Lamb neck stew with onions, white beans and gremolata

Serves c.6

3 neck fillets
5 onions, sliced thickly across grain
2 bay leaves
1/2 btl dry white wine
2 tsp anchovy paste (or 2 anchovy fillets, chopped)
1 large jar butter beans
1 tin borlotti beans
Squeeze lemon juice

Garlic, parsley, lemon zest

Brown meat well, cut into 1.5cm bits.  Sweat onions in oil and butter until golden/yellowed.  Deglaze lamb pan with wine, add all to onions.  Add the bay leaves and anchovy paste, season lightly and cook on a very low heat for 2.5 hrs.  Add beans, gently simmer with beans 45 mins, finish with lemon juice. Generous pepper.

Chop gremolata ingredients separately then stir together - chop lemon zest after grating it also.  Better if parsley is dry first.  Serve stew not too hot and sprinkle gremolata on top just before serving.

Salsa verde mayonnaise

A lovely accompaniment to fish.  The ideal device for making it is a food processer where you can put a smaller bowl attachment inside the lager bowl and pour in the oil while the motor is running.

I find it easier to chop the herbs beforehand, and in the case of the garlic it is definitely neccessary.

2 anchovy fillets - or more to taste, roughly chopped
1 tsp finely chopped garlic - or more to taste
2 tbsp finely chopped parsely
1 tbsp finely chopped mint
1 tbsp finely chopped basil - optional
1 tbsp capers or gherkins
1 tsp fine salt
1 tsp dijon mustard
Generous black pepper


Juice 1 lemon
1 egg yolk

75g extra virgin olive oil
75g plain vegetable oil

Place the ingredients in the top list into the food processer bowl.  Pulse several times to chop things as best possible.

Add the egg yolk and 1/2 the lemon juice.  Pulse again.

With the motor running add the oils, a drop first, then in a thin stream, then more quickly will be fine towards the end.

Add the remaining lemon juice, taste and adjust for salt/lemon.

Tomato, olive and anchovy sauce

2 tins Italian plum tomatoes (whole)

1 clove garlic

50g tin of anchovies

100g pot of mixed, pitted, olives (marinated in something)

Handful flatleaf parsley

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Several grindings of pepper

Small pinch salt

Finely chop the garlic and very roughly chop the anchovies, olives and parsley.

Put everything in a pan including the marinade from the olives if it looks nice.  Slice through the tomatoes a few times with a sharp knife.

Simmer gently for 15 minutes only, stirring again gently regularly.  If you simmer olives for too long they release a bitter flavour.

I'm pretty sure this would be nice with thick freshly made pasta but I don't know how to make that!