Sunday, May 3, 2009

Feta Topped Lamb Burgers with Liberty Heights Fresh Beet and Arugula Salad

This weeks Liberty Heights delivery brought some of my favorite things. I am an avid Feta lover and have recently been enjoying lamb. This week I decided to make lamb burgers for my family and they were a HUGE hit! I patted out the ground lamb (Morgan Valley Lamb) into patties and pan fried it over medium heat in a bit of olive oil. Then I topped it with just a little Rockhill Creamery desert red feta. This feta has such a nice flavor that really complements the lamb. I give it high marks, if you are a feta lover like I am and live in Utah pick up a piece of this cheese at Liberty Heights Fresh.


I mixed some Italian flat leaf parsley with regular mayo and red onions, topped with arugula and served it all on a ciabatta roll.

Also as beets are in season and were included in this weeks pickup as well I made a Beet and Arugula Salad that turned out very nicely. The recipe is slightly adapted from this Liberty Heights Recipe. I wanted to use shallots instead of red onions because I already had a lot of strong flavors going on with the lamb, feta, and arugula. The shallots played a nice background roll. Also, make sure you marinate the shallots with the beets for a beautiful red color.


Beet and arugula salad

1 lb baby red beets (save the tops for later!)
2 cups arugula, cleaned
1 shallot sliced as thin as possible
2 tablespoons port vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil (use a good quality oil)
1 tablespoon chives, chopped
2 teaspoon Italian flat leaf parsley

1. Rinse the beets and coat lightly with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, wrap in aluminum foil and roast in a 375 degree oven until tender, or a knife effortlessly slips in and out of the beet. (You can do all of this if you want, but I just rinsed and roasted since I was throwing away the skin anyway). Allow to cool completely then peel the skin off between two paper towels. Cut into small wedges and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the olive oil into the vinegar. Gently stir in the herbs to combine. Pour some of the dressing over the beet wedges and shallots and allow to marinate for about ten minutes. Toss with arugula and season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!