Warming Slow Cooked Lamb Ragout for Cold Winter Nights

The French have a long tradition of preparing slow-cooked stews, dishes that require a little extra time, but reward with their fork-tender meat and vegetables. Ragouts, as they are often called, are meals in themselves, and can be served alone or ladled over pasta, potatoes, polenta, or other grains of choice. Oh, and did I mention that these all-in-one dishes can be prepared ahead, and actually improve in flavor after resting in the fridge for a couple of days? Slow Cooked Lamb Ragout with Fennell, Tomatoes, and Garlic has all  these qualities, and is perfect to stave off the cold of winter, especially here in New England where I live.

I’ve made this ragout several times this month for cooking classes and for friends. On each occasion people have commented on the tenderness of the braised lamb and vegetables and appreciated the lightness yet hearty accent of the sauce. To prepare it, lamb stew meat is Continue reading

A Delicious French Stew for a Paris Dinner with Friends

A few days ago, we invited two of my husband’s college students, who are brothers, to come for a home-cooked meal while they were in Paris. Then we learned that their parents were also in town, so we quickly extended the invitation. I had already planned the menu, and had chosen a veal stew with tomatoes and white beans to anchor the meal, a dish that could easily serve six.

In the City of Light, I entertain like my French friends, applying the “cook some, buy some” philosophy. I put most of my effort into the main course and sides, and purchase the rest. For openers, I bought two kinds of olives at a neighboring Sunday marché, and from a local Italian deli I purchased freshly made hummus that I garnished with toasted baguette slices and cherry tomatoes. After the main course, cheeses from a fromagerie were served with Medjool dates, clementines, and thin, crisp nut crackers. For the sweet ending, a tray of pastries–lemon tarts, chocolate ganache sablés, sleek hazelnut and chocolate bars, coconut and pineapple domes—from a near-by patisserie completed the menu.

The Provençal-style veal, tomato, and white bean stew, simmered slowly in wine and Continue reading