Sage Lamb Cobbler
Beautifully tender and full of flavour lamb and vegetables, topped with light and fluffy savoury scones...delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp oil
- 8 x 85g pieces boned neck of lamb (total 680g)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 30g plain flour
- 225g onions finely chopped
- 225g carrots diced
- 225g swede diced
- 225g chestnut mushrooms quartered
- 225g frozen peas or petit pois
- 225g diced tomato flesh
- 1 tsp paprika
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 568ml (1 pint) chicken stock (made using 1 stock cube or pot)
For the cobbler mix:
- 280g plain flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- a pinch of salt
- 1 tsp shredded fresh sage
- 85g unsalted butter
- 30g Wensleydale cheese grated (see Notes)
- 1 egg beaten
- 2 tbsp milk
- egg wash - 1 tsp milk mixed with 1 egg yolk
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Heat the oil over a high heat in a casserole dish that has a lid. Season the lamb with salt and freshly ground black pepper and then roll in the flour and dust off any excess. Fry in the oil for around 3.5 to 4 minutes, until it’s well coloured all round. Remove to a plate and set aside.
- Add the onions to the casserole and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, until lightly coloured. Then add the carrots, swede and mushrooms. Put the meat back in and dust with the paprika.
- Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Cover with the lid and cook in the oven for 2 hours. Remove from the oven and leave to stand. Check the seasoning and add the peas and tomatoes. Increase the oven to 210C/190C fan/gas 7.
- Meanwhile make the cobbler mix - sieve the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Add the sage and rub in the butter with cold fingers. Mix in the cheese then add the beaten egg and milk to make a soft dough - don’t knead too much.
- Roll out the dough until it’s approx. 1cm thick, then cut into 12 to 15 x 6cm rounds (see Notes). Arrange on top of the meat overlapping slightly, brush with the egg wash. Bake for about 20 minutes until cooked through. Serve from the casserole dish.
Notes
- Make ahead – this recipe can easily be made ahead, earlier in the day, up to the point that the lamb and vegetables are taken out of the oven after 2 hours (Step 3)…remember to switch off the oven! When you’re ready to finish the rest of the recipe, heat the oven to the higher temperature, reheat the lamb and vegetable mixture on the hob and continue the rest of the instructions.
- Cheese – Wensleydale cheese isn’t easy to get in our local supermarkets so I decided to use extra mature cheddar instead (we like cheesy!!).
- Savoury scones/cookie cutter – the original recipe said to use a 5cm cookie cutter to make 8 rounds. I used a 6cm cutter and ended up with 17 rounds!! I put 12 onto the lamb mixture and baked the other 5 separately on a baking tray. The amount of rounds you end up with will depend on the size of cutter you use and how thin you actually end up rolling out the dough.
- This sage lamb cobbler recipe is easily adapted if you’re cooking for less people.