SPRING - PRINTEMPS

  

Spring

 Ah yes, spring, glorious spring. After all my whining about winter, March has been wonderful.This Blog is a spring tour with lots of photos.

route in pink

Went on a few walks this month. One was earlier in the month. We walked near Messanges, taking a route near Meuilley, then towards Villars-Fontaine and over to Sergois and back to Messanges. We had the two dogs with us, Flipper ( Marie T's dog) and Dols ( her father's dog). Walking along the dirt paths, the dogs are loose and run and play. We only have to put them on the leash when we are on major roads. Messanges is located on the side of a hill, so we go down, then across, and it is up hill to Villars and Sergois.

I have a couple more photos from this walk.

Vineyard - Villars-Fontaine

Sergois- small village

Mid month, I was excited about the arrival of spring. I took some photos of my garden.

My garden	My flowers	Neighbor's lawn

Now a little detour - our neighbor's cat. In the past I have mentioned Tim ( our name for him). He comes and goes as he pleases. He has made himself at home here. Keeps wanting food, but we refuse to feed him. It does not stop him from asking though. One day looking out the window towards the neighbors house, there was Tim. Next to it is a photo I took, just because he was here.

a sign of spring, or cat on the hot "" roof?	So cute

Another walk with Marie Therese and Flipper. This time we went to Reulle Vergy and walked around the top. I will write a whole article this summer when I take a guided tour. The ruins of the chateau are on top, along with the ruins of the old abbey St Vivant. So more on that this summer. This walk was just for fun.

Église Saint-Saturnin  XII century

Some people can walk near the edge! ! !

And so can their dogs-  Flipper

Must be SPRING

I took a walk this last week and decided to add a little lecture on grape vines. I know that you all are dying to know about grape vines, and I have not written much.

During the months of November through February the vignerons are busy cutting back the vines. After the excess is cut off, these branches ( sarments) are gathered and burned. In theory the time for burning must end Febraury 14th....hmm what was that smoke the other day? As stated, in theory ( or law that no one pays any attention to- whatever ).

 Before the vines bud in the spring, the branch must be attached to the wire ( think of this, bend over to cut, bend over to remove branches, bend over to attach branch---ouch!!)

Here are some photos I took this last week walking through Gevrey ( except the close up of hands-that was 2 years ago).

Vineyard plowed and ready

Vines from above photos- branch attached

Different vineyard- no plowing- each vignerons has a personal preference- branches tied

Tying is done by hand

Tractor by cemetery

photo

These old vines are done by another method

How vines are grown, cut , tied and generally cared for are all the choice of the vignerons. In practice, the vines on this side of the Côte are shorter than the vines up and over the hill in the region called the Hautes Côtes. Some plow, others leave grass or put in gravel. Some have gone back to the "old" ways.

Now if I have not totally lost my audience, onto other things.

Of course with the nice weather Keith has been out riding his bike. He is a biking fool, riding between 60 to 90km a day when weather and time permits. He is still going to Bligny to work on the trains on Saturdays. That will end on May 1st when they start running the trains on the weekends. Sure hope they all run! ! ! Still looking into the boiler problem on the one train. All donations can be sent directly to the Tourist Train ($60,000 or so) at Bligny ...JUST KIDDING! Do hope they find a solution. The one big steam engine, the Meuse, is working. And of course a couple of the diesels are working too. And then on the side, for his bike restoration, he is trying to pin stripe the bike. And someone from his french internet group is making some wooden handles. There will be photos of the finished product.

I have to get busy here too. I continue as treasurer of the history group, but now I have charge of the sub committee of Photography. We have added some new members too, and have some interesting outings coming up. There is no lack of historical sites here in the Cote D'Or.

Photoclub has its Expo on May 14th and 15th. A lot a focus on that the last couple of weeks. I think all is ready now.

Have been watching lots of news the last few weeks. So many tragic events going on ( Japan and Libya). It does make the mundane events in our daily life pale in comparison. One must be thankful for what one has.

RECIPE OF THE MONTH


Tabouli ( ah  maybe not what you think, this is the what the french call tabouli)
This is just a quick recipe idea. With the warm weather coming, I thought I would toss this in. Every french picnic or gathering, where everyone brings something, there will be a tabouli or two. It is couscous.


INGREDIENTS ( this is flexible)

• 1 cup dry couscous
• 1 large tomato chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 small cucumber diced ( not more than 1 cup)
• 3/4 cup  parsley chopped ( or coriander )
• 2 eggs boiled and chopped
• 1 red pepper (small) chopped or jullianed
• 1 clove garlic minced fine
• [ other options- raisons, chicken, zucchini ....]

