A fresh Easter meal includes lamb, soup, salad, berries

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - With Easter just weeks away, some cooks already are mulling over recipes for the big Sunday meal. So is Malachi Harland, executive chef of The Chef's at Fig Garden Village in Fresno, Calif.

He recently led a cooking class designed around Easter ideas. A smooth asparagus soup with creme fraîche and radish matchsticks set the springtime tone. Roasted leg of lamb was topped with deep-fried artichoke hearts and an herb salsa. A salad, in Chef's Table style, contained arugula, sliced fennel and orange segments in a muscat vinaigrette.

Harland took the time-consuming steps of de-boning the lamb and trimming the artichoke hearts. Thanks to a butcher, you can skip the former. If you want those crisp, deep-fried artichoke chips, however, be sure to get a sharp knife.

You'll find recipes for the three dishes, but Harland's dessert doesn't require one. He mixed equal parts balsamic vinegar and brown sugar, then stirred in sliced strawberries. Let the berries marinate up to an hour, then taste. Stir in more sugar if needed, then serve the mixture on top of vanilla ice cream.

___

ROASTED LEG OF LAMB WITH HERB SALSA AND FRIED ARTICHOKES

Makes 12 servings

For the lamb:

1 (10-12 pound) leg of lamb, deboned and trimmed of fat (see note)

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

4 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary, divided

4 tablespoons minced garlic, divided

Canola oil

For the herb salsa:

1 shallot, minced

1 ounce red wine vinegar

1 bunch parsley, roughly chopped

Kosher salt, to taste

Juice of one lemon

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon capers, minced

4 ounces extra-virgin olive oil

For the artichokes:

1 cup buttermilk

4 artichokes

1 cup all-purpose flour

Up to 1 quart canola oil

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

To make the roasted leg of lamb: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Lay the deboned leg of lamb on a flat surface, interior side up. Press your fingers over the surface of it. If you feel hard, hidden fat pockets, use a boning knife to cut through the muscle and remove the fat.

Cut the leg of lamb in half. Season both sides of one piece of meat with salt, pepper, half the rosemary and half the garlic. Repeat with the other piece of lamb.

Roll each piece of meat into the shape of a roast. Starting at the fat ends of the roasts, tie them with kitchen twine.

In a large, heavy-bottomed, saute pan over medium heat, add canola oil to cover the bottom by about 1/8 inch. Once the oil is hot, add one of the roasts and lightly cook on all sides until browned. (Do not brown the meat too much, since it will brown more in the oven.)

Transfer the roast to a sheet pan. Set aside.

Add more oil to the saute pan, if necessary, and brown the other roast. Transfer to the sheet pan. Roast in the oven, uncovered, until the internal temperature reaches 120-125 degrees (for medium rare). This will take about 40 minutes-1 hour, depending on the thickness of the roasts and whether you use a convection or standard oven.

After 25 minutes, remove the roasts from the oven and check their internal temperatures with a probe thermometer. Use this test to estimate the remainder of the cooking time.

Once the roasts are cooked, remove from oven and set aside in a warm place.

To make the herb salsa: Prepare the salsa as the roasts cook. Soak the shallot in vinegar in a small bowl for about 20 minutes. Scoop the mixture into a food processor and add remaining salsa ingredients. Process until pureed, then set aside.

(Using a food processor is the easiest way, but The Chef's Table prefers to use a mortar and pestle. As the shallots soak, use a mortar and pestle to pound the parsley and a pinch of salt into a paste. While pounding, add the shallot-and-vinegar mixture, lemon juice, salt, pepper and capers. Continue pounding as you add olive oil in a steady stream. When the salsa is combined, set aside.)

To make the fried artichokes: Place buttermilk in a large bowl. Set aside.

Remove the leaves, one or two at a time, from an artichoke. Cut the top off the artichoke to reveal the fuzzy choke. Using a spoon, scoop out the choke. Then use a paring knife to cut any remaining leaves off the artichoke heart and peel the stalk.

Cut the artichoke heart and stem in half, then cut each half into thin slices. Quickly place the slices in buttermilk to prevent browning. Repeat with remaining artichokes.

Hold the artichokes in buttermilk until the lamb comes out of the oven. As the meat rests, prepare to deep-fry or pan-fry the artichokes.

Place the flour in a large, shallow plate. Set aside.

To deep fry, pour a quart of canola oil into a heavy-bottomed pot and attach a candy/deep-fry thermometer. Place the pot over medium-high heat. The oil will be ready when it reaches about 350 degrees.

