A main course to celebrate some better spring weather, with a favourite scallop dish to start.

Seared Scallops with Ibérico Ham
I have cooked this starter, from Rick Stein’s Seafood Odyssey, many times. There are few recipes that deliver such a sophisticated dish for so little effort! Typically I use a different ham – Ibérico is stupidly expensive in London – but this time there was some Ibérico we brought back from Valencia. The Ibérico’s nutty, earthy sweetness was a significantly better match than the parma or other prosciuttos I ordinarily use.

It really is simple. I rubbed the frying pan with a block of butter, brought the pan to smoking point, seared the scallops for a couple of minutes on each side, and removed them from the pan. I added 3 tbsp sherry vinegar to the pan – taking care to get my nostrils out of the way of the vinegar steam – and scraped up any residue, then whisked in c.30-40g cubed butter before adding a tablespoon or two of chopped parsley and seasoning.

The recipe suggests serving the scallops on the ham alongside some frisée lettuce with the dressing spooned over, but I tend to avoid frisée: I sometimes find it a bit tough and the remainder of the big head of leaves never keeps well. On this occasion I used a handful of smaller leaves picked up from the fruit and veg stall. That worked well.

It’s a really great dish. Scallops always feel luxurious, and it’s so simple.

Mint-crusted Roast Rack of Lamb, Minted Pea Risotto, Asparagus with Lemon, Anchovy and Rosemary
These three components worked really well together. It’s obvious, I suppose: the mint and peas of the risotto and the rosemary and anchovy with the asparagus are all traditional accompaniments for lamb. And the rack was sweet and juicy new season’s lamb from The Butchery.

For the Mint-crusted Roast Rack of Lamb, I use a recipe from the Ginger Pig Meat Book. I have had variable results from this book, but of the various lamb crusts I have tried, this simple approach has worked the best.

I chopped and combined handfuls of mint and parsley and a smaller handful of chives. I trimmed the skin from the rack, trying to leave a fine layer of fat (the recipe is ambiguous on this, but I always trim the skin) and then cut the rack of eight ribs into two and browned each half on all sides. When getting towards the serving time, I roasted the racks at 220º/200º/gas mark 7 for about 10 minutes (the recipe says 8-10 for pink, 10-12 for medium, but I find less than 10 minutes results in the wrong side of pink).

I brushed the fat of each rack with a tsp or so of Dijon mustard and dipped and pressed the racks into the herbs, trying to get a nice thick coating. The lamb then went back into the oven for another three minutes.

More straightforward than some similar recipes, but this one consistently delivers.

The Ginger Pig recipe suggests serving with gratin dauphinois, but I never fancy that – the lamb, especially when it is new season’s, is sweet and delicate and the herb crust accentuates this; dauphinois seems too much. New potatoes with mint is a good option, but on this occasion I decided on a minted pea risotto, using frozen peas because fresh are still not in season. I stirred in some blanched peas close to the end of the risotto’s cooking time, but when there was still some liquid, and then stirred through a small handful of mint at the end. I remembered to use an old parmesan crust from our extensive collection in the freezer – adding this with the first ladleful of stock; it limits how much parmesan is needed at the end – no more than a couple of tablespoons did it on this occasion.

For the third accompaniment, I remembered a dish I hadn’t cooked for many years – Jamie Oliver’s Roasted Asparagus with Rosemary and Anchovies wrapped in Pancetta from Happy Days with the Naked Chef, except that I used cured ham instead of pancetta (I’ve used smoked streaky in the past too).

It’s very easy. Pop an anchovy and sprig of rosemary among a few spears of asparagus and wrap them in some ham (or bacon). Drizzle with olive oil and roast at 220º/200º/gas mark 7 for 5 minutes with half-a-lemon in the roasting tray. The key to this dish is a squeeze of the roasted lemon over the asparagus, which adds a nice smokiness and complements the anchovy.

The photo suggests I would be immediately be eliminated from Masterchef because of a lack of sauce to bind the dish together. But I honestly don’t think it’s needed. The lamb is juicy and some herbs fall into the juices, if you get the risotto right it will ooze a bit and there’s the lemony ‘sauce’ with the asparagus. I’d carry on doing it this way even after my elimination!