DRESSING:

• 1/4 cup Lemon juice
• 3 tablespoon Olive oil
• Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• Cumin or other seasoning can be added too -depends on your taste.

Preparation

1. Prepare couscous according to recipe (1 cup couscous to 1 cup water or 1 cup chicken broth -I prefer using vegetable or chicken broth for some flavor). 
2.  Let set a few minutes then fluff with a fork
3. Combine prepared couscous with all of the ingredients you have prepared.
4.  Whisk together the dressing ingredients.
5.  Pour dressing over the couscous a little at a time and mix well.
6.  Serve 

You can prepare ahead of time and refrigerate.

Fevrier 2011

Flower in the Woods

Here it is the end of February and I do not have my act together.
Why, I think I have been at this computer too much this month. Two projects have been ongoing.

First, I have been try to move the banking account for the Association from an old version to a new version. Of course the new is not compatible with the old, so all the banking entries for 2009,2010 and 2011 had to be entered one at a time ( this is kind of like a Quicken checkbook program, but includes a place for members of the association, members annual fees, equipment of the Association...etc). After working on this project and finally so excited to be done, I needed to make one little change. Went to open and the OPEN is next to the DELETE. Slipped and a months worth of work disappeared!! No second chance!! OK it should be in my back-up files, right. I had this program under the first level with my name" SUE" and not under My Documents, and the back-up ignored it totally!!! Live and learn. Of course I have the old version, so the club data is still there, it is just the frustration of it all. I now have entered the 75 entries for January 2011. Will go back and do 2009 and 2010 some other day! All the members are loaded back in and  have updated the payment of fees area too. And I did a back up of it all.

Then my other project is more or less the same. I am updating Marie Therese's website "Cellier des Chaumes" to a new version. Since the base program is english, I can not do a automatic update. So I have been combing the 1,000 some pages of coding to change the english to french. Wish I had kept better documentation the first time, however some things have moved, so it may not have helped. Slowly it is coming around.

Along on that note, we have done some great wine tasting. One place we tasted, I believe because the proprietor knows Marie Therese's father, he opened a bottle of 1980 Charmes Chambertin. A 31 year old bottle of wine on a rainy Tuesday late afternoon, one of the Grand Crus of Gevrey Chambertin. It was very good indeed ( Lucky Sue ) and not a drop left in the bottle when we parted!
Then this last week, we tried a vigneron here in Gevrey, Domaine Boillot. Marie Therese has been searching for a good Volany ( red wine), and Keith and I had tasted his wine last summer in Volnay. He is very passionate about his wine. The wine he makes is made in the traditional manner. His wine is excellent.
We were tasting 2009 right out of the barrels. It is a young wine, but wow, it is a good year (2009) for the Cote D'Or.
As we were talking he mentioned his distributor in the USA. MT asked who it was and he replied Kermit Lynch. Keith and I have read his book, in fact it was our first introduction into learning about french wine. If you want to learn a little about wine, read Kermit Lynch's book (Adventures on the Wine Route).

So this month there have definitely been some perks.

Speaking of wine, I just have to quickly mention this little item. Burgundy is trying to get the Côte (vineyards) registered as a UNESCO site. Stay tuned for more.

Descending into Ruelle Vergy

As always I complain about the weather. Grey and foggy, or a light mist like today. But on the other hand, no blizzards, no snow, and the temperature for the most part has been above freezing. On a few nice days I have been working on the garden ( ground is not frozen).

I have taken a few walks this month. I do enjoy going for a walk. This last week took a new route in the Combe ( gorge) in Gevrey, but I did not have my camera!! In the Combe of Gevrey, there is a lot of box, you know those little boxed hegdes that outline gardens. Left on its own, it grows up to tree size. Some were about 20 feet tall. And all of the moss, all over everything, and so green and lush ( of course it has had some moisture this winter).

I do not have a lot of photos for this month, but I have sprinkled a few here and there throughout this Blog. And some have blue sky. 

Last week I went to lunch with an American friend. Her husband was away, so we went for a nice long lunch. It was a little restaurant on the other side of the hills, in the Valley d'Ouche.

