While hanging around a car dealership yesterday waiting on an oil change, I stumbled over a copy of New Mexico Magazine and a recipe that looked a lot more tantalizing than it's boring given name, "Ground Lamb Pinwheel". from Southwest chef and author of Grilling & Smoking for the Home Chef, Steve Collins, jumped out at me. First off, it sounded pretty darned tasty and unlike anything I've made lately. Secondly, it was an opportunity to apply cedar plank grilling to something it wouldn't have occurred to me to cook that way (in fact, little occurs to me to cook that way, the pile of cedar planks I started the summer with went all summer undisturbed), and third, I'm long on goat cheese and green chiles right now--all I had to buy was some lamb.
The basic idea: 1.5 lbs of ground lamb and one half pound of ground beef are mixed and flattened into a half inch thick base onto which a mixture of crumbled goat cheese, roasted green chiles, and some aromatics are spread then the whole is rolled into a pinwheel, patted with a dry rub and cedar-plank grilled for about 40 minutes. (Bob Henrick, are you paying attention?) A dry rub blend of southwestern spices is applied to the meat layer before and after rolling.
I did not make the recipe as specified. I used half and half lamb and turkey thigh. It was either that or use ALL lamb, which on reflection I wish I'd done, or buy more meat than I needed as I was shopping at our beloved local Food Co-op where great organic meats come in one pound packages. Additionally, I mixed the entire dry rub into the meat mix for a more permeated flavor, and used smoked Spanish paprika cut with a little garlic salt for the outer rub. I used shallots instead of the onion/garlic called for, and added lightly toasted pine nuts to the meat mix. And one more change: he used 4 ounces of feta, I used 6 ounces of chevre. If I were to do it again, I'd use use 100% ground lamb, but otherwise would not back off of any of my modifications. The extra cheese enabled a nice core of cheese in the center of the loaf, the pine nuts added texture and flavor, and the meat was well-seasoned. With all due respect to the source, however, I'll post his recipe as written.
GROUND LAMB PINWHEEL (Southwestern Cedar-Plank Grilled Lamb, Goat Cheese and Green chile Loaf with Cilantro-Pecan Pesto)
The Rub:
1 tblsp sea salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground chipotle or other chile (I used medium-hot red chimayo--thanks again, Larry)
1 tblsp dried oregano
The meat:
1 1/2 lbs ground lamb
1/2 lb ground beef
Green Chile Goat Cheese filling:
1 tblsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup freshly roasted green chiles, diced (about three poblanos)
1/2 c feta cheese, crumbled
Two hours before, put a cedar plank in a sink or tub filled with water. Apply a weight (I used a coffee cup filled with water) to hold it there until needed.
Mix meat. Mix rub ingredients. Mix filling.
On a length of cling film about one foot long, press the meat mixture into a rectangle 1/2 inch thick and roughly about 12" x 6". Season to taste with the rub, reserving some for an outer coating.
Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until soft, about five minutes. Add to cheese and green chile mixture, and spread about 1/4 inch thick over the meat, leaving the bottom two inches (lengthwise) naked for a clean seam.
Lifting the meat with the cling film, roll the meat lengthwise toward the naked strip.
Place the meat roll seam side down on the wet plank. Apply final rub and place plank in center of the grill and close the cover. Roast for 35-40 minutes (at around 350 if you're using gas). The plank may become charred but shouldn't catch fire.
I made a green chile-tomatillo-lime-cilantro salsa to go with my dish, but here's a condiment Steve Collins recommends:
Cilantro Pecan Pesto
2 cups roasted green chiles, diced
1/2 c toasted pecans, chopped
1/4 c grated parmesan or manchego
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 c fresh cilantro
Place all ingredients in a food processor and pulse to a coarse paste.
