Here's my favorite way to make lamb (frequent readers, please forgive the repetition). It's a great cold weather recipe for when you have to do a lot of housework and be in the house all day anyway. About lunchtime, it takes about a half hour of prep and then you leave it alone for 7 hours. 7 hours later, you have a no fuss dinner that's really scrumptious. Makes the kitchen smell great all day, too. (My dog goes crazy when I cook this dish.)

Gigot de sept heures (Seven hour leg of lamb)

1 leg of lamb, about 6#
4 garlic cloves, sliced, plus 20 whole garlic cloves
1/4 cup olive oil
salt & pepper
2 small onions, thinly sliced
4 carrots, peeled
1 bouquet garni
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup flour, 1 cup water

Preheat oven to 300˚ F. (If necessary, trim most of the external fat off the lamb. Some legs of lamb will come with a heavy fatty connective tissue, called the fell, covering a lot of its surface. Remove as much of it as practical, because leaving it on will make the dish gamier because a lot of the gamy flavor is in the fat and connective tissues.) Make many small stab incisions in lamb and place slivers of garlic in each incision. Rub lamb well with olive oil, season with salt & pepper. Place it in Dutch oven and add onions, carrots, bouquet garni, garlic, wine. Put lid on Dutch oven. Combine flour and water, make a 'caulk' and use it to seal the lid to the dutch oven. (Note: That is not necessary if you have a casserole or Dutch oven with a fairly snug-fitting lid.) Place it in the 300˚oven and cook for 7 hours. Yes, 7 hours. NO PEEKING--leave it alone. A half hour before it is done, fix some noodles or rice or couscous to soak up the juices.

Remove the Dutch oven and break the seal. You don't eat the cooked flour paste.

That's it. It's nearly foolproof. Serve it with whatever else you want, and a medium bodied red wine goes quite well with this (say, a nice Zinfandel) but a dry white (such as the remainder of the bottle you opened to get the cup of wine in the recipe) is fine as well if that's your preference.

By the way, the garlic cooks down so it's not overpowering; do use at least as much as the recipe calls for.

Here are some favorites:

Beef Pot Roast
Submitted By: Teresa

Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 2 Hours
Ready In: 2 Hours 20 Minutes
Servings: 8

"This is the best and easiest recipe for pot roast I have ever tried. It is best to make it a day ahead. Serve with oven roasted vegetables, potatoes, carrots, onions, or your favorite side dish."

2 teaspoons olive oil
4 pounds boneless chuck roast
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black
pepper

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Heat a heavy Dutch oven on top of the stove over medium high heat. Add oil, and sear meat in the center of the pan for 4 minutes. Turn meat over with tongs; sear all sides for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove meat from pan. Arrange onion, garlic, and 1 bay leaf in the bottom of the pan, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Return meat to pan, place remaining bay leaf on top of meat, and cover.
3. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Reduce the heat to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C), and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Remove roast to a platter to rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Slice, and top with onions and gravy.

Note: the recipe is best with a boneless chuck roast; do not add any other liquid; follow the directions exactly.

Coca-Cola Beef (roast or stew beef)

3 lbs. beef pot roast or 3 lb. 2" cubes of beef
2 TB oil
1 large onion chopped
1 pkg spaghetti sauce dry mix
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. garlic salt
1 16 oz can tomatoes
1 cup Coke (not diet)

Brown beef in oil in a heavy pan on the stove top. Add onion and brown. Sprinkle sauce mix, salt, garlic salt on top of meat. Pour tomatoes with juice over top of meat, then pour Coke over. Cover and simmer 2 hours or until tender. Serve over rice or noodles.

Huron County Pork Stew

2 pounds boneless pork butt or shoulder
All-purpose flour, for dredging
4 slices bacon, coarsely chopped
12 small white onions, peeled
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/2 cup diced celery
4 Granny Smith apples (peeled and cored), diced
1-1/2 pounds russet potatoes, scrubbed and quartered
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves or 1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup apple cider
1 cup chicken stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Trim the pork of excess fat and cut into 3/4-inch cubes. Place the flour in a shallow bowl and dredge the pork cubes in the flour. Spread the pork cubes out on a board to allow flour to dry while you render the bacon.

Place bacon in a Dutch oven or large, heavy saucepan over medium heat and saute until it begins to render its fat. Brown all the pork cubes on all sides, a few at a time. Remove pork from the pan and reserve. Remove all but 2 tablespoons bacon fat.

Place the onions, garlic, carrots and celery in the pan and saute until the onions are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Return the pork to the pan and add the remaining ingredients. Bring the mixture to a simmer and simmer, loosely covered, for 1 hour or until the pork is tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. Serve with hot cornbread or biscuits.

Note: If you prefer a thicker sauce, whisk 1/2 cup of the sauce together with 1 or 2 tablespoons flour.
Stir this mixture back into the Dutch oven and cook for an additional 7 to 10 minutes, or until sauce is thickened and the flour is cooked.

Serves 6
Source: John Hadamuscin's Enchanted Evenings

LC46, my girls always loved this, we made it in a dutch oven in Girl Scouts, but they liked it so well they always wanted it at home too. It's really easy.

Coca Cola Chicken

Layer chunks of red potatoes with the skins still on in the bottom of the pan. Add some carrots and a layer of sliced onions. Top with a layer of chicken parts, your choice.

Pour a mixture of half Coke and half catsup over the top, I used about two cups of each because it makes a sweet BBQ type sauce.

On with the lid and in the oven at 300F for an hour and a half or two hours, until vegetables are tender and chicken is done.

I don't use any measurements other than the sauce, I just put in as many vegetables as I think we'll eat, ditto the chicken. If you're in a hurry, bake at 350 instead of 300. It's a camping recipe, and easy for a kid to make and very forgiving.

Annie

I made this for dinner on Thursday with smashed Yulon Gold potatoes and steamed broccoli with cheese. A really yummy fall type dinner :-)

Becky

* Exported from MasterCook *

Pork Pot Roast

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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4 pounds Pork Shoulder Roast
1 onion -- chopped
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/3 container frozen apple juice concentrate (undiluted)
6 cloves garlic -- pressed
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh rosemary
salt and pepper -- to taste

Brown roast on all sides in olive oil. Remove roast and add onions to pot, cooking and stirring until soft, about 5 minutes. Add pork and remaining ingredients back to pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Move to oven and bake covered at 325F for about 2 1/2 hours, or until fork tender. Remove roast to a platter to rest. Place roasting pan on burner over medium high heat, fish out herb stems and add a slurry made with 1/2 cup water and 1/4 cup flour to make gravy. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for a few minutes. Correct seasoning if necessary.

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Pork it is--I actually have everything I need right here in the house.

I don't know what it is about pot roast, but everybody seems to love it, pork or beef. Let us know how it goes - and I should have added that I had to add a little chicken broth to the gravy to thin it down some. Enjoy :-)

Becky

Just want to say that I LOVE arly's Gigot de Sept Heures! I've made it several times now, even once for a potluck. Melts in your mouth!

The Pork Stew was delicious. DH said he likes it better than beef. Definitely a keeper!