Polenta Board
1 large lamb shoulder or bone in leg of lamb
1 bttl dry red wine
1 qt veal or chicken stock
½ cup diced carrots
½ cup diced celery
1 cup diced onions
1 qt diced canned tomatoes
4 or 5 large sprigs fresh thyme
6 garlic cloves
½ cup canola oil
1 qt polenta or yellow corn meal
½ cup mascarpone cheese
¼ cup minced fresh chives
Salt and pepper
Cooking
Heat canola oil in braising pan and season the lamb with salt and pepper liberally. Sear lamb in canola oil turning ever 5-8 minutes to form a nice crust on all sides. Add red wine, veal stock, carrots, celery, onion, tomatoes garlic and thyme. Bring to a hard boil and cover tightly and place in a 300⁰oven for 4 hours. Pull lamb from oven and remove from pan to cool slightly. Place all the braising liquid in a sauce pan on medium heat. Pull lamb from the bones and shred or chop into small pieces. Add to the braising stock on the stove and reduce to a thick gravy.
In a separate sauce pot bring 2qt of lightly salted water to a boil and add 1qt of polenta to the water. Lower the heat and stir with a wire whisk. Stir until polenta becomes thick and the water is absorbed. If the polenta looks to thick add a little more water. Add half the chives and stir in the mascarpone cheese until nice and creamy.
Plating
Spoon polenta onto rectangle plate or board. Make a channel in the middle to hold the ragout. Spoon the ragout into the channel and top with the remaining chives and serve
Sausage Casarecce
1lb Casarecce or similar pasta
1qt Chicken stock
8oz Ground Italian sausage
6 Whole confit garlic cloves (Instructions follow)
1 Head chopped escarole
4 oz Parmesan cheese
Pinch crushed red pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
Cooking
Cook pasta in lightly salted water. (do not over cook)
I large sauté pan add ground sausage and cook over medium heat. When sausage in about half cooked add garlic confit and escarole and sauté until tender. Add chicken stock crushed red pepper and reduce by half. Add cooked pasta and half the parmesan cheese. Toss and serve top with the remaining cheese.
Tempo Urban Bistro
21067 W. Main St.,
Buckeye, AZ 85396
623-594-6788
www.tempourbanbistro.com
