Cooking Light: Apricot Lamb Chops

Okay, so I've never been a huge fan of apricots, even the fresh ones.  My dad absolutely loves dried apricots, but there's just something wrong with that wrinkly texture in your mouth.  And once you bite down, they're way too sweet.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, the fresh apricots never seem to ripen, so all you get is hard, sour flesh. This is a no-win situation.

However, I do love lamb chops, and if that means I have to smear them with sweet apricot spread in order to get my family to be open-minded about eating them, that's exactly what I'm going to do.  And these are terrific.  So good I almost reached over onto my mom's plate.

Apricot Lamb Chops

Adapted from Cooking Light magazine, June 2005

½ cup apricot preserves or jam

2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon soy sauce

½ teaspoon Worchestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon sea salt
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

8 (3-ounce) lamp chops, trimmed of excess fat

Olive oil

Combine first five ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Sprinkle lamb chops with salt, cinnamon, and pepper on both sides. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Drizzle with olive oil and add lamb when hot. Cook for five minutes on each side (for a little bit of red in the middle) or longer for well done. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the apricot mixture on top. Turn the chops in the mixture to make sure they are well-coated. You can set the pan over the warm burner briefly to melt the jam and thin the sauce a bit. When serving, spoon the excess sauce over the chops.

Makes 4 servings