To pan-fry, place a saute pan over medium-high heat and canola oil to cover the bottom by ľ-inch. Heat to about 350 degrees before frying.

As the oil heats, shake the excess buttermilk from the artichoke slices, then coat in flour. Drop a battered artichoke slice into the hot oil. If the oil is the right temperature, it should start to bubble vigorously, but not brown immediately. Fry the slices until golden brown, then remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

To serve: Cut the twine off the meat, then cut into slices. Place slices of meat on plates, and top with salsa and fried artichokes.

Note: The Chef's Table prefers Colorado lamb for its flavor.

--Malachi Harland, The Chef's Table

___

SPRING ASPARAGUS SOUP WITH LEMON CREME FRAÎCHE

Makes 4 servings

For the soup:

2 bunches asparagus stalks, ends snapped off

Cold chicken stock, strained of fat

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Ľ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Ľ cup creme fraîche

For the lemon creme fraîche:

Ľ cup creme fraîche

Zest of ˝ lemon

Juice of ˝ lemon

Kosher salt, to taste

2 radishes, thinly sliced to resemble matchsticks

To make the soup: Blanch the asparagus. Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a rolling boil. Add stalks, return water to a boil, then cook until limp but still bright green (up to 5 minutes).

Immediately transfer the asparagus to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

When cold, remove the asparagus from the ice water, then cut into large chunks. Place asparagus chunks in a blender, then add enough cold chicken stock to cover the stalks. While adding salt and pepper, blend until the mixture is a thin puree.

Continue to blend and add olive oil in a steady stream. Then blend in Ľ cup creme fraîche.

Strain the soup through a chinois (or other large, fine-mesh strainer) into a large pot. Use a small ladle to push the soup through the chinois. Set aside.

To make the topping: In a medium bowl, combine Ľ cup creme fraîche and zest and juice of ˝ lemon. Add salt to taste. Whip with a wire whisk until thickened. Set aside.

To finish the soup: Warm the soup over medium heat until it bubbles.

Ladle into bowls, then top with lemon creme fraîche and radish matchsticks. Serve immediately.

Variation: Serve the soup cold, with a lump of crab meat in each bowl.

--Malachi Harland, The Chef's Table

___

ARUGULA-AND-ORANGE SALAD WITH SHAVED FENNEL AND MUSCAT VINAIGRETTE

Makes 4 servings

For the vinaigrette:

1 small shallot, minced

2 ounces muscat vinegar (see notes)

5 ounces extra-virgin olive oil

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

For the salad:

2 oranges

12 Castelvetrano olives (see notes)

1 bunch arugula

1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

2 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted (see notes)

About 4 teaspoons grated ricotta salata cheese (see notes)

To make the vinaigrette: Combine the shallot and muscat vinegar in a bowl and set aside for 15-20 minutes.

After it has rested, whisk the mixture while adding olive oil in a steady stream. (Once the oil is whisked in, you should have about 1 cup of dressing.)

Season with salt and pepper, then set aside.

(The vinaigrette can be made ahead. It will keep, refrigerated in an airtight container, for three days.)

To assemble the salad: Supreme the oranges: Using a paring knife, slice off the ends of the oranges to reveal a little of the flesh. Stand the oranges on one end. Starting from the top of the orange, cut off all the peel and pith to expose the flesh. (Follow the curve of the orange with your knife, so you don't cut off the flesh along with the pith.) Then cut between the membranes to slice the orange into segments. Set segments aside and discard membranes.

Cut the olives into slices and discard the pits. Set aside.

Place arugula and fennel in a large bowl. Season lightly with salt and pepper, then mix. Stir the vinaigrette well, then add enough to dress the salad. Using your hands, gently toss the salad.

Divide the orange slices among four plates, then top with salad. Top with almonds, olives and grated ricotta salata cheese.

Notes: Muscat vinegar, Castelvetrano olives and ricotta salata cheese are sold at Whole Foods Market in Fig Garden Village.

Look for Unio brand moscatel wine vinegar (the brand used by The Chef's Table). The Castelvetrano olives are the bright green ones at the olive bar, but sometimes they aren't labeled. If you can't find them, ask for help.

To toast almonds, toss sliced almonds with a little olive oil and pinch of salt, then spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake at 300 degrees, stirring occasionally, until golden.

--Malachi Harland, The Chef's Table

___

© 2009, The Fresno Bee (Fresno, Calif.).