Polenta

Try lamb shanks served with polenta as an alternative to mashed potato, then dish up the leftover polenta, grilled & topped with mushrooms, the next day for lunch.

Take 1 shank per person (I'm assuming four) & trim off excess fat. Turn the oven to 180 & heat some oil on the stove in your Le Creuset. Season the shanks with s&p & brown all over in the hot pan (about 7 mins). Brown in batches of 2 or 3. Set aside on a plate & remove all but 2 tbsp of fat. Add roughly chopped onions, celery, carrots, garlic, tomato paste, thyme, rosemary & a sprinkling of sea salt and soften. Remember sofrito. Add 1 1/2 cups red wine and 2 cups chicken stock, stir to loosen all the bits on the bottom, bring to a simmer and return shanks to the pan. Cover pot, transfer to oven and braise for 1 1/2 hours. Uncover and continue braising for 1/2 hour. This browns the shanks. Turn and braise the other side for another 1/2 hour.

At the first uncovering get onto the polenta. Now if you have bought instant polenta, throw it away immediately and replace with the slow cook variety. I buy Dallari Polenta Fioretti. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a large heavy bottomed pot. Once boiling, add salt, and pour 1 1/2 cups of polenta into water in a slow even stream, stirring all the time. Try pouring through a funnel & whisking with a wire whisk because you need to avoid the polenta clumping. You might need a helper as this task really requires at least 3 hands.

Immediately reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting -the polenta should be barely moving -cover & leave to cook 30-40 minutes. You can leave it for longer so don't panic. You just need to stir thoroughly every 5-8 minutes. Believe me, it is worth it.

Now back to the shanks. Once they've done browning take out of the oven and rest, covered for 15 minutes. Now might be a good time to put on a green veg if you're having one.

When you're ready to serve stir about 3/4 cup grated parmesan and 3 tbsp unsalted butter into the polents, season & serve immediately.

Spoon a large dollop of polenta onto a plate, place a shank on top, then ladle over some of the gravy & veg. You can serve a green veg like broccoli on the side if you like.

As the polenta cools it will set so before this happens, spread what you don't need into a wide container so that it is about 1.5 cm thick. Refrigerate.

Next day cut your polenta into squares and cook on a medium heat on a lightly oiled hot plate or cast iron pan until browned & top with mushrooms. To cook the perfect mushrooms, heat a little olive oil and butter in a frying pan and add thickly sliced button mushrooms. When lightly browned & tender add a clove or 2 of garlic, crushed and cook for a minute or so. Then add about 1/2 cup chicken stock (you probably have some left over from the night before), season and cook down until the stock has reduced. Stir in a handful of chopped parsley and spoon onto the polenta squares.