Recipe: Crane Dance Lamb Chops with Rosemary

I found this recipe in an unlikely place - About.com (here's the original recipe).  I didn't make any real changes to it, except that I don't use black pepper, and only used 4 lamb chops for this marinade (you could use 8) when the recipe called for 10-12, which seems excessive.  The only other change is that I slowly drizzled and simultaneously whisked the olive oil into the other marinade ingredients so that the vinaigrette did not separate.  I loved what this recipe did to the lamb.  It mellowed but kept the wonderful game flavor of the lamb, and then deepened the flavor just enough. 

As with all good recipes - quality ingredients are key.  I got my grass fed lamb chops from Crane Dance Farm.  Grass fed lamb is higher in nutrients, including Omega 3 (yep, lamb has 50% of the OM3's of fish), Vitamins B12 and B3, tryptophan, and thyroid and immune system-loving selenium.  Grass fed meat also digests more easily.  I found the Crane Dance Lamb Chops to be top notch meat.  Loved them.

Prep Time: 12 minutes

Cook Time: 16 minutes

Total Time: 28 minutes

Yield: Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients:

• 4-8 loin lamb chops, about 1 1/2 inches thick
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (optional)

Preparation:

Combinethe vinegar, rosemary, garlic and salt  in a large glass bowl (or an 8x8 shallow pan).  Slowly drizzle and simultaneously which in the olive oil.   Place chops in bowl and turn repeatedly to coat well.  You could put all of the contents into a ziplock bag, too.  Cover and refrigerate for 4 to 12 hours. Once marinated, remove chops from fridge and allow to come to room temperature (20 minutes). Preheat grill or grill pan for medium-high heat. Remove chops from marinade and place on a lightly oiled grill rack. Cook for 8 minutes on each side. Remove from heat, allow to rest for 3-5 minutes, and serve.