Recipe of the Day Categories:
Recipe Home
Recipe Index
Recipe Search
Appetizers
Beef
Beverage
Bread
Breakfast
Cake
Chocolate
Cookies
Fish
Fruit
Main
Dish
Pasta
Pies
Pork
Poultry
Salad
Seafood
Side Dish
Soup
Vegetable
Surprise!
Courtyard in Provence
Art Print
Duvall, J.
Buy at AllPosters.com
Stairway in Provence
Art Print
Duvall, J.
Buy at AllPosters.com
|
|
Your
patronage of our affiliate
partners supports this web site.
We thank you! In other words, please shop at LBC
Gift Galerie!
Passageway in Provence
Art Print
Duvall, J.
Buy at AllPosters.com
La Belle Cuisine
Soupe au Pistou Simmered
with Lamb Shanks
Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook
By Alice Waters and the Cooks of Chez Panisse,
1999,
HarperCollins Serves 6 as a
main course
6 small lamb shanks
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
2 medium onions, sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
1 celery rib, sliced
14 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2 medium tomatoes, quartered
10 cups basic chicken stock
Bouquet garni: thyme, parsley and bay
2 pounds fresh shell beans [Cranberry, Borlotto,
Dragon
Tongue, etc.], shelled
1 pound romano beans, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
1 pound green beans, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
1 large bulb fennel, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 medium potatoes, diced
Extra-virgin olive oil
3 large onions, diced
2 small zucchini, diced
4 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded,
and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 teaspoons chopped thyme
Optional: 1 cup cooked pasta, such as orzo,
mezzi tubetti, conchiglie,
or orecchiette
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
3 garlic cloves
Salt
2 cups basil leaves
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Pepper
Season the lamb shanks generously with salt and pepper, and
refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in
a large, deep skillet over medium heat and brown the shanks. In a large
enamelware Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and
lightly sauté the onions, carrot, celery, and garlic. Add the tomatoes,
chicken stock, and bouquet garni. Season to taste and bring to a boil. Add
the lamb shanks in a single layer, cover, and reduce to a gentle simmer.
Cook on the stovetop or in a 350-degree F. oven for 2 hours, or until quite
tender.
While the lamb is braising, bring about 2 quarts of salted
water to the boil. Add the shell beans and cook until just tender, about 30
minutes. Remove the beans and let them cool at room temperature. In the same
boiling water, replenishing as necessary, one vegetable at a time, parboil
the romano beans, green beans, fennel, carrots, and potatoes until just
done, and spread them out to cool.
When the shanks are done, remove them from the broth and set
aside. Strain the broth, discarding the braising vegetables. Let the broth
settle, and skim any fat from the surface. Measure the broth, and add
chicken stock, vegetable cooking liquid, or water to bring the quantity to
10 cups. Return
the shanks and the broth to the Dutch oven. Set aside.
Heat 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a large sauté
pan over medium heat and sauté the diced onion until soft and translucent,
about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and continue cooking for 3 or 4 minutes.
Add the parboiled romano beans, green beans, fennel, carrot, and potato,
stirring well to coat with oil. Add the tomatoes, shell beans, and chopped
parsley and thyme. Season everything with salt and pepper and cook for 2
minutes more.
Bring the broth and lamb shanks to a simmer. Stir in the
sautéed vegetables and cook gently for a few minutes. Taste the broth,
adjust the seasoning, and stir in the pasta if using. (The soup can be
cooled to room temperature at this point, refrigerated, and reheated the
nest day.)
To make the pistou, pound the pine nuts and garlic with a
pinch of salt in a mortar. Add a few basil leaves and continue to pound.
Alternating basil and olive oil, continue pounding until a smooth paste is
achieved. Stir in any remaining oil and season with salt and pepper. You
will have about 1 cup of pistou. [Alternately, pistou can be made in a
food processor, resulting in a different texture.]
To serve, heat the soup and ladle it into deep, wide soup
plates, with a lamb shank in each. Swirl a heaping tablespoon of pistou into
each serving.
Featured Archive Recipes:
Leek and Potato Pistou
Patricia Wells' Winter Pistou
White Beans with Pistou
Index - Soup Recipe Archives
Basic Stock Recipes
Classic French Recipe Index
Daily Recipe Index
Recipe Archives Index
Recipe Search
|
Cajun Country
