Lamb & Rosemary Hotpots

Its is our harvest lunch today and as I'm part of a team that helps organise these sort of functions I had the responsibility of providing a recipe that was suitable for the lunch and for all our volunteers to make.  The best part of this recipe is that there is no frying of the meat and the dish can be made as described below but can also be doubled and made in a large roasting dish - as happened for our event.  It was an amazing success and all the cook commented how easy the dish was to prepare in advance.  Photos of the dish are from Neils lamb hotpot and as one of the lucky diners that got to eat his dish, I can also say that it was fab!

Lamb and Rosemary Hotpots

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

1kg / 2lb 2oz lamb neck fillets, cubed

2 large onions, sliced

3 carrots, thickly sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tbsp plain flour

500ml / 18 fl oz chicken stock

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 fresh rosemary sprigs, finely chopped

A little redcurrant jelly

500g / 1lb 2oz large waxy potatoes, peeled & very thinly sliced

30g / 1oz butter

Preheat the oven to 190C / fan 170C / Gas 5.  Heat the oil in a heavy based casserole and fry the onion and carrots for 5 minutes to soften.  Add the garlic and fry for a further minute.  Stir in the flour and cook for another minute, then add the stock, Worcestershire sauce and rosemary and bring to the boil.  Tip in the lamb, season and bring back to a simmer.  Cover with a lid and simmer gently for 30-45 minutes.

Adjust seasoning with redcurrant jelly, salt and pepper.  Divide the mixture between 6 individual pie dishes (you can use one big one).  Cover the pie dishes with slices of potato before seasoning and dotting with a little butter.  Cover each pie with foil and return to the oven for a further 30 minutes.

Remove the foil and turn the heat to 200C / fan 180C / gas 6.  Return to the oven for 25-30 minutes when the potatoes should be golden brown.

To get ahead: You can make the dish up to 2 days ahead and store in the fridge.  To reheat, cover with foil and heat through in a preheated oven 200C / fan 180C / gas 6 for 30 minutes, then 5 minutes without foil.

To freeze: The completed dish can be frozen for up to 3 months.  Defrost before reheating as above.

Harvest in my garden !!!