Curtil Vergy

Started the old spring cleaning this last month. Taking it slow, a project here and there. I am not sure why, it is  the vineyard out back or what; but we get a lot of dust. And I do not raise dust bunnies, but full grown dust rabbits. I do use my little swiffer, however within a few weeks, everything is covered again. Oh well, such is life. Also tried to go through a few things and toss. We will see how successful this is!! At least the spice rack has been cleaned! Always something.

Keith went up to Paris to see one of his old students. This student is now a professor at the University in Christchurch, New Zealand ( and yes he and family are OK after the earthquake). He was working here in France and speaking/participating in a workshop at the Polytech University in Paris. Keith had a day of math and science and time with a friend.

Path in the Shade...look at at sun ..GORGEOUS day- a little haze

Keith also has been on the internet looking for parts for his bike restoration project, primarily on the web. His biggest challange is spokes for this bike. The size is not used much anymore and he is having trouble finding some new spokes (maybe have them in Sweden, but he does not know any Swedish). He keeps searching, they must be somewhere out there. He has found them a few times, but then only to be told that they are out of stock. The search continues.

At Bligny, where the tourist train is located, it has been a winter of repairs. Tourist season will start the first weekend in May; weekends only May, June and Sept; July and August daily tourist train.
They took apart the steam engine so the boiler could be inspected and certified ( required every so many years). Unfortunately it failed the inspection. Now they have to see if it can be repaired at a reasonable price. Each boiler ( as I am told ) on these old steam engines is unique, so they can not just find another. To have one made would cost a fortune; which they do not have. They could be down to one steam engine for the season!! They have a couple of diesels that run and they use the diesels for the week days in the summer. Keith enjoys his Saturdays during the winter months with the "guys".

Gevrey- Burning wine branches (sarments)- a little SMOG
settles over Gervey-Chambertin.

He is also getting ready for another tourist season. Looks like a tour or 2 in Champagne this year, one down by Macon and of course a Burgundy trip or 2 or 3...

Beautiful Tricycle at a flea market

We are beginning to think that we do not have a hedgehog, but maybe a rat ( this would be in the compost). I have a live trap now, and we will see what happens. I have not added anything to the compost, I do not want to feed a rat!! Although in the movie, Ratatouille was adorable, I really do not want him in my compost!!

I think I will sign off here with my recipe.


Recipe of the Month
This month I am going to not post a french recipe. My friend
from England sent me this recipe for Eggplant Curry. It is
a recipe from a big grocer chain in England, Waitrose.
I can take no credit for it. I made it last night for dinner and 
it is easy and good if you like curries. Of course I had a french 
red curry paste and it had very little punch. You can also use 
coconut milk that has reduced fat.


AUBERGINE CURRY ( eggplant)
Preparation time : 15 minutes
Cooking time : 20 minutes
Total time : 35 minutes
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

2 medium aubergines
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cm piece of root ginger, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp Cooks’ Ingredients Thai Red Curry Paste
Juice of 1 lime
2 tbsp dark muscovado sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
½ x 400g can half fat coconut milk

PREPARATION

1. Trim the aubergine and cut into small cubes. 
2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the onion, garlic and ginger.
3. Cook for 2–3 minutes until starting to brown then add the aubergine cubes and fry until browned on all sides.
   Stir in the red curry paste to coat the aubergine and cook for a minute.
4.   Add the lime juice, sugar, soy sauce and season. 
5. Add 400ml cold water and bring to the boil.
6.   Lower the heat and simmer for 15–20 minutes until tender and the sauce is reduced.
   Stir in the coconut milk and heat gently but do not boil. 

Check seasoning and serve, scattered with shredded basil leaves and steamed Thai jasmine rice.

Jan 2011

TO A GREAT 2011
(over here there will be the two big weddings- July with Albert & Charlene and April with Will & Kate )


A new year has started.
What resolutions have you made for this new year? Have any been broken?

Are intension's are so noble, but the follow through is not always the same.  Have to say I am still on track. Why, because I did not make any resolutions. Easy-peasy that way.

We started the new year with a simple lunch with friends. I had tried to make the baeckhoeffe ( last months recipe with new added comments on the recipe) for lunch. Although the baeckhoeffe was not perfect, it was a nice relaxed afternoon with friends.

Keith passed by Premeaux-Prissey one day and stopped to say hello and a Happy New Year to Bertrand. Bertrand mentioned that he had a group of Americans coming through for wine tasting and dinner the next week and that we should come too. So of course we did.

The red arrow points to Keith

About mid-month I went with Marie Therese to a hippodrome above Chenove. It is only about 10km from here. Her cousin's daughter (age 4) had her pony lesson that afternoon. It was entertaining to watch these very young children bounce around on these little ponies.

Small ponies, but so are the children. So cute

On the 15th of January we had a wonderful warm day. I was more than a little impressed at the color of the grass, so I took a photo while on my walk.

Look at the grass - Jan 15th 2011- SO GREEN

The next day the fog moved in. In the morning it was hard to see beyond out back fence. The fog was thick and showed no signs of lifting. Keith and I both wanted to go for a walk, so we decided that maybe the parc at the top of Mont Afrique just might have some sun . Mont Afrique is above Perrigny-les-Dijon. The foot of the Mont is about 7km from our house... They have just finished re-making the road going up through Marsonnay la Cote, and it is much better. Mont Afrique is so named because Julius Caesar had put his African troops at the camp on the top. It was true, we had sun at the top. However walking through the parc, we were soon in fog again.

Fog in the Parc

In the parc they have some old Cadoles. These are little shelters that are usually made of dry stone and used by the vignerons as shelters. The more common slang for the cadole here is Cabotte.

Cadole or Cabotte

Busy with my clubs again. Clubs usually have a night for Galette des Rois to celebrate the Epiphany ( Jan 6th).  The Galette des Rois is a buttery-flakey pastry with almond creme in the middle. Not a bad way at all to start the new year. It is also the time for the annual photo of the club members.
( photo here: Photo Club members in costumes ).

The Photo Club has its annual Expo May 14th and 15th. We had to have our photos printed and ready by January 27th. Well, if you remember I mentioned a new computer that we bought? It crashed. It would only open in Safe Mode ( if you do not know what that means, all the better).

After buying a new computer, I was not really excited about paying a computer person 50-100 euros to come and fix my new computer. Finally, since we had had it only a little while, I took the plunge and re-loaded back to beginning ( manufacturers' state). We lost a little, but not much. I had to re-load Google and Picasa and Skype and my other programs I had...but at least it worked.
Now, it has now run for a couple of weeks...YEAH. But back to photo club, I lost a couple of valuable weeks that I should have used to select and work on 3 photos. Well the long story-short, I quickly picked 3 photos (theme is trees) and set them up for printing. I got them back on Jan 26th ( due the 27th)...whew....even in retirement there are deadlines. I guess there were other photos, I could have done some things with these photos, but there was not time for any of that.

I have put my 3 photos here: Picasa Photo Album EXPO 2011

The Historie club set off the year in the same manner. Our annual meeting is the first part of January, this year January 11th. After the annual report and election of officers ( I am now treasurer), we had Cremant and yes, Galette des Rois.
Lots going on this year. I am also on the Archives committee. We are pulling lots of documents and these need to be archived. So first; a registration program so we know what we have and where it is located (using Access right now) and then looking at on line digital achieving.

Then we have lots of outings planned for the year, and we will have another Expo ( theme to be decided). We have a few projects lined up to research too. It will be a busy year.

Pottery continues. I think Keith has stated that anyone that visits will get a bowl as a memento. I think he thinks I have made one too many.

Today it is sunny ( the 29th of January) and not too cold. it was supposed to be about 40 degrees, and I believe it is. I went out to the garden and the weeds are already taking hold. I got out the fork and turned my vegetable garden, turning the weeds under. I am sure the birds like the merle ( thrush family like the US robin) will appreciate the gesture too.

I have a compost in the back yard too. Something is living in it. MT thought maybe it was a hedgehog. I throw some old vegetables in there and the next day all the soil has been turned over. I was calling the creature Ratatouille, but it is true that the hole is large and I do not believe the garbage (veggie stems, peels and such) are eaten. So I will beliee it is a hedgehog. They a re only partial hibernators, and with the nice warm home (my compost) he is one happy hedgehog. Think of the bugs and worms in there too.

I am going with hedge hog ( prefer that to thinking it is a rat). Great little worker

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

WARM BEETS

I am going to present a very great winter recipe that is VERY simple.
The main ingredient must be fresh. This recipe takes only minutes to prepare, and is so good..

Try it and write me a note.

