Stew with Potato and Rocket Pasta Cushions

Say what you want about Jamie Oliver, but we have yet to find something of his that hasn't worked. Take this stew, for example.

I was not able to get veal cheek, so we used lamb neck fillet instead and it was gorgeous. After 3 hours of simmering, the lamb just melted away when we bit into it. The pasta cushions were totally out of control. I mean REALLY good. If you don't have one of those pasta "makers" you ought to invest in one. Fresh pasta is just awesome.

FOR THE STEW
800 g veal cheeks or another stewing cut
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 carrots, finely chopped
2 red onions, finely chopped
3 sticks of celery, trimmed and finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
a bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked and chopped
6 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked
1 heaped teaspoon flour
½ a bottle of white wine
2 cans good-quality plum tomatoes
1 basic pasta dough recipe
extra virgin olive oil
a small bunch of fresh flatleaf parsley, leaves picked
FOR THE FILLING
500 g floury potatoes
½ a nutmeg, grated
3 large handfuls of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
a big bunch of rocket, chopped
a large knob of butter
zest and juice of 1 lemon

Get yourself a casserole-type pan and put it on a medium heat. Pat the veal cheeks with a little olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Fry on all sides until golden, then add the carrots, onions, celery, garlic, thyme and rosemary to the pan. Allow to sweat slowly for about 10 minutes until all the veg has softened. Stir in the flour then add the wine and tomatoes. Stir gently then lightly season the sauce and put a lid on the pan. Simmer slowly for 2 to 3 hours, or until the meat falls apart - it should be so tender that you can pull it apart using two forks. If the sauce seems to be cooking a little dry, make sure that the heat isn't turned up too high and just top it up with a little water.

While the sauce is simmering, make your pasta dough. To make the filling, preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Prick your potatoes with a fork, then roll them in a little salt and bake them in the oven for about an hour, or cook them for 25 minutes in a pressure cooker. When cool, cut them in half and scoop the potato out into a bowl, discarding the skins. Add the grated nutmeg, Parmesan, rocket, butter and lemon zest and juice. Mix this all together well, then season to taste. To make the cushion ravioli, go to page 88 - you've got plenty of time to put them together while the stew is simmering. Once they're done, put them to one side on a floured tray.

As soon as the meat is good and ready and falling apart, break it up using a fork. Give it a mix, taste it and adjust the seasoning if you need to. The sauce should be like a stew, but if it looks too thick then simply add a little water to loosen it and keep it simmering for a short while longer.

Put a pan of salted water on to boil, and get your family or guests round the table. When the pan of water is boiling fast, add your pasta parcels and cook for 3 minutes. Remove them from the water using a spider or slotted spoon, or drain them very carefully in a colander. At this point you can stir the cushions through the stew, but I prefer to drizzle them with extra virgin olive oil in the colander then give them a very light shake and just pour them on top of the stew. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley, put a spoon in the pan and take the whole thing to the table so that everyone can help themselves.