Lamb Stew with Root Vegetables

Shorter days, cooler nights - both increase my yearnings for comfort food. This weekend I craved stew, something I rarely make. I knew I wanted the stew to include carrots and parsnips, two root vegetables which become incredible sweet when slowly roasted. The rest of the recipe was a big question mark. I turned to a number of my cooking "bibles." The classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking, a slim volume from Le Cordon Bleu that my daughter gave me as a gift after a summer in Paris, and a peek at Patricia Wells' Vegetable Harvest. Armed with a few ideas, and techniques I headed to the market.

The first question was beef or lamb. The "stew" beef was cheaper, $5.99 per pound, but had a lot of fat and gristle marbled throughout. The stew meat cut from the round was leaner, but I knew it would need a long, slow cooking, to yield a tender stew. The lamb stew meat was some where in between the two cuts of beef as far as leanness, but at $9.99 per pound was clearly a more indulgent choice. Cut from the top of the leg, I knew it would require a bit of prep work, but not need a long cooking to produce a tender stew.

Well, the results are in, and this lamb stew is a flavorful, easy and satisfying dish.

Lamb Stew with Root Vegetables (4 servings)

1.5 lbs. lamb stew meat (from leg or shoulder). Remove silver membrane and extra fat. Cut into 1 inch square cubes.

1 large onion, sliced thin
1 can whole peeled tomatoes
4 - 5 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch slices
2 large parsnips, peeled and cut into 2 inch slices

2 - 3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 c. red wine
1 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. flour
1 bay leaf

1, 8 oz. package white button mushrooms
1, 8 oz package crimini mushrooms
salt
pepper
olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a medium fry pan, heat 2 tbsp. olive oil. Add lamb cubes in batches and brown on all sides. As cooked, transfer lamb to dutch oven. When all of the lamb is browned and in the dutch oven, season with salt & pepper. Dust lamb with flour and stir to coat. Place pot in oven, uncovered, and cook approximately 5 minutes, until floured lamb pieces are lightly brown. While lamb is browning in oven, add sliced onion and minced garlic to fry pan and saute. Add additional olive oil if necessary. Cook onions until softened and beginning to brown. Add onions, wine, cut carrots and parsnips to dutch oven. Cover and return to oven. Lower oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Add canned tomatoes and all juices to fry pan. Add sugar. Break-up tomatoes with spoor as they cook. Simmer on stove until reduced by 1/3, approximately 30 minutes. Add thickened tomatoes to dutch oven. Continue to cook covered in oven for approximately 1 additional hour.

Clean mushrooms. Cut in half or fourths. Add to stew in dutch oven and cook for an additional half hour.

Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. The stew may be cooled overnight or served right away. Serve with mashed potatoes, buttered noodles, or rice.