Recipes: Parmesan Portobellos, Glazed Carrots, Molasses-Glazed Rack of Lamb

Parmesan Portobellos

Serves 6.

This is the kind of dish that makes entertaining possible. Almost everything can be done ahead of time. The initial roasting of the portobello can take place early in the day. Ditto the preparation of the white sauce. (Refrigerate both until ready to use, placing a piece of plastic wrap right down onto the sauce so it doesn't form a skin.)

About 30 minutes before your guests arrive, take 5 minutes and assemble the dish. While your guests are having drinks, pop the portobellos into the oven. And if they're done but you're not quite ready to start dinner, just set them aside in a warm place until you are.

6 portobellos, cleaned and stems removed

3 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 c. hot milk

Salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste

½ c. grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush the portobellos with the olive oil. Place in a shallow baking pan, stem-ends up. Bake for 20 minutes. Set aside.

In a small pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the sauce comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from heat.

Bake the portobellos stem-ends up until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories number here 188

Carbohydrates number here 10 g

Protein number here 8 g

including sat. fat number here 7 g

Sodium number here 265 mg

Glazed Carrots

Serves 6.

Not too sweet, not too salty, not swimming in too much butter -- good glazed carrots are delicious. Here we've used baby-cut carrots because they make it so easy, but of course you can cut up whole carrots if you'd prefer (we think they're often sweeter).

2 lb. baby-cut carrots

1½ c. chicken broth or stock

3 tbsp. sugar

¾ tsp. salt

Pepper to taste

Remove the cover and raise the heat to high. Cook until the liquid has reduced to a glaze-like consistency, about 12 to 14 minutes. If the carrots seem to be overcooking (they should be very tender, but not mushy) while the liquid is still reducing, just remove them with a slotted spoon and then return them after the liquid has reduced. Before serving, stir to evenly coat the carrots with the glaze.

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories number here 165

Carbohydrates number here 22 g

Protein number here 2 g

including sat. fat number here 5 g

Cholesterol number here 21 mg

Sodium number here 331 mg

Molasses-Glazed Rack of Lamb

Serves 6 to 8.

Lamb tends to be fatty, and even though a lot of the fat will have been removed, what remains may start smoking in an oven set to 425 degrees. Keep a clean roasting pan or other deep baking pan nearby, and if the fat starts to smoke, transfer the lamb racks to the clean pan and continue baking until done.

1½ tsp. salt

1½ tsp. freshly ground pepper

¾ tsp. cinnamon

3 Frenched racks of lamb

About ¼ c. molasses

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Combine the salt, pepper and cinnamon. Rub the spice mixture all over the racks of lamb except for the exposed bones, then brush the meat with the olive oil.

Place the prepared racks with the fat-side down in a roasting pan, preferably non-stick. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the racks fat-side up. Bake 5 more minutes, then brush each rack (but not the exposed bones) with the molasses. Bake until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 145 degrees for medium-rare, about 5 to 10 minutes more. Remove from the oven and brush again with the molasses.

Before serving, let the racks sit for 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, slice into individual chops and serve 3 to 4 chops per person.

Calories number here 512

Carbohydrates number here 7 g

Protein number here 27 g

Fat number here 41 g

including sat. fat number here 17 g