. It’s for recipes like this one that my friend Cherrie and I keep going back to Phillis’ classes, since she comes up with the most interesting food combinations. I’d never have thought to use frozen cherries as the basis for a marinade. I’m glad she did!
So, you combine the marinade (cherries, Merlot, shallot, garlic, brown sugar, red wine vinegar, oil, marjoram, basil and soy sauce) and marinate for 4-12 hours. If you’re fortunate enough to have a Costco near you, pick up one of their boneless legs of lamb. Such a bargain! After removing the lamb from its covering you spread it out – stretch it out, if you will – and fix the thick parts. By its very nature, the boneless lamb has a couple of thick knobby parts, and if you were to grill it as-is, those knobs would be raw inside and the thinner parts would dried up if you continued to cook it. Answer? You make some moderately deep slits (not clear through) across the knobby parts to kind of flatten them. Allows the thicker parts to cook more evenly. You’ll still have some parts of the lamb that will be more medium to medium-well cooked, but the thicker parts will be perfectly (to me, anyway) grilled to medium-rare.
If you use a meat thermometer (recommended), roast the meat to 130, remove and tent the meat while you finish up the dinner, then cut thinner slices and drizzle with the cherry-Merlot sauce that you’ve boiled down. Phillis actually served this lamb with a dried cherry-pecan relish (creme de cassis, water, sugar, dried tart cherries, pecans and orange zest) but the cherry-Merlot sauce was all I wanted on my portion. If you’re interested in the relish, go to the bottom of the recipe and you’ll find it.
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Butterflied Leg of Lamb with
Cherry-Merlot (Marinade and) Sauce
Recipe: Phillis Carey, author & instructor
Servings: 8 (maybe more)
MARINADE:
2 whole shallots — chopped
3 cloves garlic — minced
2 cups red wine — preferably Merlot (a fruity-type red)
1 pound frozen cherries — (bagged) defrosted
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh marjoram — chopped
2 teaspoons fresh basil — chopped
2 teaspoons soy sauce
5 pounds leg of lamb — boneless, butterflied
Salt and pepper to taste
1. In a large saucepan combine the shallots, garlic, red wine and cherries. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil until the liquid has reduced about half (about one cup remaining). Add brown sugar and continue cooking, stirring often, about 3-5 more minutes. Place mixture in blender (or food processor) and puree until almost smooth. Transfer this mixture to a bowl to cool, then add vinegar, oil, marjoram, basil and soy sauce.
2. Remove leg of lamb from its wrapping and stretch it out. If there are any very thick areas (there usually are) make a slit (sideways, not lengthwise) about halfway through the meat to help make the meat more evenly flat. (Those thick areas will cook much slower, so you’re trying to even out the thickness as much as possible.) Place marinade in a bowl or a large plastic bag and add the lamb. Squish the bag to make sure all the lamb is in contact with the marinade. Refrigerate, turning occasionally, for at least 4 hours, and up to 12 hours.
3. The meat can be broiled or grilled. Remove meat from marinade and pat dry. Meat should be cooked about 6 inches from the heat source. Use a meat thermometer, if possible. Grill (fat side down, first) using medium-high heat for 7-10 minutes per side (brushing with the marinade – see note in #4). Lamb should be cooked to 130 degrees for medium. Remove lamb and tent with foil for about 5-10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile bring the marinade to a boil and simmer gently for about 3-5 minutes. Remove about 1/4 cup of it and use to brush on the lamb when you turn it over. Slice meat in fairly thin pieces, and drizzle with the glaze on each slice.
Per Serving: 682 Calories; 45g Fat (63.4% calories from fat); 41g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 155mg Cholesterol; 252mg Sodium.
Dried Cherry Pecan Relish: 1/4 cup creme de cassis, 1/4 cup water, 1-2 T. sugar, 1 cup dried tart cherries, 1/3 cup toasted chopped pecans, 2 tsp orange zest. Cook creme de cassis, water and sugar in saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves and it comes to a boil. Add the dried cherries, reduce heat, cover and simmer until cherries are plump, about 5 minutes. Mix in pecans and zest. Season lightly with salt and transfer to a bowl. Cool. Keeps, covered, in refrigerator, for one week. Sauce would also be good on pork or chicken. Phillis’ recipe called for 1/4 cup sugar, but I suggest you start with less and add more if needed.
Marie
said on March 24th, 2009:
I made something very similar to this at one of the dinner parties up at the big house several years ago. The guests all really loved it. Love your tip on getting the lamb to the same thickness throughout. I had never thought of that!
I can’t take any credit for the meat-cutting technique. It all goes to Phillis Carey. But it works, as I’ve done it several times. . . . Carolyn T