1 c. yellow onion, finely chopped
2/3 c. carrots, finely chopped
2/3 c. celery, finely chopped
1/4 tsp. garlic, finely chopped
2 strips lemon peel
1/2 c. vegetable oil
2 shanks of veal sawed into 8 pieces, about 2 inches long, each securely tied around the middle
3/4 c. all-purpose flour, spread on a plate or on waxed paper
1 c. dry white wine
1 1/2 c. beef broth
1 1/2 c. canned Italian tomatoes, coarsely chopped with juice
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
4 leaves fresh basil (optional)
2 bay leaves
2 or 3 sprigs parsley
Freshly ground pepper, about 6 twists of the mill

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Choose a heavy casserole with a tight-fitting lid that is just large enough to contain the veal pieces in a single layer. Put the onion, carrot, celery, and butter and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until the vegetables soften and wilt. Add the chopped garlic and lemon peel at the end. Remove from the heat. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Turn the trussed pieces of veal in the flour, shaking off any excess. When the oil is quite hot brown the veal on all sides. Stand the pieces of veal side by side on top of the vegetables in the casserole. Tip the skillet and draw off nearly all the fat with a spoon. Add the wine and boil briskly for about 3 minutes, scraping up and loosening any browning residue stuck to the pan. Pour over the pieces of veal in the casserole. In the same skillet, bring the broth to a simmer and pour into the casserole. Add the chopped tomatoes with their juices, the thyme, basil, bay leaves, parsley, and pepper. The broth should come up to the top of the veal pieces. If it does not, add more. Bring the contents of the casserole to a simmer on top of the stove. Cover tightly and place in the lower third of the preheated oven. Cook for about 2 hours carefully turning and beating the veal pieces every 20 minutes. When done, they should be very tender when pricked with a fork, and their sauce should be dense and creamy. If, while the veal is still cooking, there is not enough liquid in the casserole, you may add up to 1/3 cup of warm water. If the reverse is true, and the sauce is too thin when the veal is done remove the meat to a warm platter. Place the uncovered casserole on top of the stove, and over high heat briskly boil the sauce until it thickens. Pour the sauce over the veal and serve.

NOTES: Pick hind shanks for this dish and when the butcher prepares your shanks have him saw off the two ends which contain mostly bone and little meat. Have him cut the shanks into pieces no more than 2 inches long, making sure he doesn't remove the skin enveloping the shanks. This recipe will serve 6.