Braised Short Ribs

If you know me or read the blog you know my Father-in-law is a cattle rancher in Wyoming. We are fortunate to get a yearly shipment of amazing grass fed beef. One of my favorite cuts are the short ribs. We usually get a couple in a shipment, so I save them for a special occasion. Well, another shipment is in the mail so I had to make room in the freezer. What I love about this recipe is that you can just throw all these ingredients in a slow cooker and let it cook all day. When you get home for work it is good to go. The problem with short ribs is the amount of fat, it's also what provides the flavor. I separated most of the fat and removed the bones before reducing the left over sauce. I served it over creamy Parmesan polenta. Enjoy!

Domaine Gilbert Picq Chablis 2006

Since 1976, father and sons have been running this small domaine where all the vines are situated in the commune of Chichée about 3 km south of Chablis on the left bank of the Serein. The terroir of Chichée does not yield high alcohol wines and Didier Picq has been keen to keep the need to capitalize to a minimum by moderating his yields. Chablis is the Northern section of Burgundy where Chardonnay grapes rule. Aromas of tangerine, orange and curry powder, with a slightly grilled character. Round, rich and dry, with fresh acidity.

Halftime Chili

We always cook chili on Super Bowl Sunday. But a good chili recipe is hard to find. I have never followed a recipe when it comes to making chili. So I have finally accepted the fact that chili is just one of those things you tweak until you get it right. The good thing is, you can not overcook chili. Which gives you the opportunity to fix the consistency by reducing, change the ratio of beef by adding beans and adjust the heat by adding more spice. So I say, use this basic chili recipe and create your own. It was a good base but I doubled the beans, added chipotle peppers, more tomato puree and more beer. In the end I got it right and we topped it with raw onion and shredded cheese. We could hardly wait until halftime. Enjoy!

Le Fraghe Bardolino, Italy

My favorite wine store ran out of the Valpolicella that I usually buy, but they suggested this instead. It is from the same region in North east Italy called Veneto. Bardolino it is a sub region on the south east shore of lake Garda. It is made with Corvina and Rondinell grapes like Valpolicella, but wines from Bardolino tend to use a little less Corvino (the variety that provides structure). It appears a purple-tinged ruby red of medium intensity. You can smell sweet-sour cherry and blueberry, and spicy nuances of cinnamon and black pepper. The distinctive hallmark of this wine is without a doubt the elegance that one experiences on the palate. Nice soft tannins and a balance between acidity characteristic of wines of this area. You can get this for around $15. Enjoy it with anything Italian, especially light meats, cheese and highly acidic sauces.

Stewed Apples

The only fruits left at the farmers market these days are apples. At the Fort Greene Farmers Market in Brooklyn there must be at least 15 different varietals. This recipe calls for either Fuji or Gala apples along with some Apple cider from the same vendor. I usually double or triple the recipe because they keep in a sealed container for at least a week. The apples don't last long because we eat them over waffles, pancakes and cereal. It can also be used as the filling for an apple tart. Enjoy!

Huevos Rancheros

I love taco night because you can customize your taco with a variety of textures and flavors, but what do you do with all that left over toppings? When taco night is over I start looking forward to breakfast the next morning. Here is my recipe for this traditional Mexican breakfast.

Evenly spread out your left over black beans or pinto beans on two corn tortillas.

Add salsa and caramelized onions and top with cheese. Place under the broiler until the cheese is bubbling and the tortilla just starts to brown around the edges like picture below.

Pile up the two tortillas and top with two eggs and cilantro. It's easy and delicious, enjoy!

Cauliflower Pizza

Jim Lahey, the founder of the Sullivan Street Bakery recently released a cookbook with all his bread, sandwich and pizza recipes. The "Pizza Cavolfiore" or Cauliflower Pizza is our new favorite pizza because it has a great mix of flavors. I have been using Jim's no-knead bread recipe for a couple of years, and now I use his new no-knead pizza dough recipe. Just combine 3 3/4 cups of bread flour, 2 1/2 tsp. of instant or active dry yeast, 3/4 tsp. salt, 3/4 tsp. sugar, and 1 1/3 cups of room temperature water. Let it rise for only two hours and you are good to go. It will make enough dough for two 13/18 inch pies in rimmed baking sheets of the same size. Before you spread it out the dough you want to evenly spread out a tablespoon of olive oil on the sheet.

As for the the toppings, Jim Lahey's theory on pizza is that it each bit should have a mix of toppings, so the directions call for the cauliflower to be sliced with a mandolin set at 1/16, which is paper thin (watch your fingers!). Here are the ingredients for the topping, in a bowl combine:

1 medium Cauliflower

1/2 cup of green olives (I used black olives)

2 large cloves of garlic (minced or crushed)

3/4 tsp. of salt

1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/4 cup of olive oil

1 or 2 tbsp. bread crumbs

Evenly spread the mixture on the dough and cook for 25-30 minutes until topping is golden brown. Enjoy!