Hi GUSforgivingpatientpersons! Sorry for my long term absence. Stressful trial and follow up -- I have a post trial brief due at the end of the month for one of the smartest judges I've been a doofus head before.
Poor Chance the Office Dog. A couple of days he is wonderful (meaning no shitting in the office or at his owner's home) and other days he does the opposite. I blame the landlord. The dog needs good training. Here's what I've learned on my own: talk to him with a soft voice and give him one word commands. Reward (found brilliant dog biscuits 5 pounds for 5 dollars at Tractor Supply which is my ongoing semi-favorite place).
He obeys my commands. I can't walk him now because we still have sheets of ice but as soon as things melt I will.
I really apologize for being absent. I'm a stressoholic when it comes to deadlines for work.
Ok, so I'm writing this diary early because I've been so bad and also, I am being dragged to the lake where I don't want to go because it is still frigging cold and we will have to shovel from Saturday into Sunday. I'm not happy.
And then, tonight (Friday) I made Julia Child's brilliant quiche which I made months ago for the first time and it was totally brilliant. What does that mean? The bar for quiche was at eleven and I was terrified to match it. Here's what I learned when I didn't match it and the cooking time was doubled -- CHEESE!!! I adapted her recipe by combining the Quiche Lorraine with her Cheese Quiche. First time I made it I used Fontina and Jarlsburg. This time I made it with Fontina and Gruyere -- two soft cheeses and used 1 3/4 cups of cream. I'll go back to the Jarlsberg and Fontina (or Gruyere) since I think it works best with a harder cheese in the combo.
Pork Ragu
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
A meaty, long-cooked ragu requires the right cut of meat, and we found that baby back ribs fit the bill, providing tender meat and lots of flavor and body from the bones. Browning the ribs first creates flavorful fond, and a base of onion, carrot, and fennel lends traditional Italian flavor. Braising the meat in the oven in broth, tomatoes, and wine renders it fork-tender, and cooking a whole head of garlic along with the meat requires less work than chopping a dozen cloves. We return the shredded meat to the savory cooking liquid along with the sweet, mellow garlic before tossing it all with pasta and topping it with Parmesan cheese.
MAKES ABOUT 8 CUPS
This recipe makes enough sauce to coat 2 pounds of pasta. Leftover sauce may be refrigerated for up to three days or frozen for up to one month.
INGREDIENTS
2 (2 1/4- to 2 1/2-pound) racks baby back ribs, trimmed and each rack cut into fourths
2 teaspoons ground fennel
Kosher salt and pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped fine
1 large fennel bulb, stalks discarded, bulb halved, cored, and chopped fine
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped fine
1/4 cup minced fresh sage
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons dry red wine
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and crushed coarse
3 cups chicken broth
1 garlic head, outer papery skins removed and top fourth of head cut off and discarded
1 pound pappardelle or tagliatelle
Grated parmesan cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Sprinkle ribs with ground fennel and generously season with salt and pepper, pressing spices to adhere. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add half of ribs, meat side down, and cook, without moving them, until meat is well browned, 6 to 8 minutes; transfer to plate. Repeat with remaining ribs; set aside.
2. Reduce heat to medium and add onion, fennel, carrots, 2 tablespoons sage, rosemary, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to now-empty pot. Cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up any browned bits, until vegetables are well browned and beginning to stick to pot bottom, 12 to 15 minutes.
3. Add 1 cup wine and cook until evaporated, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and broth and bring to simmer. Submerge garlic and ribs, meat side down, in liquid; add any accumulated juices from plate. Cover and transfer to oven. Cook until ribs are fork-tender, about 2 hours.
4. Remove pot from oven and transfer ribs and garlic to rimmed baking sheet. Using large spoon, skim any fat from surface of sauce. Once cool enough to handle, shred meat from bones; discard bones and gristle. Return meat to pot. Squeeze garlic from its skin into pot. Stir in remaining 2 tablespoons sage and remaining 2 tablespoons wine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 2 tablespoons salt and cook, stirring often, until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water, then drain pasta and return it to pot. Add half of sauce and toss to combine, adjusting consistency with reserved cooking water as needed. Serve, passing Parmesan separately.
TEST KITCHEN TECHNIQUE: MAKING RAGU FROM BABY BACK RIBS
Baby back ribs are an unusual choice for ragu. But they make perfect culinary sense for this dish, as these ribs have great meaty flavor, contain lots of bone to contribute body to the sauce, and cook relatively quickly (compared with other bony cuts like shanks). We cut two racks into three-rib segments, brown them, then braise them in flavorful liquid. Two hours later, we remove the meat, shred it, and add it back to the sauce.
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