Spring eats are often associated with Easter dishes, which also tend to be brunch favorites. Grilled lamb riblets take on the form of lollipops, and these are served with a modernized mint accompaniment. Once you realize how simple it is to make quiche (not to mention how much more flavorful homemade quiche is), you’ll be compelled to add it to your home menu rotation. Plus, we’re sharing a trick for keeping hollandaise ready at a moment’s notice—a touch that will make this savory pie all the more decadent. For a healthier take on potato salad, this French version will compel you to leave the mayo-based style behind. Served together or separately, these effortlessly upscale twists are sure to elevate your Sunday afternoon brunch experience.

Lamb Lollipops with Mint Pea Puree

Serves 6

Instructions

Begin by preparing the lamb marinade. Finely mince the garlic cloves and rosemary, then add them to a medium size bowl along with the red wine and oil. Add garlic salt and black pepper to taste.

Next, prepare the raw lamb riblets. The rib bone should be trimmed clean, leaving just a lollipop of meat at the end. Once trimmed, lay the riblets in a flat baking dish, pour the marinade evenly over them, cover the dish with plastic, and allow the meat to marinate for at least 2 hours.

For the Mint Pea Puree, begin by bringing a pot of water to boil. Blanch the peas until they turn bright green (about 3 to 4 minutes), then remove them and drain the water. Add the blanched peas, mint leaves, lemon juice, oil, white pepper, and garlic salt to an immersion blender and puree until it’s smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add a tablespoon of water to thin it.

Preheat the barbeque for the Lamb Lollipops. Grill them to desired wellness, then allow the meat to rest for 10 minutes. Serve the Lamb Lollipops with the Mint Pea Puree on the side.

12 lamb riblets
½ cup red wine
3 garlic cloves (finely minced)
3 sprigs of rosemary (minced)
¼ cup avocado or olive oil
Garlic salt
Black pepper

For the Mint Pea Puree
1 lb. peas
3 tbs. mint leaves
5 tsp. lemon juice
2 tbs. avocado or olive oil
¼ tsp. white pepper
¼ tsp. garlic salt

Everything Quiche with Easy Hollandaise

Serves 8

Instructions

*Note on Quiche: For best results, the pie shell and eggs should be kept at room temperature initially. If making ahead and freezing, allow the whole fully cooked quiche to thaw before reheating.

*Note on Hollandaise: This recipe can be made ahead of time and refrigerated in its uncooked state.

Press the thawed premade pie shell into a pie dish, allowing the edges to meet the top of the pie dish. Let it chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes (this helps the shell maintain its shape during baking). Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Once the shell is chilled, blind bake it until the crust is set, and take it out just before it begins to turn brown.

Next, prepare the precooked filling components. Set a medium size saucepan to medium-high heat. Cut the bacon into ½ inch-wide pieces and cook it until crisp. Remove the crispy bacon and allow it to strain on paper towels, but keep the bacon fat in the saucepan. Slice the onion into ¼ inch-wide slivers, then add it, along with 1 tbs. of the salted sweet cream butter, into the saucepan containing the bacon fat. Cover the saucepan with a lid and allow the onions to caramelize.

While the onions caramelize, prepare the pepper mixture. Clean and destem the red bell pepper before dicing it. In a small bowl, mix the diced red bell pepper with the fire-roasted diced green chilies, then set it aside.

Prepare the egg mixture. Melt 2 tbs. of salted sweet cream butter. In a medium size bowl, add the eggs, cream, mustard powder, black pepper, and garlic salt. Beat the eggs until everything is mixed, then whisk in the melted butter.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. To assemble the quiche, spread a thin layer of spicy brown mustard across the bottom of the blind-baked shell. Layer in the crispy bacon, pepper mixture, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, and caramelized onions in the specified order. Gently pour in the egg mixture to fill the shell until it just reaches the top edge of the crust (you may have some egg mixture left over). Bake the Everything Quiche for approximately 45 minutes (until a knife blade comes out clean from the center of the quiche).

For the Easy Hollandaise, begin by melting the butter, then allow it to cool slightly. To a blender, add the whole egg and 2 egg yolks. Blend them until smooth. While the blender is going, remove the small lid cap and slowly pour in the melted butter, followed by the lemon juice and either the half-and-half or cream, then add the salt and white pepper. The hollandaise mixture will become thick, and you may need to pulsate the blender to finish incorporation.

Next, prepare a double boiler (a pot of simmering water with a heatproof bowl set over the top). The water must remain at a gentle simmer and not a full boil while cooking the hollandaise. Add the hollandaise to the heatproof bowl while whisking constantly (DO NOT walk away!). Bear in mind that cooking hollandaise is based on feeling. As it heats, it will become thinner, then it will suddenly thicken again—that’s when it’s cooked. Remove it from the heat immediately when that happens.

Serve a slice of the Everything Quiche with the Easy Hollandaise ladled on top, then garnish with paprika if desired.

1 premade pie shell
8 eggs
1 lb. bacon
1 white or yellow onion
4 oz. fire-roasted diced green chilies (canned)
½ red bell pepper (large)
½ cup Monterey Jack cheese (shredded)
Spicy brown mustard
¼ cup cream
3 tbs. salted sweet cream butter
1 tsp. mustard powder
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. garlic salt

For the Easy Hollandaise
16 tbs. butter (either salted or unsalted)
3 eggs (1 whole egg and 2 egg yolks)
2 tbs. lemon juice
2 tbs. half-and-half or cream
Pinch of salt
Pinch of white pepper
Paprika (for garnish)

French Potato Salad with Champagne Dijon Vinaigrette

Serves 6

Instructions

Begin by setting a large pot of salted water to boil. Prep the vegetables, washing them as need be. Trim the petite green beans. If the creamer potatoes are larger than bite-sized, cut them in half. Slice or mince the shallot. Dice the red bell pepper.

Boil the creamer potatoes until they are tender, then remove and allow them to drain. Blanch the prepared petite green beans (about 3 to 4 minutes), then remove and allow them to drain as well. Allow both to cool.

For the Champagne Dijon Vinaigrette, add the champagne vinegar, oil, garlic, shallot, Dijon mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, and white pepper to an immersion blender along with garlic salt and black pepper to taste. Emulsify the ingredients until they are fully incorporated.

To a medium size mixing bowl, add the cooked creamer potatoes and petite green beans, followed by the prepared shallot and red bell pepper as well as olives and capers to taste. Pour in enough vinaigrette to cover the vegetable mixture as desired, then toss until the components are coated. The French Potato Salad with Champagne Dijon Vinaigrette may be served either cold or at room temperature.

Petite green beans
Creamer potatoes
Shallot
Red bell pepper
Niçoise or Kalamata olives (pitted)
Capers

For the Champagne Dijon Vinaigrette
½ cup champagne vinegar
½ cup avocado or olive oil
1 clove of garlic
½ shallot
2 tbs. Dijon mustard
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. white pepper
Garlic salt
Black pepper

Editorial Director Lauren Barisic
Photographer Don Dizon