Lamb Shank for Two

• 3 whole garlic cloves 
• 1 medium onion, diced 
• 4 carrots, diced 
• 4 celery stalks, chopped 
• ½ cup Stemmler's Smokin Good Sauce 
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste 
• 6 sprigs fresh rosemary  
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme 
• 2 bay leaves 
• 2 Stemmler’s Lamb Shanks  
• salt and pepper plus some of your favourite seasonings 
• 1 tablespoon olive oil  
• 1-1/2 cups chicken stock 
• 1 cup rose wine 

Preheat oven to 300F. 

In a crockpot or a roasting pan, add the garlic, onions, carrots, celery, Stemmler’s Smokin Good Sauce, tomato paste, thyme, rosemary and bay leaves. Stir to mix the sauce. 

Remove the lamb from the package and trim off some of the white silverskin (similar to pork tenderloin). Season the entire shank with salt and pepper plus any of your other favorite seasonings. Heat the oil in a pan and once hot, sear off each side of the shank (you may need to add a bit more oil each time).  Once the shanks are seared off, place the shanks on the vegetables in the crockpot or roasting pan.  Cover them completely with the liquids; wine, chicken stock and a touch of water, if needed. Cover with a lid or some foil and turn on low or place in 300F oven for 4 hours. 

You can make this the day before and place in the refrigerator overnight once it is finished cooking.   This allows the grease/fat to rise and harden on top. When you are ready to serve it, remove from refrigerator a couple hours ahead of time and scrape off the thin layer of fat.  Place the lamb shanks in crockpot on medium or in oven at 350F to reheat. While the lamb shanks are reheating, you can prepare your side dishes. 

After about 1 hour or when the shanks are hot again, carefully remove them from the liquid. Set aside and cover to keep warm. Strain off the braising liquid into a pot and turn on high. You want to let this boil down and reduce to make the jus. Use half the liquid to start as it will reduce quicker. You can also add one half cup of wine (for this you can use a nice red wine). Keep reducing until it coats the back of a spoon. 

When your side dishes are done, place them nicely on the plate along with the lamb shank, drizzle with the reduced jus and enjoy your romantic dinner!