Short Ribs with Tagliatelle

My husband found this recipe through a Food Network search, and he's been after me to try it for a while now...Last weekend I made it. It's a Giada De Laurentiis recipe.

Short Ribs with Tagliatelle

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 3 hours
Servings: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients
3 tbsp olive oil
2 oz chopped pancetta (about 1/2 cup)
2 1/2 lbs short ribs
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 medium onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 (14 oz) can tomatoes (whole or diced)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
2 1/2 cups beef broth
3/4 cup red wine
1 lb fresh or dried tagliatelle
4 to 6 tsp shaved bittersweet chocolate

Directions
Place the olive oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium heat. Cook the pancetta until golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Meanwhile, season the short ribs with salt and pepper, and dredge in the flour. Using a slotted spoon, remove the pancetta from the pan and set aside. Add the short ribs to the pan and brown on all sides, about 7 minutes total.

Meanwhile, combine the onion, carrot, parsley and garlic in a food processor and blend until finely minced. Then add the tomatoes and tomato paste and pulse.

Once the short ribs are browned, carefully add the mixture from the food processor to the pot. Return the pancetta to the pot and stir. Add the rosemary, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, beef broth, and wine. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer for another hour and a half, stirring occasionally. Remove the meat and bones from the pot. Discard the bones. Shred the meat and return it to the pot. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper, or to taste.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes for dried pasta and 2 to 3 minutes for fresh. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the pot and stir to combine. Add the reserved pasta liquid 1/4 cup at a time, if needed, to moisten the pasta. Transfer to serving bowls, top each bowl with 1 teaspoon of chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.

My thoughts:
I found the prep to be a little messy. But once you have everything in the pot the smell was super delicious and I noticed a lot more traffic into the kitchen, everyone wanted a sniff.

I found it very fatty, so I scooped out as much fat as possible before serving it. The chocolate added a nice taste to the sauce, and the kids got a kick out of having chocolate on "regular food". Taste wise, it was very nice, but wasn't spectacular. That being said, the day after the sauce tasted much better, the flavours had enough time to blend in together, in my opinion.

If you try this recipe, I would love to hear your thoughts on it.

Straccetti

I found this recipe online, at All Recipes. And tried it out recently, and success! My picky eaters devoured it!

Straccetti

1 cup dry white wine
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 (1/2- pound) beef flank steak
1 (12 ounce) package uncooked linguine pasta
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large Vidalia onion, cut into wedges
2 cups sliced portobello mushrooms
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups beef stock
1 cup white wine
1 tbsp Italian-style seasoning
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
2/3 cup grated Asiago cheese (I used freshly grated Parmesan)

In a large shallow dish, combine 1 cup white wine, Worcestershire and Dijon mustard. Add flank, and turn to coat evenly. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. After meat had marinated, slice thinly across the grain, and return to marinade.

Heat olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until soft and translucent. Add mushrooms and garlic. Pour in beef stock. Simmer until sauce is reduced by a 1/3, about ten minutes. Remove beef from marinade, and stir into skillet. Pour 1 cup wine, and season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Simmer for ten minutes, or until beef is fully cooked, then add tomatoes, and cook until heated through but still firm, about five minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package instructions.

Place the cooked pasta into a large serving bowl, and top with the sauce and the grated cheese.

Makes 4 servings.

Let me know if you try this recipe. I would love to hear your thoughts!