January 19, 2012 Dinner – Grilled Rack of Lamb, Asparagus and Rice

January 19, 2012 Dinner – Grilled Rack of Lamb, Asparagus and Rice

Today I went to Costco for lunch and picked up two bags of duck halves ($13.99 for two 14 oz halve) and two racks of lamb ($7.99 per lb.) and some mushrooms.  Then I went to Sunflower Market and bought lovely spring fresh asparagus ($1.77 per lb.), a delicata squash, a pound of medium shrimp ($3.99 per lb.) and red onions ($.50 per lb.) and a case of Cutler Creek Cabernet Sauvignon ($40.00 or 3 bottles for $10.00).

This evening Suzette talked until about 7:00 p.m., so I made 1 1/2 cups of basmati rice and then canapés with toasted four slices of bread made by Rose Petrakis on which I spread butter, German deli mustard and coarse braunschweiger and garnished the top with a cornichon sliced lengthwise.

While I waited for her to finish her conversation I ate two of the canapés with a glass of port.  When she finished her conversation, I asked her if she preferred duck or rack of lamb and PPI vegetable medley or fresh asparagus.  Her answer was lamb and asparagus, so I fetched the mint sauce we use to baste the lamb and I broke the stems off about two dozen thin stalks of fresh asparagus and put them into the steamer while Suzette fired up the propane grill and I opened a bottle of the new case of Cutler Creek Cabernet Sauvignon.

Suzette took over cooking at this point and salted and peppered the rack and cooked it and then turned on the asparagus so that the rack and asparagus were done at the same time.  The asparagus cooked in about five minutes to tender but still firm and the rack was medium rare.  I cut the chops and then we each served ourselves chops, rice and asparagus and I poured a glass of wine for each of us.

The wine was light and clean, just the way I remembered the last bottles of it I bought at Jubiliation.  When I say a wine is light I mean that it does not have much character.  It slides over the palate without registering or imparting much flavor or complexity, usually imparted by aging in oak.  Clean wines do not have much residual tannic or a strong organic component and are not bitter.   Usually the more expensive wines have more character and complexity, although expensive wines usually are clean tasting.  As a food lover, I prefer to spend my money on better cuts of meat and ingredients and save money by buying a light wine with most meals because it is far cheaper and usually allows the food to shine.  For example, tonight the lamb was wonderfully fresh and mild tasting and the asparagus was tender and delicate, so the light wine did not interfere with the ingredients’ delicacy.  So for $3.33 we had a lovely, light delicious wine that complemented the food perfectly.   The trick is to find a cheap wine that is clean.

 Bon Appètit