BRAISED LAMB SHANKS WITH FLAGEOLETS (Beans)

(Submitted by John Overholt)

SERVES 4

Bravo John! I made this recipe and it is excellent. I did make some changes, mostly out of necessity. John lives near London and can get products that are not readily available in my area. You can view my variation at Lamb Shanks Bistro-Style. But if you can get all the ingredients in John's list, by all means make his original.

INGREDIENTS

4 lamb shanks

3 tablespoons olive oil or butter

1 large onion, chopped finely

1 to 2 carrots, finely diced

3 sticks celery (no leaves), finely diced

2 garlic cloves, chopped

12 ounces dried flageolet beans (or haricot/navy), soaked for 12 hours. (If desired use 1/2 flageolet and 1/2 borlotti. The mixture gives a nice colour contrast.)

Bouquet Garni

2 sprigs rosemary, fresh if possible

1 can tomatoes-chopped, seeded and skinned if possible.

1 tablespoons (say 3-inches if in a tube) tomato puree

6 ounces lamb stock

6 ounces light red wine(such as Merlot)

Brown the lamb shanks in the oil in a heavy frying pan. Transfer to a heavy (iron?) casserole large enough to take the meat in one layer. Cook onion, carrot and celery in the same frying pan over low heat until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so. Add the vegetables to the meat and deglaze the frying pan with the wine, lamb stock and about 12 ounces of water. Add to the meat and vegetables. Add drained beans to the casserole. Add bouquet garni, rosemary and freshly milled pepper (NO salt). Cover casserole tightly and cook at 325° F for 1 to 1.5 hours or until the beans are cooked but NOT mushy. Add tomatoes, tomato puree and salt to taste. Cover and cook for a further 1.5 hours, occasionally stirring gently .

Remove 2 or 3 good sized ladlesful of the bean and tomato mixture with plenty of liquid and whizz in your blender until smooth. Add this puree to the casserole and gently mix it in. Serve one lamb shank and a portion of the vegetables to each person. Sprinkle a good portion of freshly chopped parsley over each serving (actually gremolata might be nice).

About John: John is a very good email friend from England. We have had many conversations about cooking (and jam jars) and I am delighted that he has decided to share some of the mouth-watering recipes he mentions in his correspondence. He is a great cook. I know he would appreciate hearing from you. His email address is Overholt@tiscali.co.uk.

Other recipes submitted by John:

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