Lamb Chops Piccata with Mushroom and Capers

 

I love ANYTHING Piccata.  You could boil a shoe and top it with Piccata sauce and I'd probably eat it. 

Well -- maybe not!

But you get my drift. 

The perfect Piccata is lemony and full of fresh herb flavor.  I've seen it made with garlic.  I've seen it made with shallot and without. 

I made this tonight, and I did Robert Irvine's "Happy Dance" when I tasted my sauce.  It was PERFECT!  Just the right acid balance.  Yum!

My recipe is kind of a variation on Piccata but I know you will just love it - especially if you love lamb chops like I do.  Even if you don't like lamb, try my sauce with the mushroom and capers on turkey cutlets or chicken.  It even goes nicely with a tender NY strip steak. 

So, with no further adieu, here you go:

 

Ingredients:

1 lb. bone in lamb loin chops (4 chops)

2 1/2 tbs. light olive oil

2 tbs. chopped garlic

12-15 sprigs of fresh thyme, divided

 ¼ cup lemon juice, divided

2 tbs. cold butter, divided

 

1 cup baby portabella mushrooms, halved

1 tsp. lemon pepper seasoning

½ tsp. ground sage

¼ cup low sodium chicken broth

Splash dry vermouth, optional

1 tbs. chopped capers

Chopped fresh sage

 

Directions:

Marinate the lamb chops in the olive oil (reserve 1/2 tbs.), garlic, 1/2 of the lemon juice, and about 10 sprigs of thyme, partially stripped.  Let marinate a room temperature, covered, for about 30 minutes.

 

Add the remaining olive oil to a skillet.  Let the oil get hot over medium heat and then dump it out, letting the remnants just coat the pan.

 

Add half of the butter to a skillet and melt.  Add in mushrooms and the remaining thyme stripped from the stem.  Sauté until the mushrooms are lightly browned.  Remove from pan.

 

Remove the lamb chops from the marinade.  Pat dry with a paper towel.  Discard marinade. 

 

Season on both sides with a mixture of the lemon pepper and ground sage.  Add chops to hot pan.  Sear on both sides, about four minutes one side, two minutes for second side (remove from heat for the two minutes and let cook in a hot pan) for medium rare.  Cook longer for desired temperature. 

 

Did you get that?  Yes, I flipped the chops, took the pan off the heat and let them continue to cook in a hot pan.

 

Remove chops from pan and let rest.

 

 

Add the rest of the butter lemon juice, the broth, and vermouth, if using, to the skillet.  Deglaze the pan; scraping the browned bits from the bottom.  Add in the capers and return the mushrooms to the pan.

 

Bring sauce to boil and reduce to simmer until thickened to your liking - about four minutes.

 

 

Serve sauce over chops.  Top with fresh sage. 

 

Enjoy and I'll see you soon!