Why I'm not vegetarian.

So a disclaimer first of all; I was vegetarian for about 10 years. For the first few years, I lived on pasta and cheese (I only really started cooking properly about 5 years ago). I remember when I first became a vegetarian, my nan was visiting for the weekend and couldn't believe it would last. She even tried to tempt me by making a Sunday roast with my favourite meat; lamb. I resisted then. I definitely wouldn't now. It's the reason I don't think I could ever go back to being vegetarian.

This dish also wasn't at all what I planned to make when I was flicking through recipe books and browsing the internet in my pyjamas on Saturday morning. I was trying to get inspiration for dishes using asparagus and beetroot because 1) I love both and 2) it's asparagus season and I was desperate to think of something to do with it other than having it with buttered bread. Page after page, website after website, all I was getting was variations on asparagus, beetroot, and feta salad. Whilst they all looked and sounded great, and is a combination I love, I wanted something...meatier. Which is when I ditched the beetroot (sorry, beets), and found this recipe instead.

There were a few things that I had to change though; my local supermarket only had lamp rump as thin steaks instead of one big piece, sprouting broccoli is expensive and I'm saving for a wedding and a house so no way was I buying two different variations of it, and I don't love new potatoes. So here is the final result...

Lamb rump steak with seasonal vegetables

Serves 2

100g new potatoes

2 lamb steaks

1 head of broccoli, florets only

50g frozen peas

Small handful of fresh mint

100g tender-stem broccoli

200g asparagus, woody ends removed

40g butter

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 sprigs of rosemary, leaves finely chopped

Salt and pepper

Oil

1. Preheat oven to 190C/170C fan/Gas 5. Boil the potatoes in a pan of salted water for about 10-15 minutes, until just cooked through. Remove from water and thinly slice, leave to cool.

2. Boil the broccoli florets and peas for 5 minutes. Remove and put into a blender with the mint and a little oil until you have a smooth puree.

3. Heat some oil in an ovenproof pan, and seal the lamb steaks for a minute each side. Put in the oven for 2-3 minutes, then leave to rest for 5 minutes with some foil over it.

4. Once you've removed the lamb, put the pan back on the heat and add the butter. Add the potatoes, garlic, and rosemary and cook, stirring frequently for 4-5 minutes.

5. Meanwhile boil the asparagus and tender-stem broccoli in salted water for 2-3 minutes (depending on how thick your asparagus is).

6. Plate how you want (I'm not going to tell you what to do). I spread the puree on the plate, topped with potatoes and slices of lamb, and then threw (quite literally - Doctor Who was about to start) the asparagus and broccoli on the plate and finished with a bit more salt and pepper.