Solar Osso Buco

I had my fingers crossed all week hoping for at least one good sunny day. I snatched up some veal shanks on special at Whole Foods a few days ago and they needed to be cooked by today. If the sun had not made an appearance I would have been forced to cook them indoors, and that would have meant keeping an eye on them for two to three hours as they slow roasted on the stove. Luckily we got a day of mostly sun today. I much prefer braising meat in the Sun Oven. Once that glass lid is closed I don't even have to think about it until dinnertime.

The recipe is extremely simple. Heat a little butter and olive oil in a dutch oven. Dredge the cross cut veal shanks in flour, then brown them on both sides. Add salt, pepper, and some dry white wine. Cover and transfer to a preheated Sun Oven. Just before serving remove the shanks from the pot. Heat cooking liquids to reduce. Add chopped parsley and lemon peel. Return the shanks to pot, turning to coat with pan juices. Serve immediately.

Accuweather.com has come up with five different ways to say partly cloudy for it's five day forecast. It looks like it's going to be another week of impossible to plan solar cooking. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm really looking forward to the summer months of continuous sunshine. Even if it does mean triple digit temperatures.