Takes Time, Not Effort

Time has been in short supply these past weeks, as you can tell from the lack of blog posts. I really have been cooking, though -- I'll tell you about the Sage Ice Cream soon, I promise.

I worked from home one day recently, and that meant I had time to get some lovely long-cooking dinner going. I still had to work all day, so I needed a dish that didn’t actually take a lot of time to make, but wanted a long, slow braise to make it delicious.

Falling-apart tender chunks of lamb. Peppers and tomatoes cooked down nearly to sauce consistency. Pillows of gnocchi. Perfect.

This recipe for Gnocchi with Lamb and Pepper Sauce met my needs perfectly. Plus it’s a great cold-weather meal. And it takes about 2.5 hours. Don’t let this deter you, though – a full two hours of that is time you can spend doing anything else (in my case, work), all while enjoying the warm scent of dinner as it permeates your home and whets your appetite.

For the last hour, you can open a bottle of wine and let it breathe – and imagine the moment when work is through and dining can begin.

Gnocchi with Lamb and Pepper Sauce

(Adapted from The Seasons of the Italian Cookbook http://www.amazon.com/Seasons-Italian-Kitchen-Diane-Darrow/dp/0871136570 , which I believe was Nick’s very first cookbook and has instructed us on many a fine meal of the years.)

1/2 lb. boneless lamb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
salt & pepper
2 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1/4 c dry white wine (I often use dry Vermouth for cooking)
2 large bell peppers, any color, seeded and julienned
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained, juice reserved
1 lb. package frozen gnocchi

Heat the olive oil in a 10 inch skillet. When hot, add the garlic and bay leaves
and saute briefly, just until fragrant. Season the lamb with salt and pepper.
Add it to the pan and brown the pieces well on all sides (about 5 minutes). Pour
in the wine and cook, stirring occasionally, until it evaporates, about 10
minutes.

Add the peppers and tomatoes and a generous sprinkling of salt. Bring to a
simmer, cover, and cook very gently for two hours. Check from time to time, and
if the liquid has evaporated so that the lamb and veg are flying in the oil, add
a few tablespoons of the reserved tomato juice (or water, if you forgot to save
the tomato juice). The lamb will become falling apart tender and the peppers and
tomatoes will cook down into a chunky sauce.

Cook the gnocchi as directed on the package. Dress them in the sauce and serve
at once.