Roasted Rack of Lamb With ­Boulangère Potatoes and Braised Lettuce

Ingredients

Boulangère potatoes
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes
Kosher salt
1 tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
¼ cup diced smoked bacon
3 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of a chef’s knife and peeled
½ Spanish onion, cut into small dice
About 2 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade

Lamb
2 plum tomatoes
3 tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Pinch of sugar
1 small 8-bone rack of lamb, Frenched by your butcher
Korean chile powder or piment d’Espelette
1 tbs. lemon juice
½ cup chicken stock, preferably homemade
1 tbs. unsalted butter
1 head Boston lettuce, outer leaves removed, heart halved

Instructions

Boulangère potatoes: Cut each potato into 1½-inch slices and punch out circles with a 2-inch-round cutter. Rinse the disks under cold running water to wash off any excess starch. Pat dry with paper towels, season generously with salt, and let rest for 10 minutes to absorb the salt. Preheat the oven to 300. Heat the olive oil in a wide, deep sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes and cook until lightly browned on both sides, about 5 minutes per side, turning them over with a spoon. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is crispy and most of its fat has rendered (about 6 minutes). Carefully pour off any excess fat from the pan, then add the garlic and onion. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until they are lightly caramelized (about 4 minutes). Pour in enough stock to come halfway up the sides of the potatoes, bring to a simmer, cover with a lid, and cook in the oven just until the potatoes are tender to a cake tester or knife tip (about 15 minutes). Remove the potatoes from the oven. They can be used right away or refrigerated overnight when cool.

Lamb: Preheat the oven to 275. Peel the plum tomatoes, halve, and remove the pulp. Set a piece of aluminum foil in a baking sheet, brush with oil, add tomatoes cut side up, and season with salt and sugar and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 90 minutes, turning after 45. The tomatoes should be slightly shriveled and dry.

Preheat the oven to 350. Season the lamb with salt and chile powder. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large cast-iron pan over medium-high heat; add the rack of lamb to the pan, fat side down; and sear for about 5 minutes. Turn the rack on its side so it’s resting on the bone, transfer to the oven, and cook until nicely browned and cooked through, about 12 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 120 degrees. Transfer the lamb to a cutting board and let it rest for 10 minutes. Do not turn off the oven. Meanwhile, pour the fat from the cast-iron pan and return the pan to the stovetop over medium heat. Add the lemon juice and stir to loosen any flavorful bits cooked onto the bottom of the pan. Stir in the chicken stock, then the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and the butter, and stir to emulsify the liquids with the fats in the pan, letting the mixture reduce for about 5 minutes. Transfer the reserved potato mixture to an ovenproof sauté pan or casserole and reheat in the oven. Add the lettuce and tomatoes to the pan and let wilt in the oven for 1 to 2 minutes. Slice the rack of lamb into 4 chops. Spoon some of the potato, lettuce, and tomatoes onto each of 2 dinner plates. Add a portion of lamb to each plate and spoon some sauce over the lamb. Serve.

Recipe adapted from Battersby: Extraordinary Food From an Ordinary Kitchen, by Joseph Ogrodnek and Walker Stern (Grand Central Publishing).