This hearty, tasty meal is extremely easy to prepare. Serve with fresh-baked, crusty French bread and butter--and enjoy!

• 2 pounds lamb (use shoulder or leg)
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh porcini, chaneterelles, or tree-oyster mushrooms
   (or, 1 and 1/4 pounds commercial mushrooms and 1 ounce dried porcini)
• 1/4 cup virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
• Salt

Preheat the oven to 325°
Cube the lamb meat, leaving a tad of fat here and there for flavor.
Put the cubed lamb into a large casserole dish or Dutch oven.
Clean the mushrooms with a damp paper towel (don't wash mushrooms).
Prepare the dried porcini mushrooms according to the package

Chunk up the mushrooms into large pieces and toss in with the lamb.
Sprinkle the olive oil over the lamb and mushrooms, stir, sprinkle again.
Add salt to taste, and add the pepper flakes.
Stir everything up again.

Bake for 1 1/4 hours, or until the meat is done and the mushrooms are thoroughly cooked, stirring every fifteen minutes or so to be sure all the flavors have a chance to enhance one another.

Michael's suggested wines:

1. Castle rock California Cuvée Pinot Noir, 2005, elegant and medium bodied, with aromas and flavors of cherry, tea and herbal spice, $10.59

2. Jovino Pinot Noir 2006, Dundee, Oregon, aromas of dark red fruit and plums, $16.45