Rack of lamb with new garlic and new potatoes — a Honey & Co recipe

You can spot them now in nice delis and farmers’ markets: bagfuls of dirty little orbs, small, like quail’s eggs, and covered in earth. And you should be excited, for these are the newest of the new potatoes, harvested early by farmers who cannot wait for the crop to mature and be delivered to us, the cooking public. We are tired of winter veg and giddy with excitement for the new season’s produce.

Next to the new potatoes will be tiny little bulbs of the new season’s garlic, which look like candy in their soft greens and pale purples. They are indeed very sweet, but their aroma — fresh, sharp and bracing — tells of their potent kick.

These new potatoes and garlic need very little cooking and almost no seasoning, as is true for all of spring’s produce. This is the season of rebirth, and life is, at its beginning at least, uncomplicated. So the cook does not need to adorn or embellish, only to protect and care not to ruin something pristine.

Here we render some fat from the rack of lamb — another spring hero — and use it to cook the potatoes and garlic, which turn meltingly soft. We also use the fat to make a snappy little dressing to counter and complement the natural sweetness of the ingredients.

Whatever you celebrate at this time of year — Easter, Passover, Ramadan or some ancient pagan calling — take the time to rejoice. Spring is more than a season, it’s a mindset and a wake-up call to all the senses. And, to us, this recipe is what it tastes like.

Rack of lamb with new garlic and new potatoes

serves 3-4

For the lamb

For the tray

For the dressing

1. Take the lamb rack and carefully score the fat in a tight criss-cross pattern. (You can also ask the butcher to do it for you.) We like keeping the rack whole rather than “French trimmed” (with the majority of fat removed), as the fat contains so much flavour. Season well with the salt and ground fennel. You can do this a few hours in advance.

2. Heat a large frying pan on a low heat. Then place the rack flat, fatty side down, using a weighty object to press it down (we use a heavy saucepan). Let the fat render out of the chop slowly until the fat side is all golden and the frying pan is full of lovely lamb fat. This should take about 10-15 minutes.

3. Heat your oven to 220C (fan assisted), then place the whole garlic heads in the centre of a baking tray and scatter the potatoes around. Pour over the fat from the frying pan, add the salt and pepper and shake about. Then place the rendered lamb rack over the garlic heads and pop the whole thing into the oven for 20 minutes.

4. Shake the tray and move the rack a little so that the garlic bulbs are exposed and roast for a further 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, and cover the chops with a little foil to rest.

5. Strain off 30g of the fat into a little saucepan, add the honey, mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Remove and add the chopped basil.

6. Cut the chops along each bone, from top to bottom, and serve with the potatoes, garlic and sauce.

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