Photo: Lamb Chops with Greens and Crispy Orecchiette Pasta with Walnut-Rosemary Pesto Recipe
Ingredients
- Salt
- 1 pound orecchiette pasta
- 1 1/2 cups walnuts
- 7 to 8 stems rosemary, 1/4 to 1/3 cup leaves, loosely packed
- 2 cloves garlic, cracked from skin
- Black pepper
- 3 tablespoons plus 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 4 shoulder lamb chops, bone-in, 8 to 10 ounces each
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Grated nutmeg, to taste
- 1 red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 large heads kale, dinosaur kale or chard, chopped
- 2 to 3 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
Directions
Bring water to a boil for pasta, salt water and cook to al dente.
Toast walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat until golden and fragrant, a few minutes then cool. Add the nuts to a food processor with rosemary, 1 clove garlic, salt and pepper and turn processor on. Stream 1/3 cup oil into food processor to form pesto then scrape into a bowl and stir in about 3/4 cup grated cheese.
Rub chops with cut clove of garlic then season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops and cook 4 minutes each side for medium rare doneness.
While lamb cooks, drain pasta and return pot to heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil and butter in pasta pot and melt over medium heat. Place the pasta back in the pot and crisp 4 to 5 minutes, toasting the pasta. Season the pasta with salt and pepper and a little nutmeg.
Remove lamb from skillet and cover with foil to let meat settle. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high to high heat. Add onions and greens and sear them. Season the greens with salt and pepper and wilt down, 3 to 4 minutes. Add vinegar and turn greens to coat in vinegar.
Serve a chop alongside greens. Top greens with toasted pasta and drizzle some pesto over everything.
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By laytonsville_cook
on January 24, 2012
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The lamb was excellent. I had a hard time finding the exact cut of pasta and was very disappointed when I cooked it. Maybe it was the brand, but the pasta stuck together while cooking despite frequent stirring. The "pesto" was really just a nutty paste. I had never made pesto before and, after looking at several basic recipes on the site, it's obvious that this calls for WAY too many nuts and not enough herb. Given the time and money invested, this was really disappointing.
By Nannieschicken
on April 07, 2011
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I made the lamb only. It was very good. I did not really taste the garlic, but the chops were tender and succulent. Also, I like my meat well done, so I cooked it longer than Rachel suggests. I'll definitely make it again.
By aflorio927
philadelphia, pa
on October 12, 2010
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I just recently made this recipe for my boyfriend and I. Was extremely looking forward to it, but once I made it.. i didn't think it was all that great. The pasta is very thick, and is extremely fulling, with too many flavors going on. However, I did not use lamb.. I decided to use steak and didn't taste the garlic at all. It definetely needed more seasonings, not enough flavor at all.
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