Bobby Flay's Grill It! (10 page)

This dish is simply stunning: the meat is glossy brown on the outside and pink inside, and the whole thing is crowned with a jewel-like pomegranate relish. Pomegranate molasses, which is most commonly used in Middle Eastern cuisine, is made from pomegranate juice that has been reduced to a thick and viscous syrup. Its intense color and sweetness make for a gorgeous, delicious glaze. Horseradish’s bite keeps the glaze from being cloying, as does Dijon mustard.

Serves 4

1. Whisk together the pomegranate molasses, horseradish, and mustard in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before using. The glaze can be made 1 day in advance, covered and refrigerated, and brought to room temperature before using.
   
2. Heat your grill to high.
   
3. Brush the lamb with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill and cook until golden brown and slightly charred, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the lamb over, brush with some of the glaze, and continue grilling for 3 to 4 minutes longer for medium-rare.
   
4. Brush with the remaining glaze, remove from the grill, tent with foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice into 1-inch-thick slices. Serve on a platter and top each piece with some of the relish.
   

Makes approximately ¾ cup

Combine the pomegranate seeds, onion, jalapeño, and parsley in a small bowl and season with salt. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours before serving.

Herbes de Provence is a fragrant mix of herbs from the Provence region of France. Although I think the dried version is good when added to long-cooking braised dishes, I prefer a livelier taste when grilling and make my own mix of the same fresh herbs. Since the marinade for the lamb is centered around French flavors, it only seemed right to serve it with a vinaigrette based on another of France’s greatest flavors: Dijon mustard. See
photograph
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Serves 4

1. Whisk together the thyme, basil, rosemary, marjoram, bay leaf, and oil in a large baking dish. Add the lamb and turn to coat with the mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.
   
2. Heat your grill to high.
   
3. Remove the lamb from the marinade and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown and cooked to medium, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
   
4. Arrange the arugula on a large platter and immediately top with the lamb chops and drizzle with the mustard vinaigrette. The heat from the lamb will wilt the arugula slightly.
   

Makes approximately ¾ cup

Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, garlic, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil until emulsified. The vinaigrette can be made a day in advance, covered, and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Lamb souvlaki served up in a pita with yogurt sauce is pretty standard Greek fare, found everywhere from restaurants in Athens, Greece, to food carts on New York City streets. This version is more along the lines of something that you might find at my Spanish-Mediterranean restaurant, Bolo. Spicy lamb merguez sausage and slightly sweet and smoky piquillo peppers are traditional Spanish ingredients, but they find themselves right at home in this flavorful sandwich.

Serves 4 to 6

1. Whisk together 1 cup of the oil, the garlic, chopped yellow onion, and oregano in a large bowl; add the lamb; and toss to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.
   
2. Heat your grill to high.
   
3. Grill the sausages until golden brown on all sides and just cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes.
   
4. While grilling the sausage, brush the bell pepper and red onion slices with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the onion for 3 to 4 minutes on each side until slightly charred and just cooked through. Grill the pepper, turning onto all sides, until charred, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the grill, transfer to a bowl, cover, and let sit for 10 minutes before peeling, coring, seeding, and slicing.
   
5. Remove the sausage from the grill, let rest for 5 minutes, and cut into 1-inch pieces. Thread the lamb and sausage onto the skewers and season with salt and pepper.
   
6. Grill the skewers for 2 minutes per side, or until the lamb is golden brown and cooked to medium-rare. Grill the pita on both sides for about 20 seconds to warm through.
   
7. Slice off 1 inch from the top of each pita. Remove the lamb and sausage from the skewers and stuff into the pita. Add some onion and peppers, drizzle with some of the yogurt sauce, and garnish with oregano.
   

Makes approximately 1¾ cups

Combine the yogurt, peppers, garlic, lemon zest, and oregano in a blender and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to a small bowl. The sauce will keep, covered in the refrigerator, for up to 1 day.

The sauce is my version of skordalia, a traditional Greek dip made with potatoes, bread, and plenty of garlic. I’d never get rid of the garlic, but making it with green peas instead of the potatoes and bread adds a lighter texture that is perfect for warm-weather eating. Peas, mint, and lamb—you can’t help but feel like you’re welcoming springtime in with this classic combination. The skordalia is really tasty and you might want to make extra to have on hand as a dip for pita bread and fresh veggies.

Serves 4

1. Cook the peas according to package directions. Drain well.
   
2. Combine the peas, garlic, serrano chile, lemon zest and juice, and honey in a food processor and process until coarsely chopped. With the motor running, slowly add the extra-virgin olive oil until emulsified. Add the parsley, season with salt and pepper, and pulse a few times. Scrape into a bowl. The pea sauce can be made 4 hours in advance and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving.
   
3. Heat your grill to high.
   
4. Brush the lamb with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill and cook until golden brown and slightly charred, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the lamb over and continue grilling for 3 to 4 minutes longer for medium-rare.
   
5. Remove from the grill, tent with foil, and let rest for 5 minutes before slicing into 1-inch-thick slices. Place a large dollop of the pea sauce in the center of 4 large plates. Arrange lamb slices around the sauce and drizzle with some of the vinaigrette.
   

Makes approximately 1 cup

Combine the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, honey, salt, and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add the oil until emulsified. Add the mint leaves and blend until just combined. Do not blend until totally smooth; flecks of mint should still appear in the vinaigrette. The vinaigrette can be made up to 1 hour in advance and kept at room temperature.

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Grilled Lobster Tails with White Clam Sauce

I’ve heard lobster was once so plentiful that it was served at poorhouses and used as fertilizer. Not so now; pricey lobster has become a luxury ingredient. I have no problem seeing its allure, no matter what the price. Its intensely flavored, thick, and meaty flesh is delicious. I can’t imagine a trip to the New England shore without a lobster salad roll or, even better, whole steamed lobster with drawn butter. To some, that’s where lobster ends, but not for me. I happen to think that two of summer’s greatest joys are the outdoor grill and lobster, and introducing one to the other—magic. A special meal of grilled lobster is one that you and your guests will both savor at the table and remember for a long time.