Serves 4
Ingredients
2 x 6 boned rack of lamb on a French trim
2 large potatoes, ideally Maris Pipers
200ml lamb roasting juices
14 sprigs fresh thyme
80g green pistachio nuts, shelled
4 sprigs of fresh rosemary, finely chopped
250g butter
250g whole green beans, topped and tailed
2 large globe artichokes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ peeled celeriac bulb cut into small dice
4 garlic confit (garlic cloves cooked in goose fat)
2 tbsp lemon juice
600ml chicken stock
4 garlic cloves, crushed
3 tbsp double cream
Method
Ensure the lamb racks are trimmed and the top bones are scraped clean. For the crust grind the nuts in a blender until quite coarsely chopped. In a small pan, melt 75g of butter until it is foaming, mix in the nuts and the chopped rosemary. Set aside to cool.
Now make the lamb jus and set aside.
Make the artichoke and celeriac puree. Trim off all the leaves, remove the spiky choke and roughly chop the firm heart. Place into some cold water with the lemon juice, leave for five minutes then drain.
Sauté the hearts and the celeriac in a knob of butter with one clove of garlic for about four to five minutes, add four to five tablespoons of the stock. Cover and simmer for about 12 minutes until tender, then uncover and add the cream, check seasoning, blitz in food processor and rub through a fine sieve with the back of the spoon.
For the potatoes, heat the oven to 180°C. Peel the potatoes thinly and trim to a straight sided barrel shape, pressing down with a metal round cutter about 4cm in diameter then cut into two equal cylinders.
Brown both ends in a frying pan with a little hot oil and then place in a small roasting dish that is about 5cm tall. Press the best ends of the potatoes onto the base so that they will cook to a golden brown.
Melt 150g of the butter and pour over the potatoes, add the remaining garlic and some thyme sprigs leaving eight for the garnish, and then season. Pour in the remaining stock which should come ¾ of the way up the potatoes and bake for 30 minutes, basting them three-four times until the stock has been absorbed and the potatoes are tender to the touch. Keep warm. Leave the oven on.
Seal the racks in a little oil in a hot frying pan on top of the stove then transfer to an ovenproof dish, roast for eight to ten minutes, remove and cool for 10 minutes. When cooled, press the pistachio and rosemary crust onto the tops of the racks.
When ready to serve, heat the grill to low and cook the crusted racks for about five minutes until hot and crisp.
Reheat the lamb jus and stir in a little rosemary. Lightly cook the green beans and toss in the last of the butter.
Spoon the celeriac puree in the centre of four warmed dinner plates and top with the green beans. Cut each lamb rack in half and place onto the beans. Serve the fondant potatoes topped with a confit of garlic and a sprig of fresh thyme, drizzle the sauce around. Serve immediately.
Lamb roasting juices
Using 300 – 500g of lamb trimmings heat a heavy based pan with a little oil and fry the lamb with two shallots, roughly chopped. Keep stirring and cooking until the meat and shallots turn dark brown.
Pour in about 400ml of lamb stock. Season and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half and will coat the back of a spoon. Strain through a sieve and cool until required.