In search of the perfect macaroni and cheese: Easter dinner

Easter dinner... posted a week late. Ah well! A week ago today Scott and I went to the Cabrillo farmer's market to pick up food for our Easter/Anniversary dinner. I knew that I wanted was lamb chops so I could try lamb and mint jelly. This is kind of a running inside "joke" (phrase?) between Scott and I almost since we started dating (now 4 years!). From early on, Scott would sometime say that I smelled like lamb and mint jelly. I had never heard of that combination, so I was excited to finally try it. We bought goat and lamb chops from one of the farmer's market stalls (couldn't resist the goat). When I bought the vegetables, I knew just what I wanted to make. Here is our menu: lamb/goat chops with mint jelly, rice pilaf, roasted winter vegetables and Old Fashioned baked custard (since we had a lot of fresh eggs from our chicken-sitting duties lately). I love going to the farmer's market and having a meal spring up before your eyes! So, here are the recipes:

Rice Pilaf

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups brown rice
2 1/2 cups chicken stock

Procedure:

1) Place the butter in a large, deep skillet which can be covered and turn the heat to medium-high. When the butter melts, add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion soften but does not begin to brown, 5 to 8 minutes.
2) Add the rice all at once, turn the heat to medium, and stir until the rice is glossy and completely coated with butter, 2-3 min. Turn the heat down to low and add the liquid, all at once. Cover the pan.
3) Cook for 30 min or so (it might have been longer, I don't remember).

Roasted Root Vegetables

Ingredients:

olive oil
1 1/2- 2 lbs mixed root vegetables, such as carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, parsnips, turnips, shallots (leave whole), and onions, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 to 2 in chunks (I used onions, turnips, carrots and celery)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 head garlic, broken into cloves (no need to peel)
Italian seasoning

Procedure:

1) Preheat the oven to 425. Put the chopped up vegetables in a baking pan and coat them with olive oil and seasonings. Place the pan in the oven.
2) Cook for about an hour, shaking every 10 minutes or so. Raise the temperature up to 450 if they don't start to brown after 30 minutes.

Old-Fashioned Baked Custard

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs plus 2 yolks
1/2 cup sugar
pinch salt

Procedure:1.) Put the cream and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until it just begins to steam.
2.) Beat the eggs and yolks with the sugar until pale yellow and fairly thick. Heat the oven to 300F and put a kettle of water on to boil.
3.) Gradually add the cream to the egg mixture, stirring constantly. Pour the mixture into an ovenproof dish. Put the dish in a baking pan and pour hot water into the pan to within about 1 inch of the top of the dish. Bake until the mixture is not quite set - it should wobble a little in the middle - about 45 minutes. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold, within a day.

You may wonder why I haven't included a recipe for lamb chops. That is because, as is usually the case, I let Scott cook the meat. He pan-broiled it and they came out delicious! What a difference to get fresh organic meat! Yum! The mint jelly was an interesting side with them but I felt it was too sweet and kind of took away from the flavor of the meat rather than added to it. The rice pilaf came out a little under-cooked and bland (part of this is that I substituted brown rice instead of white and didn't make sure the chicken stock was all mixed in). The roasted vegetables were to die for! Oh my goodness! They were INCREDIBLE! I will definitely have to make that recipe again, especially since it was so easy! The custard was great, too! It definitely made me wish I had an electric beater, as I only have hand-held ones. Even with the turn the handle double beater, my hands/wrists sure got tired! However, it was amazing with fresh eggs from our friends' chickens. Scott said it was the best custard he had ever had. Come to think of it, it was probably my best custard also! Especially cold the next day! Yum!