In January we ate the best chocolate chip cookies. Wait what?! You haven’t tried them yet? I forgive you as long as you promise to start softening the butter after you read this post.

In February we were honored by the Times Online and of course I mean we because without you I’d be long gone. After that we ate strong cheese .

In March things looked different. NotWithoutSalt.com was born. And we drank great coffee.

In April we made butter.

Then in May we hit the big time. We hopped on a plane to L.A. to see a screening of Food, Inc. and to have a one on one interview with the director – at his home, while he ate his breakfast (this was all thanks to my brother who was a cinematographer for the film).

Garlic Scapes filled us with joy in June.

In July Bacon Caramels satisfied our sweet and salty cravings.

We learned how to render lard in August.

In September we took a field trip to the Orchard then made caramel worthy of those apples.

A-hunting-we-did-go in October.

In November we learned all about coffee. More coffee. Coffee, cont’d.

And finally in December we covered ourselves in sugar. Cookies, candies, cakes, trifles and shortbread with onion jam.

Thanks to all of you for an incredible year. Here’s to an even more memorable one in 2010!

Have a fun New Year’s celebration. I will be ringing in the new year learning all about duck. More on this later.

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With the new year approaching more rapidly then I can wrap my head around I am surrounded by articles wearing the title of ‘best of’ and lists that point out the trends of 2009 and predict the future trends of 2010.

It was on such a list that I noticed pork was on its way out making room for lamb. While I can and will debate against them saying pork is becoming a lesser meat (bacon will always be near and dear to my heart) I will say I agree that lamb will be making a delicious rise in popularity.

Fortunately for me, during this  ‘year of the lamb”, I found myself with a selection of lamb thanks to Lava Lake Lamb. I received a nice email – with an actual person behind it, not someone just insterting my name – asking if I would like to recieve a sample of their product. It was mere seconds before I responded with an enthusiastic YES.

*Full disclaimer* so I don’t get hauled off to jail. I received the lamb for free but was not paid to write about it. I recieve many PR emails  – some I ignore, some I respond to and others ( few) I get so excited about I feel the need to blog.

Oh goodness am I excited about this.

First there was ground lamb. I added toasted cumin, mint, feta, salt and pepper. I formed that into little sausage patties which I then fried and served with olive pasta (pasta with finely chopped kalamata olives, mint, garlic, chili flakes and olive oil).

Secondly I braised lamb shanks. This wasn’t just any ol’ braise. This was like a spa treatment for the meaty shanks. They relaxed on a bed of carrots, onions, garlic and tomato. Then they enjoyed a drink of red wine, followed by an energizing bath of coffee. After all that they rested while the vegetables and juices reduced, were blended then strained. By the taste of things the shanks had quite a lovely day at the spa.

And Thirdly we ate French lamb chops. The simplest of all preparations but quite possibly my favorite. You remember the fennel pollen? Well, pull that out again. Dust your chops with it along with salt and pepper. Grab a skillet and cover the bottom with olive oil. Get it hot. No, hotter. Now you are talking. Gently place a chop in and watch the fireworks. Let that hang out for a few minutes then flip. Sizzle. Another few minutes on that side then let it rest. At this point they should be medium rare. If you want them cooked a bit more just pop the skillet in a hot oven for a couple minutes.

Serve with a raw carrot salad. Shaved carrot tossed with a lemon vinagrette (3 parts oil, one part lemon juice, touch of honey, french mustard, salt and pepper) and chopped Italian parsely.

If Rachel Ray were to prepare this she could take a 20 minute cocktail break and still be able to call it a 30 minute meal.

So there you have it. Three great ways to enjoy lamb in 2010.

Happy New Year to you all. May it be filled with joy, love, passion and food.

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