The beets in our garden have been absolutely loving the Cayucos weather recently. The most recent addition to our kitchen team and resident farmer, John Menges, dug up some nice chioggas, deep red and a few golden beets to add to our menu. This is what we came up with:
Traditional pairing of Lamb loin and braised shoulder with persillade, beets and wild fennel...
After brushing the dirt off, we peeled the baby beets and the larger roots of the bunch got turned into coins.
We cooked the beets at 182 degrees for 40 minutes in clarified butter with some of their own juice, tarragon, and a bit of garlic. The result is the absolute essence of beet. I really can't say that I'm a huge fan of beets, but these little guys are delicious!
We ended up reserving the trim for a gastrique which was plated with the braised shoulder. The gastrique provides and acidic/earthy base for the fattiness and grass/game flavor of the lamb.
The dish is finished with lamb glace and fleur de sel.
John loves Beets!
John made five bucks after eating two cups of beet puree. Good form John, good form.
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