Cook once, make three meals: day one

I've embraced Jamie Oliver's 'family tree' idea from his Jamie's Dinners ... essentially, you cook one big meal and then use the leftovers to make two more meals.

So this week I give you ... slow cooked lamb casserole which will become:

Meal i) slow cooked lamb casserole with new potatoes and tenderstem broccoli 

Meal ii) fusilli with slow cooked lamb and basil

Meal iii) mini calzones filled with slow cooked lamb 

My basic recipe is: 

1kg stewing lamb, cubed 

glug of olive oil

2 onions, finely chopped

2 sprigs of rosemary, leaves removed, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

4 carrots, finely chopped

4 sticks of celery, finely chopped

handful of mushrooms, quartered

500ml of liquid - lamb stock or red wine or a mixture of the two 

2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes or passata

salt and pepper

 - brown lamb in oil in heavy bottomed pan on hob 

 - add onions, saute until soft

 - add rosemary, garlic, carrots, celery and mushrooms, saute until soft

 - add red wine, bring to boil and let it bubble away until reduced by about  half

 - add tomatoes or passata, bring to boil, season

 - add lid onto pan and move into a very low oven - about 130 degrees - for 2 to 3 hours

 - check the seasoning again, I also added a tablespoon of sugar towards the end of the cooking time to take away some of the acidity of the tomatoes 

And here is the  slow cooked lamb casserole with new potatoes and tenderstem broccoli and cannellini beans: