Dear Customers,
In a little less than two weeks it will be Easter. Yes, it falls relatively late this year, arriving on April 20th. When Easter falls in March, you can pretty much count on cold wet weather but I’m hopeful that this year will be sunny and warm!
It remains to be seen what the status of the egg industry will be like this Easter, particularly when demand always goes way up. And not just for baking and cooking but for coloring eggs and Easter egg hunts as well! We will continue to keep our prices as low as possible, as we have done since the onset of these crazy conditions back in September. Eggs, being a perishable commodity, are subject to market fluctuations. For the past five months, they have mostly fluctuated upwards! I can’t remember any other time when we haven’t even been able to order the quantity of eggs we need each week!
As turkeys are for Thanksgiving, hams are for Easter. If you asked ten households what their Easter meal would be, probably 7 out of 10 would say “ham”. There are boneless, semi-boneless, spiral cut, glazed as well as shank portions to name several choices. Not in Northwest Pennsylvania, but certainly elsewhere around the world, lamb is the featured meat of choice.
We will have Leg O’ Lamb in our ad for those who prefer it. I’m sure a lot of people don’t cook lamb because they just don’t know how. Here is a delicious roast lamb recipe. Take the meat out of the oven at least 1 hour before cooking. Trim the fat but leave a little as it helps the meat remain juicy. In a food processor, combine 15 peeled cloves of garlic, 2 tbs dried oregano, 2 tbs dried mint flakes, 1 tbs paprika, ½ tbs nutmeg, ½ cup of olive oil and the juice of 2 lemons. Grind until smooth.
Season the meat generously with Kosher salt and black pepper. Put the lamb on a top rack under the boiler. Broil for 5 to 7 minutes per side rotating frequently until browned. Peel and slice 5 cloves of garlic into large slices. Make slits all over the meat and insert a slice of garlic into each one. Apply the marinade all over the meat, covering all sides. Place the lamb on a wire rack in the bottom of a roasting pan and add 2 cups of water to the pan. Tent with foil and roast on middle rack at 325°F. Remove foil about 20-30 minutes before reaching your desired level of doneness! Let rest!
- Rare: About 15 minutes per pound or until internal temperature registers 125°F.
- Medium-Rare: About 20 minutes per pound or until internal temperature registers 130°F to 135°F. About 1 1/2 to 2 hours or so.
- Medium: About 25 minutes per pound or until internal temperature registers 135°F to 140°F.
- Well-Done: About 30 minutes per pound or until internal temperature registers 155°F to 165°F.
- Falling-Apart Tender Lamb: About 40 minutes per pound or until the internal temp registers 175°F. This can take about 6 hours or so