Recipes

We would like to share a recipe with you every month using our seasonal produce.

Lamb and Redcurrant Casserole with Rosemary Dumplings

This hearty casserole is ideal to serve as an alternative to a roast when you’ve little time to prepare. Simply throw everything in a casserole dish, pop it in the oven and leave it to cook. The only other thing to do is whizz together the dumpling ingredients in a food processor and put on top of the casserole towards the end of its cooking time.

MAKES: 2 adult and 4 kid-sized portions.
PREPARATION TIME: 20 minutes
COOKING TIME: 2 1/2 hours

Ingredients

For the Casserole

750g/1lb 10oz lamb shoulder, diced
3 heaped tbsp plain flour
2 large onions, thickly sliced
1/2 swede, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
2 celery sticks, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
3 tbsp redcurrant jelly
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp tomato purée
400ml/14fl oz/scant 13/4 cups red wine
200ml/7fl oz/scant 1 cup lamb or beef stock
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper cabbage or curly kale, to serve

For the Dumplings

75g/21⁄2oz/scant 2∕3 cup self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
75g/21⁄2oz/heaped
1 cup fresh white breadcrumbs
75g/21⁄2oz butter, diced
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary leaves
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C/315°F/gas 2–3.
2. Put the lamb and flour in a bowl or large plastic freezer bag and toss well, making sure all the lamb is coated in the flour. Put the lamb and all the remaining casserole ingredients in a large flameproof casserole dish, mix well and bring to the boil over a high heat. Cover with a lid and bake for 2 hours until the sauce is thickening.
3. Meanwhile, make the dumplings. Put the flour, breadcrumbs and butter in a food processor and blitz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the mustard, rosemary and egg, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Blitz briefly until the mixture forms a fairly moist dough. Using floured hands to stop the mixture sticking to you, divide the dough into 8 equal portions and shape them into balls.
4. After the casserole has been cooking for 2 hours, take it out of the oven and remove the lid. Put the dumplings on top of the lamb and sprinkle a few flakes of salt on top of each one. Return the dish to the oven, uncovered, for a further 30 minutes, until the dumplings are golden and the casserole is rich and thick. Serve the casserole just as it is or with some lovely buttery cabbage or curly kale.

Any leftovers?

REDCURRANT LAMB AND GREEN BEAN PIE
Mix any leftover casserole with some blanched green beans and spoon into a large pie dish or individual dishes. Top with puff or shortcrust pastry, pierce a hole in the top and brush with a little milk or egg yolk. Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/gas 5 for 25–30 minutes until golden.