Back in January when I did a large food show I noticed a slight shift away from standard sauces into a kind of fusion of tastes basically called Glazing. Glazes and glazing have been around for a very long time. In fact the official definition of glaze is: A coating of a glossy, often sweet substance applied to the outer layer of food. Sounds simple enough just put together a sweet coating and voila' you have a glaze. Well, I'm sure that many of those companies that were introducing glazes at the food shows wanted you to think this was something really special and that it was hard to reproduce. I understand their side but I also understand that food whether it's American standard, Fusion, or Glazes not only needs to be unique but it must be simple to create with fulfilling results, and most of all it must be fun. That's why I've spent time collecting a really great glaze recipe along with a great glaze dish.

Now, I can't take full credit for this one, but our friends at "Cooking Light" really deserve the pat on the back. I had a hand in adapting the recipe and making it work for some of the foods I commonly use.

If you have your own special "Glaze" recipe send it over to info@jakesbbqsauce.com, we'd love to get it on our site for everyone to see and use.

Here's our Glaze recipe:

Balsamic-Raspberry Glazed Lamb Chops

Ingredients
1 teaspoon butter

1 Rack of Lamb
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cooking spray
2 tablespoons chopped shallots
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic

1/4 cup port wine
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup raspberry or plum preserves
Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Preparation
Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle lamb evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add lamb to pan; cook 3 1/2 minutes on each side. Remove from pan.

Coat pan with cooking spray. Add shallots and garlic to pan; sauté 30 seconds. Add port wine and vinegar to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring occasionally. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and raspberry preserves; cook for 30 seconds or until smooth, stirring constantly. Return lamb to pan; cook 30 seconds or until desired degree of doneness, turning to coat. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.

Notice, the glaze itself is actually the combination of raspberry preserves, balsamic vinegar and Port Wine.

Enjoy!