I love summer because of the long days and short nights. The long days are great for tans and even better for gardens. Every summer, I’ll receive an email from a coworker that says, “Dear Edel, I have a bunch of ______________ from my garden, please come by my desk and get some.” I’m usually there about 30 seconds after it was sent.

This round, one of my coworkers brought a bag of rosemary. Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a woody, perennial herb with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves. It is native to the Mediterranean region. It is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae, which also includes many other herbs.

After grabbing a few sprigs, I started to think about what I’ll do with it. I like to use herbs when they are fresh so I thought of using it in a baked chicken or baking it in some focaccia bread. I believe fresh herbs deserve fresh ingredients so I headed to the grocery store that same night. I looked at chicken, beef, and pork but I didn’t find anything worth the fresh rosemary (I did shop at midnight). Then I came across some really great looking lamb t-bone chops.

I decided to go traditional and put rosemary on some lamb.

Roasted Lamb T-Bone Chops

Ingredients

4 lamb t-bone chops
3 teaspoons chopped rosemary
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons chopped parsley
2 teaspoons chopped sage
1 clove minced garlic
¼ cup olive oil

Method

Combine the rosemary, salt, pepper, parsley, and sage. Sprinkle evenly on the lamb chops and rub it into the meat. Add the garlic and rub it into the meat and bone. Put the chops into a plastic bag and add the oil. Let the meat marinade in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours before cooking.

Before cooking, take out the meat from the refrigerator and let it come close to room temperature as possible (about 15-30 minutes). Grill the meat until the internal temperature reaches 120 degrees–about 4 minutes per side. Now, let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before cutting into it.

Notes

The question I usually get is, “Do I season before oiling or oil before seasoning?” I say season then oil.

If you have a chance to speak to the butcher, ask the butcher to leave a nice layer of fat on the chops. Then score the fat before marinating.