Lamb Shanks on Cannellini Beans

Cooking beans and lamb at the same time gives you the opportunity to work on other recipes on the menu. We liked the dry beans, but for faster cooking, replace them with dried canned beans. Just toss them together with the bacon.
Sprinkle the lamb with salt and pepper. Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the lamb; cook for 12 minutes, until lightly browned on all sides. Remove from the pan. Add the carrots, onion, and celery to the skillet; simmer for 3 minutes. Add the wine. Bring to a boil; cook for 5 minutes. Add the broth, rosemary, tomatoes and bay leaf. Put the lamb in the pan (the pan will be very thick). Cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 2 hours or until the lamb is very tender, turning the lamb once. Remove the lamb from the pan; bring the liquid to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves.Peel and wash the beans; bake in a large roasting pan. Cover the beans with water 2 inches above the level of the beans; bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat; cover and let stand for 1 hour. Drain the beans; bake in a roasting pan. Cover the beans with water 2 inches above the bean level; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour or until tender. Drain the water.Bake the bacon in a roasting pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove the bacon from the roasting pan, leaving 2 teaspoons of the filling to bake in the roasting pan. Crumble the bacon. Preheat the filling over medium-high heat. Add garlic; saute for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Add beans and bacon; remove from heat.Spread the beans evenly over 6 plates; spread the lamb on top of the beans. Spoon the sauce over the lamb. Garnish with rosemary sprigs if desired.