Slow-Cooker Lamb Stew

Living in Kansas, you are sure of one thing at the meat counter - BEEF, and lots of it.  Steaks, T-Bones, Kansas Strip, Ground Beef, Roasts, a plethora of moo-meat.  Chicken is another favorite out here.  Pork has its fans as well.  Unfortunately, that is usually the extent of the butcher counter display.  So whenever I see turkey, veal, and lamb, I snag as many portions as I can.  And yes, I have been verbally berated - by other customers, mind you - at the meat counter for getting these items instead of a nice Kansas Strip.  So I managed to snag a couple of packages of lamb chops recently and thus my muse for this next slow cooker recipe.  I found this one at the Crock-Pot Recipe Center.

Irish Lamb Stew

Ingredients:
6 large slices bacon, diced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds boneless lamb shoulder, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup beef broth
1 cup white wine
1 1/2 cups frozen peeled pearl onions, thawed
3 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 medium potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 cloves garlic, sliced
2 whole bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Steps:
1.  In a medium skillet, cook the diced bacon until the fat has rendered and the bacon is crispy. Remove the bacon and set aside.
2.  Combine the flour, salt and black pepper.  Dredge the lamb cubes in the flour mixture and brown in the bacon fat in the same skillet.
3.  Remove the lamb from the skillet and set aside.  Deglaze the skillet with the beef broth and white wine.
4.  Place the lamb, bacon, and the beef broth mixture in the Crock-Pot® slow cooker and add the remaining ingredients. Mix thoroughly to combine.
5.  Cover; cook on Low 4 to 6 hours (or on High for 2 to 3 hours). Skim any excess fat off the top of the stew before serving.

The finished product:

A shot after we had already dug in!  Yum!

First, a warning - this made the house smell absolutely delicious while cooking.  The only way to keep myself from popping the lid was to remove myself from the kitchen.  The recipe calls for boneless lamb shoulder but, seeing as how I already explained my meat predicament, I used bone-in lamb chops.  I think it added something extra to the stew.  The meat was super tender and fell right off the bone with your fork.  For the white wine, I used a cup of Little Penguin Chardonnay and don't forget - a little sip for oneself during the process.  I had no pearl onions - so I just quartered 1 medium sized white onion.  I peeled and chopped 5 smaller sized potatoes.  I cooked on low for 4 and a half hours.  About 20 minutes before the end of cooking time, I threw some crescent rolls in the oven.  I don't think you can eat a hearty stew without some bread.  Verdict:  Totally yummy with one little issue.  I need to boil off the wine a bit longer during the deglazing process - or possibly use a different white next time.  Other than that, we had a fantastic dinner, definitely being added to my recipe book.  So good, even JT spent the time in his high chair smacking his lips like he wanted a bowl.  Just another week before he gets started on solids!