Scotch medallions of lamb & a marmalade of red onion & fennel

For ➍
1 ts fennel seed
1 head of sliced fennel
2 zucchini
1 lamb strip loin (750 g), trimmed of all fat (or 4 medaillons)
2 red sliced onions
1 ts sugar (5g)
1 tbs Scotch malt whisky
50 g butter
salt & pepper
pinch of rosemary
8.5 dl lamb stock
1 ts tomato puree
25 g diced cold butter

Make the Scotch whiskey sauce. Put the lamb stock into a pot. Place over a high heat and reduce to 1.7 dl.
In a small pot, warm the tomato puree with 2 tbs of the reduced stock, stir until smooth; add more stock if necessary.
Add Scotch whisky & whisk in 25 g of diced cold butter.
Slice the medallions of lamb from the loin, flatten slightly and sprinkle with rosemary and season.
Make the marmalade. Sauté the red onion, fennel and fennel seed in 25  g butter over a low heat until soft.
Add sugar and cook for 1 m. Remove from the pan and keep warm.
Melt the rest of the butter, 25 g in pan. Quickly fry the lamb for 1 m on each side. Remove from pan and keep warm.
Quickly fry the courgettes until just hot, then slice into thin shoelace strips. Put a swirl of courgettes in the centre of a warm plate, place four medallions around the outside and fill the spaces in between with the marmalade.
Serve with the Scotch sauce.

Pot roast leg of lamb

For ➏-➑
20 cl red wine
20 cl water
1 tbs white wine vinegar
1 medium red onion, diced
1 ts dried oregano
1.5 kg leg of lamb
2 tbs vegetable oil
2 tbs tomato puree
½ ts sugar
1 ts salt
1 tbs ground black pepper

Combine the red wine, water, white wine vinegar, diced onion and dried oregano in a mixing bowl. Stir the marinade with a wooden spoon to blend.
Place the leg of lamb into a large bowl, and pour the marinade over top.
Cover the lamb with a sheet of plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 h. Turn the leg of lamb once an hour so the meat marinates evenly.
Remove the leg of lamb from the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels. Reserve the marinade.
Pour the vegetable oil into a casserole dish and place over medium-high heat for three minutes. Brown each side of the leg of lamb for 3 m and reduce heat to low. Pour the reserved marinade over the top.
Cover the casserole dish and leave the lamb to cook for two hours or until its internal temperature registers 60°C.
Remove the leg of lamb from the casserole dish and wrap it in aluminum foil. Add the tomato puree, sugar, salt and pepper to the casserole pan, and stir to blend the sauce. Simmer for 10 m.
Unwrap the leg of lamb and serve it with the sauce from the casserole dish drizzled over the top.

*Refrigerate leftover leg of lamb immediately and consume within 3 days.

Spaghetti alla puttanesca 2 (Naples' hookers' spaghetti)

For ➍
2 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
salt & black pepper
1 50 g can anchovies packed in oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbs tomato paste
½ ts crushed red pepper
750 g box or can chopped or crushed tomatoes
2 tbs drained capers
100 g pitted black olives, chopped
1 tbs chopped fresh basil
grated zest of 1 lemon
340 g spaghetti or other pasta

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 m. Add the anchovies and garlic and cook, stirring, until the anchovies disintegrate and the garlic has softened, 2 to 3 m. Add the tomato paste and continue to stir for 1 m, then add the tomatoes, capers, and olives. Cover the pot, adjust the heat so the mixture simmers gently, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it’s thick and saucy, 25 to 30 m. Stir in the basil and lemon zest, and taste and adjust the seasoning.
When the water for the pasta comes to a boil, salt it generously and add the pasta. Cook until al dente, usually 7 to 8 m, depending on the package instructions. Reserve about 25 cl of the pasta cooking liquid and then drain the pasta.
Toss the pasta with the sauce, adding the reserved cooking liquid as needed to thin out the sauce. Serve.

Variant & history:Spaghetti alla puttanesca.

