This dish came to me from my grandmother and falls into the category of “cucina povre” which literally means “poor kitchen” in Italian. It was a staple in the poor immigrant Italian community my grandmother lived in for much of her life. Simple, flavorful, and nourishing, it epitomizes “country” or “peasant” food. True to its humble origins, it is very adaptable to what you have on hand in your fridge or pantry. If you omit the pancetta, sausage, and parmesan, and substitute vegetable broth, it becomes vegetarian friendly. You can also throw in some chopped kale or spinach. Start by wilting the sofrito of onions, garlic, carrots, and celery. Add the tomatoes, beans, rosemary, and chicken (or vegetable) broth and bring to a boil. Add the ditalini or other small pasta shape and cook until “al dente” tender and you have a delicious one pot meal in about a half hour. Serve with a crusty bread to sop up the hearty broth.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ slice of pancetta
1/2 lb. spicy (or sweet) Italian sausage (or a smokey sausage like Portuguese Linguiça)
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
2 cups chopped kale or spinach (optional)
3 cloves garlic, minced
kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 15-ounce cans Great Northern Beans (or Cannellini Beans)
1 15-ounce. can diced tomatoes
1+ 32-ounce box chicken broth
1 Bay leaf
2-3 sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped (2 tsp. dried rosemary)
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seed (optional, but recommended if you don’t use Italian sausage)
1 cup ditalini or small elbow pasta (or other small shape)
Freshly grated Parmesan, for garnish
Freshly chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large, deep pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and sausage and cook, breaking up the sausage with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.
Stir in the onion, carrots, and celery and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute more.
Add the beans (with their liquid), diced tomatoes, chicken broth, Bay leaf and rosemary and any leafy greens you want to add.
Bring to a boil, then stir in the ditalini. Reduce heat to medium and cook until pasta is al dente tender, about 8 minutes.
Taste and adjust the salt and pepper to your taste. Serve in bowls garnished with Parmesan and parsley.

**Note: If your cooking a big pot of soup, you might prefer to cook the pasta in the amount of soup for each meal. Reheating the pasta in the soup multiple times results in over-cooked pasta that has absorbed a lot of your broth. Ladle out the number of serving for your meal and bring it to a boil. Add about a ½ cup of dried pasta for two people.

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This is a wonderful French-style lamb stew that uses the anise flavors in tarragon and fennel to highlight the rich delicacy of the lamb. The added root vegetables make this a meal in a bowl. Omit any of the root vegetables you may not care for.

serves: 8

Ingredients

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 pounds boneless lamb shoulder or top round, cut into 2-inch cubes
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups dry red wine
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
4 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon (or 2+ tsp. dried)
1 pound baby carrots, peeled
1 pound baby parsnips, peeled (or regular parsnips cut into 1 ½ inch pieces
1 pound small fingerling potatoes
1/2 pound baby turnips, halved (or regular turnip cut into 1 ½ inch cubes)
1 cup of cored, chopped fennel bulb, fronds saved
1 large shallot, minced
2 tablespoons minced parsley

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°. Put the flour in a large bowl and season generously with salt and pepper. Add the lamb cubes in 4 batches, tossing to coat thoroughly.
In a large enameled cast-iron casserole, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until shimmering. Add one-fourth of the lamb cubes and cook over moderately high heat until browned, about 6 minutes; transfer to a plate. Brown the remaining floured lamb in 3 batches, adding 2 tablespoons of oil to the pot per batch. Reduce the heat if the casserole bottom darkens too much.
Return all of the lamb to the casserole. Add the wine and vinegar and bring to a boil scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the stock and tarragon and return to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the casserole and braise the stew in the oven for about 1 hour, or until the meat is nearly tender.
Add the carrots, parsnips, potatoes, turnips, fennel and shallot to the lamb stew. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil, stirring to distribute the vegetables. Cover the casserole, return it to the oven and cook until the meat and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour longer. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley and fennel fronds and serve the stew in deep bowls accompanied by a crusty bread to sop up the juices.

A medium-bodied red wine like a Cotes du Rhone, Tempranillo, Garnacha, or lighter Pinot Noir will compliment the flavors in this stew.

Adapted from: https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/lamb-stew-with-root-vegetables

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