After seeing an egg yolk ravioli dish on Top Chef a few weeks back I have been contemplating how to make it and what to pair it with that would best take advantage of the yolk and not overpower it. I had a few lamb shanks laying around from a previous recipe and figured they would do great paired with roasted mushrooms. I love tarragon with lamb and mushrooms so I decided to marinate the lamb in EVOO and tarragon vinegar, braise the shanks with tarragon and make a mushroom tarragon cream sauce!
Serves 4- 6
3 lamb shanks braised; see recipe (http://bit.ly/AuMW22)
8 0z crimini mushrooms
8 oz white button mushrooms
1 batch pasta dough; see recipe (http://bit.ly/fW4lhs)
1 package of tarragon
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup chicken stock
1 shallot, chopped
8 egg yolks, unbroken
8 oz goat cheese
S&P to taste
EVOO
Start by marinating the shanks in EVOO and tarragon vinegar for at least an hour. Braise the shanks (use a pressure cooker to reduce time); be sure to season them well with S&P and cook them with carrot, celery and onion. Use red wine and stock as the braising liquid and then shred the lamb and place in a bowl; shredded lamb didn’t make for a nice picture, so all you get is the mirepoix!
Nothing better to start a sauce with
Next, get the pasta dough ready and while it’s resting begin preparing the mushrooms; preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Save about 4 of each of the mushroom types and slice thin for the sauce; keep the rest whole, toss with 1 tbsp of EVOO, S&P and roast for 15 minutes; place them in the bowl with the lamb.
Those look damn tasty!
Add the goat cheese and 1 tbsp of cream to the mushroom/lamb mixture; add 1 tbsp of tarragon and puree in a blender. Be sure not to add too much liquid, as the mixture should be thick. Roll the pasta out to the lowest setting and mound a large spoonful of the lamb mixture every 4 inches; create a well in the middle and add the egg yolk to each mound.
Egg yolk...mmmmmm
Be sure there is at least ½ inch of dough showing on all sides of the squares as it will compress when pressed together due to the height of the yolk and lamb mixture; if not the yolk will break and you will be really sad. Use a 4 inch pastry cutter or the mouth of a 32 oz cup to cut the ravioli and then use a fork to press the edges together; boil in salted water for 5 minutes and drain.
While the water is boiling, cook the remaining mushrooms in 1 tbsp of EVOO with the shallots for 3-5 minutes, or until they’re soft; add the stock, bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 minutes. Next, add the remaining cream and 2 tbsp of chopped tarragon; simmer for 5 minutes and then add the ravioli.
Ravioli bathing in tasty goodness
Spoon a few of the ravioli onto a shallow plate, top with the sauce, a few of the mushrooms and garnish with a little fresh tarragon; kick it up with a little dried chili flakes and Pecorino Romano if you like. The rush of the yolk mixed with the lamb mixture is killer!
Not bad for a lazy Sunday!
That looks so delicious. Sunday is the perfect day for such a recipe.