Roasted Rack of Lamb

I have always been a collector of recipes. Most of them have never even been read the entire way through, but sit dusty in a drawer in my kitchen, or in a box in the garage, or in the attic closet at my mother's house. Some were cut from magazines or newspapers. Others were mailed to me from my grandmother, picked from a selection at the grocery store, or removed from the back of a box of non-perishables. I don't know why I collect them, really. I suppose I get this grand idea when I see a recipe that someday, this recipe will come in handy, and that someday I'll have a large function with many people for whom I will be cooking. But this grand event with many people never comes, so the recipes sit dusty, untouched.

This one particular recipe hails from a book called, "The Party Book." Really, it is a huge magazine full of advertisements for Macy's helping future bride-and-groom-to-be pick out table wear for their new life together. However, being the recipe-collector that I am, I immediately noticed the recipes scattered amongst the pages, so I saved the magazine. For years, it sat in the drawer in my kitchen. Every time that I couldn't decide what to cook, I'd pull this magazine out, flip through the pages drooling over the photos, and then put it back in the drawer not finding a recipe to satisfy my needs, until last April. I had a craving to make lamb.

This recipe turned out awesome, and I could probably eat it every night if it wasn't so expensive to make! I made the meal exactly as the recipe calls for, and it turned out spectacular. I definitely recommend this recipe for your next special occasion. The photo in the magazine included green beans, along with sauteed tomatoes and sauteed pearl onions. I served this meal with fresh strawberries on the side, and of course, sparkling champagne over a candlelit table.

-Sarah

Roasted Rack of Lamb
2 racks of lamb, trimmed
MUSTARD COATING:
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. herbes de Provence
3 tbsp. grainy mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
6 tbsp. melted butter

Preheat oven to 500*. Score racks of lamb, making shallow crisscross slashes in the covering fat. Mix garlic, herbes de Provence and salt together. Beat in mustard and olive oil. Brush mixture over meat. Place lamb racks in oiled roasting pan. Fold strip of foil over rib ends to prevent scorching.
Roasting: Place lamb in upper middle part of the oven; roast for 10 minutes. Remove lamb, rapidly spread a coating of bread crumbs and drizzle with melted butter. Turn oven down to 400* and roast for 15-20 minutes to an internal meat temperature of 125* for rare or 130* for medium.