INGREDIENTS

1. One fresh cooked beet ( hopefully you can buy these in the market, please do not use canned)
2. 1 or 2 ounces roquerfort cheese ( how much do you want?)
3. Olive oil - 2-3 teaspoons
4. Chopped flat parsley 1 Tablespoon
5.  Salt

PREPARATION

1. Peel the beet* and cut into small cubes or julianne if you prefer
2. Warm the beets in a pan or microwave (I often use the microwave)
3. Drizzle a little olive oil over the warm beets and sprinkle lightly with salt ( check how salty the cheese it before you salt the beets). Add a tablespoon of chopped parsley
4. Mix carefully
5. Crumble the cheese over the top and take a whiff as it starts to melt a little
6. SERVE IMMEDIATELY

*If worried about red hands, rub with oil before you start handling the beet

Decembre 30 2010

Dec 28 2010   

Dec 19th (OK I need a haircut)

Happy New Year

It is almost the end of the month, and end of the year. If I do not get my act together here, it will be 2011 before this is done.

It is the time for reflection of the past year and time for those new resolutions.

We have passed through a good year. I was happy to see some of my family with my trip to the USA.

Before I go on with the month of December, I have to go back to the end of October. I forgot to mention last month that Keith went to Italy for an end of the season “soiree” with his colleagues from the tour company. They went to Acqui Terme, a small village north of Genoa or just south of Asti. One of the guides for the company also has a vineyard and his parents have a Bed and Breakfast. They ate and road bikes and told stories. He had a great time. Keith thought it was a beautiful area and would like to go back (with me of course).

Here is a photo that he took.

Acqui Terme

Now onto December.... First a brief weather report, just to bore you.  We have had snow this month. Two big snow “storms”. It does not snow a lot here, so 2 inches here should be compared to about 6 inches in Minnesota. The first accumulation ended up being about 5 inches. Trains were late, school buses for the Cote D’Or were cancelled, and other regular buses were late or cancelled...the place was in chaos. Keith was going into Dijon. The train was not running so they had a bus instead. It took over an hour instead of the 10 minute trip by train.

You have to add to this equation that Dijon is totally torn up right now; why ?..because they are working to put in a tram system. We just got another little blast of snow just before Christmas. There really was not much snow, but it had rained for 4 days prior, and then the temperature plummeted and Mother Nature added a few inches of snow on top. Roads again were a mess. We have had a cold spell, with the temperature all the way down to about 10 degrees. Brrrr that is cold. We left Minnesota to get away from cold and snow. So that is the weather report, and enough of that.

The week before Christmas on Dec 19^th, I had an invitation for a concert and cocktails from the Mayor’s office. I had worked on the Cluny Expos, and this was a thank you. This was actually through the Photo Club. The club could invite 5 extra people (other than president...). I had taken photos at the chateau and had two photos in the Expo. The History Club had the same, but the president said she could not pick just 5 from the 20 some people that worked really hard. Who to choose and who to leave out!

The concert was by a local group called the Laostics. They sing medieval and baroque music, usually a cappella. For this concert they added some medieval and baroque instruments. The singing was still mostly a cappella, and then there were a few songs just for the instruments. This concert was in the old church St Aignan which is from the 11^th century (they had actually turned on some heat before the concert). It was an excellent 2 hour concert. The singing and the musicians playing the instruments were all absolutely brilliant. I just used my little camera, and inside photos are not the greatest (or nighttime either), but here are two photos 1) of the chorale group and 2) of a couple of the instruments.

Laostics in St Aignan 11th century church

Instruments- I pushed the lighting so you could see the instruments

I have to remark here on a french custom. Maybe I have mentioned it before, maybe not. At all of the concerts; small, large, amateurs, professionals, they introduce each piece with an explanation. Depending on the person, it may be short or can be very long explanation!

The concert was open to anyone, and it was free. As part of the group that was invited, we had reserved seats in the front. Wow, how nice and privileged.

After the concert there was a reception. Hors d’oeuvres were served, along with red wine from Gevrey, white wine from Marsonnay and juice or water. Then cheese was served (there is a fromagerie right here in the neighborhood) and after that, bite size desserts. It was a wonderful evening. I am starting to feel that I belong to this village.

A few days before Christmas, Keith and I took the train to Strasbourg. Strasbourg is located in the Alsace in the north east section of France. It calls itself the Capital of Christmas. Our train was stopped on the way up in the Jura because of rocks on the tracks. Yes rocks had fallen off the cliffs and on to the tracks. We were only delayed 30 minutes, as there were no boulders that damaged the tracks. We were resting on a narrow shelf that is wide enough for two track lines, and below us about 50 feet was the Doub river. Since we have had a lot of snow and or rain, it was a raging river. I tried not to let my imagination get away from me and imaging the worse.

