Monday was my husband’s birthday. Last year, just a few days before, the house flooded. You can read about that day HERE. We spent his special day emptying the house of all our personal belongings. We sang Happy Birthday over a double cheeseburger from McDonald’s. His gift was delivered to a house that was torn into pieces. It was his 35th birthday. By the way…it was a fantastic HD projector with a TEN FOOT screen for watching movies in the backyard. The screen is in my brother’s garage the and projector is still in the box.
So this year I wanted to do something a special as a 35th birthday REDO. Yesterday I wrote about the meal we had at Drury Lane to celebrate our first Valentine’s Day, our first anniversary, and my birthday. It was an eventful weekend for sure! The dish both of us sometimes still drool over was delicious braised short ribs in a mushroom ragu. That’s what my dear hubby wanted for his birthday. How on earth was I supposed to recreate THAT?!? I scoured the internet and couldn’t find a single recipe that hit all the same flavor notes. I did find something to work with though…THAT is why I love cooking and detest baking! I used this recipe from Bobby Flay as a base. After reading through it, I was certain that this would be the most complex flavor profile I had yet created. What bubbled away on the stovetop was a rich, layered dish full of bold flavors and tender short ribs. Do not let the ingredient list or number of steps deter you. It was not nearly as difficult as I anticipated. The work was well worth it!! Of course, for dessert, we enjoyed cheesecake–my husband’s all time favorite treat. As a non-baker, I purchased the cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory. Someday I will tackle the baker’s pantry. Just not today!
BRAISED SHORT RIBS WITH MUSHROOM RAGU OVER GNOCCHI
a rich, deeply-flavored braised short rib ragu full of earthy mushrooms over fluffy potato pasta pillows–the perfect birthday dinner comfort food for a cool rainy night
- In a medium sauce pan–reconstitute dried mushrooms in broth along with bouillon cubes until tender.
- Remove mushrooms with slotted spoon and roughly chop reserving broth.
- Over medium heat, add oil a 5-quart casserole or Dutch oven until almost smoking.
- Season short ribs generously with salt and pepper and brown on both sides.
- Remove ribs from casserole, and transfer to a large bowl–set aside.
- Add carrots, celery, onion, fresh and reconstituted mushrooms, and shallots to oil in the casserole, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and golden, about 10 minutes.
- Add flour and tomato paste to the casserole, and stir to combine.
- Add 1 cup of wine; stir with wooden spoon until all browned bits have been scraped from the pan and the bottom of the casserole is clean.
- Add remainder of red wine, and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half.
- Add garlic, beef-mushroom stock, chopped herbs, bay leaves, browned ribs to the casserole and bring the liquid to a simmer over medium-high heat.
- Cover the casserole, and place it in the oven for 3 hours or until ribs are very tender.
- Remove the cooked ribs from the casserole.
- Set the casserole on the stove top over medium heat, and simmer to thicken sauce just slightly.
- As soon as the short ribs are cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, and shred into small pieces.
- Degrease the sauce and discard the bay leaved.
- Return shredded meat to casserole and simmer until thickened.
- Prepare the gnocchi according to package directions–being sure to add plenty of salt.
- After drained, add a couple pats of butter to the pan–allowing to melt completely.
- Add the drained gnocchi to the butter and saute until lightly golden brown.
- Add just a little ragu to the gnocchi to coat.
- Portion out and add additional ragu and cheese to the top.
- Serve with crusty bread.
Karyn In The Kitchen 
And did he like? Was it redone just right? I love how each recipe has a story so far.
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He did like it!! And apparently it was just right. Very rich though. We tossed a big container into the freezer!!
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