Recipe

Lemon Lamb Shanks with Baby Artichokes

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by aargersi

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by aargersi

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by aargersi

This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Spring Lamb

This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Artichoke Recipe
A&M's Testing Notes: In choosing this recipe, I glanced quickly at the ingredient list and loved the idea of lamb shank, lemon and artichokes together -- what a wonderful combination! Then as I was going over...
In choosing this recipe, I glanced quickly at the ingredient list and loved the idea of lamb shank, lemon and artichokes together -- what a wonderful combination! Then as I was going over the ingredients before going shopping, the full realization of the recipe hit me: black lemon? grains of paradise? preserved lemon? How was I going to procure all these things? So I ended up substituting grated lemon zest for the black lemons (per aargersi’s suggestion), 1 quartered lemon (and a little extra salt) for the preserved lemons, and some coarse ground pepper, coriander and cardamom to mimic (slightly) the flavor of the grains of paradise. I ended up cooking my lamb for about two hours, flipping the lamb every half hour or so, then taking the lid off for the last half hour. The end result was an amazingly succulent, flavorful dish. The lemons, artichokes, tomatoes, lamb and spices melded together to create a dish that was layered with flavor and texture. I am looking forward to trying this again with actual preserved lemons and grains of paradise, but for now, this was absolutely lovely. - coffeefoodwritergirl

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Chef
aargersi's Notes:
I love cooking lamb shanks in my yellow tagine, and there were the prettiest baby artichokes at the store this weekend ... result ... read on! - aargersi

Serves 2

2 lamb shanks Ask the
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olive oil Ask the
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salt and pepper Ask the
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1/4 yellow onion - sliced Ask the
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2 cloves garlic - chopped Ask the
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6 baby artichokes, trimmed and cleaned Ask the
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1 preserved lemon - quartered Ask the
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1 black lemon - crushed (World Spice Merchants!) Ask the
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4 small sweet tomatoes - quartered (I had campari ones) Ask the
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1/2 cup dry white wine Ask the
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a good drizzle of honey Ask the
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1 pinch grains of paradise Ask the
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vinegar and water in a bowl Ask the
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Clean the artichokes by cutting away the tough outer leaves and stem, then cut them in half and throw them in the bowl of vinegar water (this prevents browning). I did NOT trim mine enough because they were so pretty, so I ended up having to scoop out the tender insides when I ate them.
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Salt and pepper the lamb shanks. Heat some olive oil in the tagine (or a dutch oven) and brown the shanks on all sides, then remove them to a plate.
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Brown the onions in the tagine, then add the garlic and saute a couple more minutes. Now put the shanks back in and add in the remaining ingredients, drizzling the whole thing with honey last. Cover and turn the heat to low. Go outside and play, it's spring! Or sit on the back porch and have a glass of wine. The lamb will be done in an hour or so.
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