Hazelnut & Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb with White Bean Cassoulet

Hazelnut & Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb with White Bean Cassoulet

I love lamb almost as much as i love chicken yet for some reason i eat far less of it. I suspect its because it’s a red meat and i’m trying to keep the lovely Mr G healthy, or it may just be that it’s not as cheap as chicken is.

For me, the weekend seems the time to eat lamb. On a Sunday with tons of olives and Moroccan flavours and on a Saturday night a little more adventure is needed, which is where this dish came about. Using some good lamb but also what i had in my pantry too.

The white bean cassoulet is something i tweak with all the time. I always have tins of beans of various kinds in my pantry. You’ll always find some kidney beans at the back , for emergencies, but if i’m honest, i’m more of the white beans lover.

I sometimes think that if i didn’t have Berlotti beans, Cannelloni beans and butter beans in my cupboard i’d feel a little bit lost.

I think tinned beans are very under rated, and get a bad press from the “everything fresh” brigade. I love fresh , but there’s sometimes not enough time to soak beans over night, especially if you’re like me, and want to cook on an urge.

It’s not unusual for me to not know what i’m going to cook, i may have the main ingredient but knowing the exact things to put with it is sometimes a surprise to me too and tins of beans, in this case the white variety, are a handy thing to play around with.

Do you have a go to tin you wont be without?

When making this lamb be sure to really seal the meat, especially on the skin side. If time isn’t spent getting the fat to render, a way of simultaneously drying the meat and separating the fat making the skin crispy and letting out the fat, you’ll be left with a mouthful of slime under the herby hazelnut crust. No one wants that especially with a crust this good.

Let me know what you think?

Go on, give it a go and enjoy your sweet life.

Hazelnut & Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb with White Bean Cassoulet

Keep it pink inside

Serves 4

 What You Need

•    4 garlic cloves - 1 peeled & crushed the rest left in skins & gently crushed

•   Hazelnuts – Roasted, skinned and finely chopped – See Tip Box

•     1 Bunch Parsley – Finely chopped

•      1 tsp cornflour

•   180ml pot double cream

•    150g Crème fraiche

•    2tsp Dijon Mustard

•      50 g Parmesan – grated

•      3 x Tins Mixed White Beans – See Tip Box

•    1 Lime – Zested & half thinly sliced

•      Rack of lamb – (4 bones per person) – See Tip Box

•    2 Tbsp Olive oil

•    50 g butter

•     Handful of Rosemary & Thyme

•    Sea salt

•      Fresh black pepper

Crumb ready to go on the lamb

How It’s Done

•   Heat the oven to 200c

•    Rub the peeled garlic around the inside of an oven proof dish

•     Mix the cornflour with 1 Tbsp of the cream in a bowl until you have a smooth paste

•    Whisk in the rest of the cream, crème fraiche, mustard and season well.

•    Add the beans, lime zest and parmesan and stir until well coated

•    Pour the bean mixture into the oven proof dish, place into the hot oven to cook while you cook the lamb

•    Season the lamb all over.

• Heat the oil and the butter in a frying pan until very hot.

•     Add the rosemary, thyme and garlic to the hot oil and butter.

•    Place the skin lamb into the hot oil, skin side down.

•   Cook for 2 minutes until the skin is well browned, basting with the flavoured oil and butter.

•   Remove the lamb and paste the Dijon mustard into the cooked/skin side of the lamb.

•    Place the chopped hazelnuts and the chopped parsley onto a small plate

•     Push the mustard side of the lamb down onto the hazelnut and herb mix until the browned side of the lamb is covered.

•   Sit the lamb, garlic, herbs and slices of lime on top of the beans.

•      Place the pot back into the oven for 15-20 minutes – See Tip Box

• Let the lamb rest before serving

Added flavour to the cassoulet

 Tip Box

•    Beans – This recipe is about white beans. I used two tins of cannelloni beans and one tin of butter beans. Choose the beans that you like the most.

•   Hazelnuts – Place the hazelnuts onto a baking tray and into a hot oven (200c). Let them cook for about 5-7 minutes until lightly roasted. Let them cool completely before using.

•   Rack of Lamb – Usually 4 bones per person

•      Cooking- Adjust the cooking time depending on how rare you like your lamb

Herbilicious