Broiled lamb chops with mushrooms

As many readers already know, I’m an old grouch who lives alone with my two dogs, Squeeky and Camper. My neighbor down the block has a key to my house, and he takes care of things whenever I’m traveling. Sometimes he ‘drops off’ as well. 

My neighbor has developed a habit of stocking my house with beer when I’m out. I’ll come home and find a case of beer there, which wasn’t there when I left in the morning. He likes to keep a good supply of beer at my house, so he can escape, and have a couple, away from the watchful eye of his wife.

I remember about a year ago, I was away for the weekend. I drove up to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. With Christmas approaching, I offered to drive my son home from college. That Sunday, after I dropped my son off at his mom’s house, I arrived home. I discovered that, not only did my supply of beer increase, but there was a package of large meaty lamb chops in my refrigerator. My neighbor knows I have a real weakness for lamb, and he picked them up for me at the butcher shop. After I called and thanked him, this is how I prepared the lamb chops that night. 

6 giant meaty lamb chops,

Cajun seasoning

Olive oil

Fresh ground white pepper

1/2 lb. sliced shiitake mushrooms

1 cup of white wine

Preparation

Heat a large cast iron fry pan and add enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Season the chops with cajun seasoning on both sides. Place the chops in the cast iron and place them under a hot broiler. 

When the lamb starts to char on top, remove the pan. Turn the chops over and add the mushrooms around the chops. Return to the broiler. When there is a nice char on the chops, turn them over again and stir the mushrooms as you do. Return the chops to the broiler for a final minute or so until everything is sizzling. 

Set the chops on a serving platter and add the wine to the pan. Bring that to a boil, an stir, scraping up anything that has stuck to the pan. Let the wine simmer for a couple minutes, to reduce, and you are ready to serve.

Serving

Serve these sizzling chops on a plate and smother them with mushrooms. Add a big piled of steamed wild rice and then a huge pile of broccoli seared with onions. Drizzle some of the leftover wine in the pan, over the wild rice, and then sprinkle a touch of soy sauce over the rice. 

I’d start the meal off with a crisp salad. I also recommend setting out a bowl of mixed Italian olives. Finally, I’d open a good bottle of Italian red wine and sit down to your feast!