Braised Lamb Shank with Red Onion Preserves

Red Onion Preserves

Ingredients:  
6 red onions, sliced
Red wine to cover, about 3 cups
¼ cup sugar
2 bay leaves

Directions:
Place the sliced red onions in a saucepot. Add the red wine, sugar and bay leaf. Simmer on a medium low flame for 1 to 1½ hours, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated. Serve at room temperature.

Braised Lamb Shank

Ingredients:  
4 lamb shanks
½ cup olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 carrot, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 cups lamb or veal broth
2 cups red wine

Directions:
If possible, it is best to salt and pepper the shanks the night before you plan to cook them. Heat oil in a deep pot just large enough to hold the shanks snugly in one layer. Brown the shanks several minutes on all sides or until uniformly brown. Remove the shanks to a plate. Add carrots, celery and onions to the pan and cook to a soft golden brown. Add the lamb shanks back to the pan and cover with the broth and wine. Bring the liquid to a simmer and place the shanks, uncovered, in a preheated 350 deg. oven. Braise the shanks, turning from time to time for 1½ to 2 hours or until the meat is just about falling off the bone. Add more broth if needed. Remove the shanks, keep warm. Strain the liquid into another saucepot. Discard the vegetables. Reduce by boiling the sauce to about 2 cups. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Serve the shanks with the sauce. Top with the red onion preserves.

Wine suggestion: Zinfandel or Pinot Noir

Barbecued Beef Ribs
Suggested Wine: Cabernet Sauvignon

Ingredients:  
3½ cups ketchup 2½ cups coar
½ cup honey 1 onion, halved lengthwise
½ cup light brown sugar 1½ cups coar
1 8-ounce can pineapple juice 2 whole bay leaves
2¼ teaspoons garlic powder 10 whole black peppercor
1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 racks beef back ribs (about 8-9 pounds total), each rack cut in half
2½ cups coarsely chopped celery
1 onion, halved lengthwise
1½ cups coarsely chopped carrots
2 whole bay leaves
10 whole black peppercorns
1 tablespoon salt

Directions:
Combine ketchup, honey, brown sugar, pineapple juice, garlic powder, oregano, thyme, paprika and cinnamon in large deep saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until very thick, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. Cool sauce. The sauce can be made 1 week ahead of time. Cover and refrigerate. If the sauce is too thick it may be thinned later with the braising liquid from the ribs.
Place ribs in a heavy large pot. Add celery, onion, carrots, bay leaves, peppercorns and 1 tablespoon salt. Add enough water to cover ribs and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until meat is tender, about 1 hour. Using tongs, carefully remove rib racks from pot. Cool slightly. Cut between bones into individual ribs.The ribs can be made 1 day ahead of time. Cover and refrigerate.
Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Brush ribs with some of sauce. Grill ribs until brown and thickly glazed, occasionally turning and basting with more sauce, about 10 minutes.

Baked Ham

Baked Ham

Ingredients:  
1 (12-pound) shankless skinless smoked cured ham
Kosher salt
Black pepper
Whole cloves for studding ham
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 Tbls. Dijon Mustard
½ cup black currant preserves
or black currant jelly
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Score top of ham into diamonds and stud center of each diamond with a clove. Place ham on a rack in a roasting pan and bake for 1 ½ hours. In a bowl combine the sugar, mustard, vinegar, currant preserves (jelly) and water. Spread glaze evenly over ham. Bake for another 35 minutes.Transfer ham to a platter and let stand 15 minutes before carving.

Potato and Bacon Gratin

Ingredients:  
1 (2-inch) piece slab bacon, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more
for greasing the gratin dish
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
½ bunch fresh chives, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds baking potatoes, unpeeled and
thinly sliced (about 1/8-inch) see note*
2-½ cups heavy cream
2 cups grated Parmesan

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cut the bacon into ½-inch chunks. Place a skillet over medium-low heat and cook the bacon, until crisp. Remove bacon from pan and set aside.
Add 1 tablespoon of butter and the garlic to bacon fat in frying pan. Stir and add the chopped bacon back into skillet, remove from heat and add most of the chives (reserving some for the garnish). Set skillet aside. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 by 9 inch casserole dish. In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, 1-½ cups of the cream, 1 cup of the Parmesan, and the garlic, bacon, chive mix. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place a layer of potatoes in the prepared dish, sprinkle with Parmesan and repeat with remaining mix. To finish the dish pour the remaining 1 cup of cream over the dish and sprinkle with the extra Parmesan. Cover and bake for 1 hour or until the potatoes can be easily pierced with a knife. Remove cover and bake for another 30 minutes until golden brown. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh chives.
*Note: Slice the potatoes immediately before using so they don’t turn brown or slice and hold in cold water.

Wine suggestion:  Zinfandel or Sauvignon Blanc

“Lapin au Vin” Rabbit (or Chicken)
Suggested Wine: Zinfandel

Ingredients:  
1 Rabbit -or- substitute 12 chicken thighs
2 cups pearl onions
½ cup olive oil
½ cup flour for dusting
4 bacon slices, chopped
24 ounces small mushrooms
1½ cups St. Francis Zinfandel

Directions:
To prepare the rabbit
Have your butcher trim and cut the rabbit into 12 pieces. Season the pieces generously with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 4 hours.
To make the dish
Cook the pearl onions in large pot of boiling salted water for 3 minutes. Drain and cool, then peel and set aside. In a large sauté pan heat the olive oil. Toss the rabbit pieces in Xour and sear until golden brown all over, about 10 minutes. Remove the rabbit from the pan. Add bacon to same skillet and sauté until brown and crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pearl onions and mushrooms and sauté until mushrooms are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the bacon and the rabbit, then add wine and bring to boil. Boil gently over medium heat until sauce thickens and is slightly reduced, about 15 minutes. Serve two pieces rabbit or chicken thighs per person dividing the sauce equally among the servings.
Serves 6