Comfort Meal "Cole-Style": Pesto with Green Beans and Grilled Lamb Chops

Growing up, my mom had a lot of "go to" comfort meals:  Chicken with Mushrooms and Olives, Veal or Chicken Picatta, Chicken Cacciatore with "mushy" Polenta, Spaghetti and Meatballs and Italian Sausage, Tuna Noodle Casserole...  I could go on.  I loved them all and when I make them at home with Marshall, I'm transported to my mom's kitchen, sitting at the heavy kitchen table feeling warm and happy.  One of my absolute favorites was homemade Pesto with Pasta and Grilled or Broiled Lamb Chops.  This was a popular dish during the spring, when lamb is freshest, using pesto my mom made and froze the previous fall.  While we didn't eat this all the time (lamb can be expensive), it was wholeheartedly welcomed.  When I got older, my mom started adding green beans to the pesto.  This is something my mom's grandma used to do when preparing pesto for the family.  The sweet crisp green beans, boiled for just a couple of minutes with the pasta, blends beautifully with the garlicky pesto and the creamy Romano cheese.  Of course, during the summer, when the pesto is made from freshly picked basil this is a fantastic meal to eat outside.  When I think of summer, I get aromas of the charcoal BBQ, lamb and basil.  

When I moved into my first apartment my sophomore year of college, I inherited my grandmother's electric skillet.  It's this huge round fry pan that plugs into the wall.  The reservoir just under the cook surface is filled with something and an electric coil.  The great thing about this electric skillet is that the heat is always constant and even.  My grandma used this for making Chicken with Mushrooms and Olives, and...pan-fried lamb chops.  Whenever I would visit my mom during breaks or weekends, I sometimes would be sent back to school with frozen plastic containers of homemade pesto.  I remember specifically one night feeling extravagant and bought myself a few lamb chops from the Italian market in downtown and cooked myself pesto with pan-fried lamb chops.  I sat in front of the TV and devoured everything I made, sucking loudly on the lamb chop bones, which thoroughly bothered my vegetarian roommate, and slurping up my pasta.  I was at home again.

My sister even used to make this same dish when she and her, then, boyfriend (now husbands) were living together in college.

Luckily, I introduced lamb early to Marshall and he loved it.  I can always make lamb without much issue in our house and pairing with pesto has become a favorite in our home, too.  I took advantage of some pesto I had whipped up with some extra basil I had from another meal.  I bought green beans and lamb chops.   The green beans get trimmed and thrown in the pasta pot when there are only a few minutes left cooking time.  The lamb chops are prepared just as simply; seasoned with just some salt and pepper and drizzled with olive oil and thrown on a hot grill, cooked medium-rare.  This is a meal known for not having any leftovers.  The pesto is devoured and the lamb chops are stripped clean to the bone.

This is true comfort food.  This is a meal which reminds me who I am and where I come from; it's family.

Disclaimer:  The below recipes have been handed down to me and it should come as no surprise that the measurements are inaccurate and cooking times are based on what I see, smell, and taste.  I apologize in advance for not being as precise as I normally am with the other recipes highlighted on this blog.

Linguine Pesto with Green Beans and Grilled Lamb Chops
Can serve as many as you want! 

For the pesto:
~1 Bunch Fresh Basil
2-4 Garlic Cloves, to taste
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper, to taste
Romano or Parmesan Cheese, grated
Pine Nuts (optional, I don't care for nuts in my pesto, but my sister uses Walnuts in hers)
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

1.  Combine the basil, garlic, salt, pepper, grated cheese and nuts (if using), in a food processor or blender.  Chop finely.
2.  With the food processor or blender running, slowly drizzle the olive oil until the desired consistency is achieved.
3.  Set aside to use or freeze.
4.  If freezing:  My mom fills the small 1-cup Tupperware (or Gladware, etc.) until the top grove and drizzles an extra layer of olive oil before freezing.  I've had pesto last for a year.  That is, if it actually doesn't get eaten for that long!

For the Pasta with Green Beans:
1/2 - 1 Pound Pasta (any shape will do)
~1/2 Pound Fresh Green Beans, ends trimmed and broken into evenly-sized pieces
~1 Cup Fresh or Frozen Pesto
1 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter

1.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Salt generously and add pasta.  Following the cooking instructions of the box, boil the pasta.
2.  When there are 2 or 3 minutes remaining for the pasta to finish, throw in the green beans into the pot.  Boil together until the pasta is al dente.
3.  While the pasta and green beans cook, place the pesto and the tablespoon of butter in a small bowl.  Add to it a ladle-full of the hot pasta water.  Stir, making sure the butter incorporates with the pesto.
If using frozen pesto:  Either defrost the pesto over the course of the day or to speed things up place the pesto in the microwave and heat on high for a minute or two.  Once the pesto is mostly defrosted, follow Step 3.
4.  When the pasta and green beans are cooked, drain fully.  Add half the pesto into the bottom of a large serving bowl, then pour the hot pasta and green beans over top.  Pour the rest of the pesto over the top of the pasta and mix until the pasta is well-coated.  Serve with extra grated Romano or Parmesan cheese.

For the Lamb Chops:
Bone-in Loin Lamb Chops
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste
Olive Oil

1.  Season both sides of the chops with the salt and pepper.  Drizzle a little of the olive oil over the chops.  Set aside while the grill heats up.
2.  Once the grill is hot, sear the lamb chops 1-2 minutes each side, until browned well.  Set the lamb chops to the cooler sides of the grill grate and cook a few more minutes, until cooked as desired.