Lamb shank casserole.

Now I must tell you all that this is not a classically pretty dish to photograph but I can assure everyone that it is very easy to make and tasty to eat on those cold winters nights we are currently getting here in the far south of Western Australia. It is also a meal that needn’t cost the earth to make if you can source some cheap lamb shanks from your butcher or local supermarket. 

The ingredients are purely whatever you have to hand really and these are what I had in my pantry cupboard.

Serves 2

2 lamb shanks

1 tin of tomatoes, 400-440 Gm crushed or diced

1 onion, sliced

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 carrot, roughly chopped

A couple of handfuls of Puy lentils, or others of your liking, even barley will do.

500 ml of good stock, beef, chicken or even vegetable

Plain flour (I used sorghum) salt and pepper to dust the shanks 

2 tablespoons roughly of oil

If you have a handful of dried porcini mushrooms, chuck them in too 😀
Firstly, dust the shanks in the combined seasoned flour then brown in a little oil in a frying pan.

  
Next , place the browned shanks in a heavy based casserole dish or pan. After doing this step,  I like to add the stock and dried mushrooms if I have any to the frying pan to lift up any caramelised bits before I pour this over the top of the lamb shanks.

After putting the lamb shanks in the casserole, place all the other ingredients on top.

  
  
Now all you have to do is cover the dish with either the lid or a good layer of foil/baking paper and place in a preheated 160-170 degree Celsius oven for 2 -2 1/2 hours. 

  
Serve with mashed potato, rice or like I did, a big baked potato and enjoy the sticky soft lamb and yummy sauce.

  
Bon appetit! 

Happenings.

I thought I would share with my blogging mates our house renovations. We originally were just getting a new front patio with extra veranda around the side and front of the house and a new upper deck balcony off our bedroom around the back with an attached service walk. We then decided we needed new windows around the front of the house as our old ones are no longer safe nor are they secure. The glass will be much thicker and the locks secure. They and the decking are made out of Jarrah so will also be termite and ant proof. We were then talking with our lovely builder about our dream of one day being able to afford to have the house rendered and he came back with a fantastic quote that we can more than afford and will also include sealing and painting. Hence the huge amount of scaffolding surrounding the house just for the renderer.  We are looking forward to sitting out on this patio all year around.

 

 

This is off our kitchen/dining area where our old patio was about to blow away with the next strong breeze. I can’t really say I’m loving my new beige frosted glass windows though :D. You can see the jarrah frames that will be termite proof. Glazing will happen after the rendering.

 

This is around the front of the house and corner where we are getting the veranda built.

 

This is the lift and tonnes of scaffolding required to render the house which we hope will be starting this coming week.Oh, don’t be fooled by that palm tree. We live on the southern most point of Western Australia but it seems to be thriving down here. Global warming anyone?

I’ve also been making some yummy Beef stock and I’ve mostly followed a Stephanie Alexander recipe for veal stock just using meaty beef bones, leeks, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme and peppercorns.

 

At the time of going to press the stock is still bubbling slowly away on the stove as it will be simmering all up for 8 hours! Smells divine. Jason is going to make Beef Pho for our tea tomorrow night using this stock. Cannot wait! Yum!

I’ll bring you more renovation photos soon. Stay tuned 😀

Lamb Shank Soup.

Here is the most delicious, soul preserving, tummy filling winter soup that could also double as a stew. I made it yesterday for lunch and had it for lunch again today with a massive slab of crusty bread and butter.

Recipe
2 lamb shanks
2 medium sized carrots, peeled and diced
3-4 medium sized sticks of celery, diced
1 large brown onion, peeled and diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large parsnip
1 large swede
2 litres of salt reduced beef stock
2-3 tablespoons tomato paste
Olive oil
Ground black pepper
Couple of bay leaves

In a large soup pan add a good glug (3-4 tablespoons olive oil, don’t be shy!) and brown off the lamb shanks till nicely caramelised. Remove from pan and pop to one side. Add the diced carrot, celery, onion and garlic to the soup pan and stir-fry until starting to soften. Add the parsnip and swede and stir in to mix. Add the tomato paste and stir well for a few minutes till nicely combined and then add the Beef stock and mix. Add back in the lamb shanks, ground black pepper and bay leaves, bring to boil then lower heat to simmer for a good hour-hour and a half or until the lamb shank meat is falling off the bone slightly.
Remove lamb shanks, cut the meat off the bone into bite size chunks and add back into soup pan to reheat.
Serve in a bowl or mug with lots of crusty bread or maybe some nice herb and cheese damper or scones.

This is a thick soup so if you want a thinner soup, just add more beef stock or water. I didn’t use any extra water as I like my soup thick and chunky. I also found I didn’t need salt as the flavour is quite intense enough but add it to taste when you serve it up if you feel the need.