We arrived in Strasbourg in the rain. We did spend 3 nights there and toured the city and the Christmas markets and ate Alsacian food (see this month’s recipe). It rained on and off, but it did not pour, so we made our way around the city. It is a pretty place, but I think if we go back it will be in the warm weather.

Strasbourg- Petite France

Strasbourg

Strasbourg Christmas Market

Strasbourg-     COOKIES

Tree

Street in Strasbourg -name look familiar?

Christmas was wonderful, as always. We had noon diner with Marie Therese, Christian, her father and sister. The trip over was a little dicey because of the ice and snow, but we made it without a porblem. We shared a excellent meal with some great wine. We finally left (because of the weather) at 5:30. I hope you had a nice Christmas too.

My History Club has been busy putting out the 3^rd edition of its Gazette and a small book from our exposition. The book is limited, because we had permission only to use some of the documents in our Expo, not for reprint.

We have also been working on how to archive all of the information that we have accumulated. Joelle’s house is not the long term solution.

Photo Club will have an Expo in May, theme is trees. I hope to find a good tree photo.

We finally bought a new computer. We held our breath every time we started the old one. And turning it on or off took anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes. This one will be faster; however there are a few bugs. The new one has only a USB connection for the keyboard. So without an option, we plugged in the french keyboard. The a and the q are swapped, as one example. You know how often you use the a?  Lot of little differences, but slowly I will get there. Also having some problems with my PhotoShop. Hope that works out soon. My genealogy program set up without a hitch…YEAH.

Good news, it did load in English, however it converts some things to french, and we have not figured that out yet.

Keith is fine too. He is trying to get his last 120km in on his bike to reach his annual goal of 10,000. With the wretched weather, he has not been able to ride much the last two months. So he has only today the 30^th and tomorrow the 31^st left. Bon chance mon amour.

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

Alsacian Baeckhoeffe

This may look difficult, but it is not. It is just a stew. You marinade the meat, and then the next day put it all in the pot. I have eaten a few variations. One that I had was like a stew with lots of juices or sauce; the other had all the liquid cooked out, so there are just the potatoes layered with the meat. I preferred this method, as it is a little different. I will try to achieve this on Saturday January 1^st. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL…
NOTE JAN 2, 2011 : I made this recipe for the 1st of Jan. It lacked a little something. I have looked at a few more recipes, and it appears that two things should be changed.
1. Use meat with some fat. I used lean meat.
2. Many recipes add a pigs foot... could help. Common here, maybe a little harder to find in the USA
3. Maybe a little beef broth
Sue

INGREDIENTS

 For Marinade:             

• 2 onions, sliced   
• 2 carrots, sliced            
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped          
• 2 bay leaves         
• 1 sprig thyme or 1 teaspoon of dried thyme   
• 3 cups dry white wine (preferably Alsacian Riesling)

Marinate for 24 hours in the refrigerator.

INGREDIENTS  More:         

• 1 pound beef chuck roast, choice grade, cut into 3-inch cubes         
• 1 pound boneless pork butt, trimmed and cut into 3-inch cubes       
• 1 pound boneless lamb shoulder, choice grade, trimmed and cut into 3-inch cubes     
• 3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes (or other waxy potatoes), peeled and cut into 1/8-inch slices         
• 3 leeks sliced in small circles
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste             

For Pastry Seal (optional : This is the traditional method. If you have a tight cover, first put aluminum foil over casserole. Then put on the lid. Press the foil tightly to the sides of the casserole dish to make a extra tight seal).              

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour         
• 5 tablespoons water     
• 1 tablespoon olive oil   

DIRECTIONS

 TO PREPARE MEAT AND MARINADE: Combine the marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add all the meats and toss gently. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.   

TO PREPARE VEGETABLES: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper, and lightly oil a large ovenproof casserole) with olive oil. Cover the bottom of the casserole with half of the potato slices. Remove the meats and vegetables for the marinade and reserve the marinade. Arrange the mixed meat over the potatoes, and then place the vegetables in a layer over the meat. Cover with a layer of the remaining potato slices and pour the marinade over them. Add enough additional white wine or water to just cover the top of the potatoes. Place the lid on the casserole.           

TO PREPARE PASTRY SEAL: Mix together the flour, water, and olive oil in a mixing bowl, and form into a rope shape long enough to wrap around the rim of the casserole. Press the dough onto the rim of the casserole. Place the lid on top of the dough and press to seal completely (this seal will prevent any of the cooking liquid form evaporating).            

TO COOK: Place the casserole in the oven and cook for about 3-1/2 hours. Remove the casserole and serve.