Bobby Flay's oven roasted lamb shanks with roasted tomatoes and toasted orzo

A few months ago, I saw Bobby Flay make these lamb shanks on Boy Meets Grill. I just got around to trying the recipe, and it is fantastic. While the recipe isn't very labor intensive, the cooking time is fairly long for each of the components. Since I was making this on a weeknight, I roasted the tomatoes and garlic a day in advance. I ended up roasting the tomatoes and garlic at 300 degrees instead of 200 degrees - the tomatoes cooked for about 3 hours instead of 4.

While the sauce for the lamb shanks was reducing, I put the tomatoes back in the oven to warm them through. The orzo is delicious - toasting the orzo creates a complex flavor.

I used less oil than the recipe called for. I roasted the tomatoes and garlic with a coating of olive oil cooking spray, and browned the lamb shanks in a dry pan. I also didn't add the butter to finish the orzo - I meant to, but when I tasted the orzo I thought it was so good that it didn't need the butter. I also skimmed some of the fat and impurities from the sauce while it was reducing.

I highly recommend this recipe, just plan to make it on a day when you know you'll be at home. The results are worth the effort!