Anti-Valentine's Day Dinner

I'll start by sparing you my rant on all the reasons Valentine's Day is a holiday with no redeemable qualities or value whatsoever. I'm tempted, I really am, but this blog is about food, right?

So Terri and Steph came over to watch Live Free or Die Hard and enjoy some tasty deliciousness. I was feeling a bit creative, so I decided to boil some tomato water, salt and pepper, and spoon it over some slices of sashimi grade tuna. With the tuna firmed up just a bit, a sprinkled some Hawaiian sea salt on top with some soy sauce and truffle oil. Nice, clean first course.

Then seared a couple of racks of lamb with coriander, salt, and pepper. After I took them off the stovetop, I coated the lamb in horseradish, more salt, and more pepper and tossed them in the oven. While that lamb was roasting, I started the gastrique by running some cherries through a food mill until all the seeds were separated. I added the seeded cherries to a couple of cups of white wine, two bay leaves, a half a teaspoon or so of cloves, about a tablespoon of sugar, and about a teaspoon of whole allspice. I let the sauce reduce until just thickened and served it with the perfectly medium-rare lamb.

I love those rare times when a dish just really works on all cylinders. This was definitely one of those times. The salty tanginess of the horseradish crust was perfectly balanced by the sweet complexity of the gastrique. This was my first attempt at a gastrique, and I'm incredibly excited to try it with other fruits. A mango gastrique? With some roasted chicken, perhaps? Mmmmm......

Delicious.