Thyme And Feta Lamb Recipes

GREEK LAMB-FETA BURGERS WITH CUCUMBER SAUCE

Steps:

• Set 4 whole garlic cloves in a small skillet over medium-high heat; toast until spotty brown, about 5 minutes. Peel, mince and set aside.
• Break up lamb in a medium bowl. Sprinkle roasted garlic, feta, oregano, salt and pepper over meat; stir with a fork to combine. Divide into 4 portions. Toss meat back and forth between cupped hands to form a ball. Pat with fingertips to flatten to about 4 inches wide. Refrigerate.
• Mix cucumber, sour cream, mint, vinegar, 1 minced clove of garlic, and salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl. Refrigerate sauce until ready to serve.
• Build a hot fire on one side of grill. Replace rack. When coals are covered with white ash, add burgers. Cover and cook, turning only once, until done, about 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium to medium-well burgers.
• Grill pitas until spotty brown and warm, a minute or so per side. Split crosswise. Spread a couple of tablespoons of sauce over 4 pita halves. Top each with an onion slice, a tomato slice and a burger. Spread a portion of the remaining sauce over each burger. Top with remaining pita halves.

FETA, THYME AND MINT LAMB BURGERS

Steps:

• Put the lamb, crushed garlic, mint, chopped olives, tomato puree, salt and freshly ground pepper in a mixing bowl and mix well. Divide into four portions.
• In a separate bowl, mix the feta cheese with the thyme. It doesn't matter if it crumbles, just gently squeeze together.
• Take a quarter of the mixture into your hand and roll into a ball. Flatten out, put a quarter of the feta in the middle and then draw the meat up around it.
• Make sure the cheese is secure within the meat. Repeat with the other three burgers and chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.
• In the meantime, make the salad by mixing the cucumber, tomatoes, red onion and olives together in a bowl. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
• Whisk the olive oil, cider vinegar and honey together and pour over the salad.
• Heat a griddle pan until hot. Rub each slice of bread with the garlic clove and sprinkle with olive oil.
• Cook the bread on the griddle pan until brown on each sides. Keep warm.
• Now cook the burgers on a griddle pan. Turn once after five minutes, then cook for another 5 minutes on the other side.
• Spread the mayonnaise on the toasted bread. Top each slice with a freshly griddled lamb burger and a small handful of salad and serve at once.

THYME AND FETA LAMB

Steps:

• In a wide, shallow dish, mix the lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, 1 tablespoon thyme, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Add the lamb chops and turn until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat a grill to high. Crumble the feta into a small bowl and add the mint and remaining tablespoon of thyme.
• Grill the lamb, turning once, until both sides are golden and the fat is toasted and bubbling, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to warm plates. Sprinkle the herbed feta over the lamb, then drizzle each plate with extra-virgin olive oil. Serve immediately.

FETA-CRUSTED LAMB WITH RICH TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• Marinate the lamb first. Put the racks into a non-metallic dish and mix the thyme, oil, lemon zest, garlic and half the oregano in a bowl. Rub this all over the lamb, then leave to marinate for at least 30 mins or up to 24 hrs. It's important that you cook the lamb from room temperature rather than fridge cold, so if you're cooking within 1 hr or so, leave it out of the fridge.
• For the sauce, finely chop the parsley stalks. Heat a large ovenproof frying pan or wide casserole, then add 1 tbsp olive oil. Add the garlic and the stalks, then soften for 1 min. Add the tomatoes and remaining oregano, then simmer for 5 mins until saucy, popping the cherry tomatoes with your wooden spoon to release all the juices and seeds. Chop the parsley leaves roughly and add half to the pan. Heat oven to 230C/fan 210C/ gas 8. Make the crust by mixing the remaining parsley leaves, feta, zest, oregano and breadcrumbs in a bowl.
• When you're ready to cook the lamb, leave most of the tasty marinade on the meat, season it well with salt and freshly ground pepper, then press the crust onto one side of each piece. Sit the racks in the sauce, with the crust-side facing upwards. Strew the thyme sprigs from the marinade over the lamb and into the sauce, then drizzle everything with a little extra virgin olive oil. Roast the lamb in the sauce, uncovered, for 20 mins (for pink and juicy meat) until the crust is golden and the sauce thickened. Leave to rest for 10 mins, loosely covered, so that the crust doesn't go soggy, then carve the lamb between each bone to make cutlets. Serve the crusted cutlets with spoonfuls of the intense, roasted-down tomato sauce, and the Easy buttered onion pilaf and Lemony greens (recipes below). Garnish with thyme.

FILLETS OF LAMB WITH FRESH THYME

Steps:

• In a cast iron skillet, heat the olive oil on high. Add lamb trimmings and bones, and brown well for about 5 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat, and drain off all fat. Add onions, and brown lightly. Add chicken broth and 2 sprigs of the thyme. Bring to a boil, and simmer for an hour. Strain through a fine sieve -- there should be about 1/3 cup. Keep warm.
• Meanwhile place carrots in a saucepan, cover with water and simmer for 1/2 hour. Carrots should be soft throughout. Drain, place in a blender and make a fine puree. Pass puree through a fine sieve. There should be about 3 tablespoons of puree.
• Blend puree with lamb broth over low heat. Remove, and set aside.
• Trim most of the fat from lamb fillets, leaving just a translucent layer. Crisscross fat with a knife. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a small nonstick pan over medium heat, heat the tablespoon of olive oil. Place lamb skin side down in pan, and cook 3 minutes. Flip lamb, and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes, or to taste. Remove and keep warm.
• Slice the lamb on the bias, and distribute evenly over four warm plates. Pour some of the reserved lamb sauce over the meat. Decorate with remaining fresh thyme.

TASTY BAKED LAMB WITH FETA CHEESE AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Cube the neck fillet and place on the base of a 9inch square oven dish.
• Change the dish size to suit you but we normally have enough lamb to cover the base of the dish - this makes a large meal for us two!
• Salt and pepper the lamb.
• Then cube feta cheese and sprinkle over the top.
• Thinly slice the tomatoes and layer over the top so that the dish is covered.
• Sprinkle on dried herbs.
• Sprinkle over the olive oil.
• Bake in the oven for 60 to 90 mins (we normally go for 90) at Gas mark 5 or 190°C.
• Half way through the baking time take the dish out and use a baster to draw out the juices at the bottom of the dish and squirt on the top.

LAMB CHOPS WITH THYME, CHILLI & GREEK HTIPITI

Steps:

• Put the lamb cutlets in a bowl with the thyme, chilli flakes and oil. Toss together to coat, then leave to marinate in the fridge for 30 mins-1 hr.
• For the htipiti, cut the peppers into small pieces. Put in a bowl and add all the other ingredients. Leave for about 15 mins for the flavour to infuse.
• Heat a griddle pan or frying pan. When it's really hot, lift the chops out of the marinade. Cook them, a few at a time, for 3 mins either side, seasoning as you go. Serve the chops with the sauce, and some baby potatoes, if you like.

LAMB FETA PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, add onion and cook for four minutes until soft. Stir in garlic and cook one minute.
• Slice tops off peppers and remove seeds. Stand peppers upright in a a 9x12-inch baking dish.
• In large bowl, combine onion mixture, dill, salt, allspice and pepper. Mix in rice and lamb, fold in feta cheese. Stuff peppers with mixture.
• Mix tomato sauce with water, lemon juice and sugar. Pour half over peppers, and half over bottom of dish. Cover with foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. Uncover and continue baking 15 minutes, basing occasionally with sauce, until a meat thermometer inserted in center of filling reads 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).