Serves 4
4 meaty lamb shanks
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ten ounce package of pearl onions (about 3 dozen)
5 carrots
4 parsnips
3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups red wine
2 cups beef stock
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium high heat and brown lamb shanks on all sides. Place in a dark enamel roasting pan* (see note below). Meanwhile peel onions and leave whole. Peel carrots and parsnips and cut each one at an angle into thirds. Turn heat down to medium and add vegetables to the pan. Cook until lightly browned, about five minutes. Put veggies on top of lamb shanks. Tuck garlic cloves into pan.
Add wine to pan and deglaze with a whisk. Add beef stock and tomato paste and whisk until smooth. Stir in salt, pepper and rosemary. Pour over lamb shanks and vegetables. Cover tightly and bake at 350 degrees for two and a half hours or until meat is fall off the bone tender.
To make gravy, remove shanks and veggies from pan. Skim as much of the fat as you can with a spoon. Pour juices into a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Meanwhile put 2cups cold water and 1/2 cup flour in a gravy shaker and shake vigorously. (You might not need all of it, but I'd rather have too much than have to make more.) When juices are boiling, whisk about a quarter of a cup of the flour water into pan. Stir and bring to boil again. Continue doing this until the gravy is the consistency you prefer. Once it is thickened, continue to cook over medium high heat for two to three minutes to cook the flour. Pour gravy over lamb shanks and veggies. Serve with mashed potatoes.
*Things roast faster in dark enamel roasting pans, so if you don’t have one add up to an extra hour to the cooking time, testing to make sure meat is tender.