American-Italian spaghetti with meatballs & tomato sauce

For ➍
400 g spaghetti (fresh, if possible)
2 l water
2 tbs olive oil
salt
sauce:
400 g tomato puree*
170 g tomato pasta*
450 g diced tomatoes (canned)*
3 cloves garlic
1 medium yellow onion
1 bay leaf
1 ts dried basil
3 ts dried oregano
2 tbs fresh parsley
½ ts garlic powder
½ ts chili powder
5 tbs olive oil
15 cl red wine (e.g. Chianti)
sugar
salt & pepper
2 thin pork chops (400 g)
some butter
meatballs:
450 g ground beef
1 egg
1½ slice dark bread with crust
3 tbs bread crumbs
5 tbs fresh parsley, chopped
25 g Parmigiano cheese
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ tbs red wine
1 tbs sweet basil
1 ts garlic powder
salt & coarse black pepper
butter

Put ground beef in a large bowl. Add parsley. Break 1 egg into bowl. Add garlic. Add Parmigiano.

Wet pieces of bread**. Squeeze water out. Break the bread into the bowl. Add bread crumbs.

Add coarse black pepper, salt, garlic powder, red wine and 1 tbs of basil. Mix all the ingredients for 3 m. Put in refrigerator for 30 m.

Pour oil in a saucepan to cover the bottom. Finely chop cloves of garlic. Add to the cold oil.

Finely chop medium size onion.

Put the oil with the garlic on medium heat. Heat until you see little bubbles around the garlic. Add the chopped onions and lower the heat to medium low. Simmer for 5 m. Add 1 ts oregano, ½ ts basil, a dash of salt and pepper. Mix well.

Add tomato paste. Fill empty can with water. Add to the sauce.

Set heat to medium. Stir and simmer for 4 m. Add a touch of salt, black pepper and ½ ts of oregano.

Add can of diced tomatoes. Fill can with water about half way, and add to the sauce. Stir and simmer for 10 m. Add 1 ts oregano, ½ ts basil, 1 tbs chopped parsley, just a dash of chili powder, ½ ts garlic powder and a dash of black pepper.

Add tomato puree. Mix well. Fill can up with water about ¾ full and add this to the sauce.

Add 1 ts oregano, 1 tbs parsley, ½ ts of basil and ½ ts of garlic powder. Mix well.

Keep at medium heat and cover pan. Add 15 cl red wine and mix well. Let simmer for 15 m.

Drop in 1 bay leaf.

Fry 2 thin pork chops in a pan with a little butter. Continue on low heat for about 2 to 3 minutes on each side, turn up the heat to high and sear the chops for about 2 m on each side to brown. Add to the sauce. Keep simmering. Stir frequently.

Roll the meatballs' mix into 2.5 cm balls (with wet hands).

Heat butter in a very hot pan and sear the balls.

Add 2 ts of sugar to the sauce. Put in the meatballs. Cover and simmer for 30 m.

When ready, let stand covered for 1 or 2 h.***

Boil spaghetti in salted water with 2 tbs of olive oil.

Heat the sauce for 10 m. Take out the pork chops and cut into big chunks. Take out the balls.

Put spaghetti on a plate. Add some meat. Serve sauce in a bowl****.

Serve with a strong Italian wine.

*You can double tomato quantities to get 8 servings. Remove half of the sauce before putting in any meat and freeze. When reheating, add meat and finish the sauce as in recipe. Tomato paste is double concentrated tomato puree, slightly caramelized (if possible home made).
**You can put bread in 3 tbs of milk instead.
***Spoon off any excess fat.
****You can freeze the rest of the sauce for a few days. Do not leave any meat in the sauce when freezing.

Illustration of the most famous spaghetti dinner ever, from Walt Disney's Lady and the Tramp movie.
While a classic duo now, tomatoes did not meet pasta until the early 1800's when Neapolitan street-sellers sold a ready made sauce to accompany the new dry factory-made pasta. Meat was very rare, and it was only when Italian migrants came to America that they could afford it. This kind of dish was way too expensive for most Italians in Italy, so the migrants created a phantasm come true (according to John Dickie's delightful Delizia! The Epic History of the Italians and Their Food) with meat and sauce, worth of the Disney dream factory.
More American-Italian hybrids: fettuccine Alfredo, spaghetti alla puttanesca, chicken Marsala, white pizza.
Read more spaghetti & linguine recipes: a quick spaghetti, spaghetti with scallops & tomatoes, scallops & rucola spaghetti, spaghetti alla carbonara, spaghetti with vegetables, shrimps fra diavolo, raw tomato spaghetti, spaghetti with clams, spaghetti with small clams, spaghetti with oil & garlic, spaghetti alla puttanesca, Palermo spaghetti with tomatoes & mint, vermicelli with parsley sauce, shrimps & Brie linguine, butter & tomato pasta sauce, lemon pasta with sea spinach.