98 Fairlady/September 2019
5.Forthesauce:Drizzlethe
butterandcreamoverthegnocchi.
Sprinklewithcheeseandbakefor
25-30minutesuntilgoldenand
bubbly.Whilethegnocchiare
baking,pan-frythemushrooms
untilgolden.Whenthegnocchi
comeoutof theoven,topwiththe
seasonedmushroomsandherbsand
serveat once.
GREEK-STYLEYOUVETSI
WITHKAROOLAMB,
LEMON& ORIGANUM
SERVES 6
I tastedyouvetsiforthefirsttime
in 2012at foodwriterandsocial
mediaspecialistJane-AnneHobbs’s
house, as part of the launch
for her cookbook, Scrumptious.
What a revelation! In essence,
it’s a roasted lamb dish made
with fresh tomato, origanum
and lots of lemon, with flat
rice-shaped pasta (orzo) cooked
in the pan juices and grilled
kefalotyri cheese added on top.
It’s so simple, yet one of the most
incredibly satisfying dishes to
eat. The mouthfeel of the lemony,
meaty orzo is just phenomenal,
accompanied by meltingly tender
lamb shreds and the grilled
salty cheese. These days I make
it with mutton instead of lamb,
and feta instead of kefalotyri.
This dish is a crowd-pleaser
– every time.
GREEK-STYLE YOUVETSI
WITH KAROO LAMB,
LEMON & ORIGANUM
FORTHESAUCE
- 60g butter, melted, plus extra
forfrying - 125ml(½cup)freshcream
- 80ml (^1 / 3 cup) grated cheese
(sameasabove) - about 250g wild mushrooms,
broken into smaller pieces if
verylarge - salt and freshly ground
blackpepper - 2-3sprigsfreshthyme,leavesonly
- fresh micro herbs, to serve
- For the gnocchi: Line
a 30 x 25 x 2cm baking tray with
non-stick baking paper. In
a mixing bowl, whisk the butter,
cheese and egg yolks, and season
with salt and pepper. Set aside. - Heat the milk in a medium-
large saucepan. Add the nutmeg,
and season with salt and pepper.
When the milk starts to boil, add
the semolina while stirring.
Reduce the heat to medium and
continue to cook, stirring, until
the mixture thickens and pulls
away from the sides (5-8 minutes).
Watch carefully and don’t let it
burn. Remove from heat. - Add the egg yolk and cheese
mixture, and mix until smooth,
working quickly. Transfer the
mixture to the baking tray, edging
it into the corners and smoothing
the surface to an even thickness,
using a spatula dipped in cold
water. Set aside to cool completely. - Preheat the oven to 180°C and
grease a 25 x 18 x 5cm baking
dish. Turn the semolina slab out of
the tray onto a clean work surface
and peel off the baking paper.
Cut the slab into circles using
a 4cm cookie cutter or a small
cup dipped in cold water – or cut
it into whichever shapes you like
(squares, triangles etc.). Arrange
the cut shapes slightly overlapping
in the greased casserole dish. Now
make the sauce.