Anyways, we lured Shelly and Steve over with the promise of a fancypants dinner. Check this out, people:
Red Wine Braised Short Ribs with Garlic and Herbs accompanied by Flan (for dessert)
Umm...who wouldn't want to come over for that?!
It's one of my favorite dinners to make for people because it's ALWAYS delicious, makes the whole house smell like heaven, and looks really fancy once it's done. You'll need about 3 hours to make it between prep time and cooking time. Most of that is cooking time (stop freaking out, Mom!), not prep time. If you're never home like me, you have to maximize your weekend time by making really good food. This recipe is a keeper!
I used to pass by short ribs in the grocery store without a second thought. But they kept staring at me...like little beefy puppies in the window. Too much? Ok sorry. But anyways, they kept calling to me and finally, through the intervention of Bon Appetit magazine, it was time for me to buy them for myself. Bon Appetit featured this recipe a couple years ago. It was on their cover so you know it had to be amazing. I like wine and beef and herbs and garlic. Quite frankly, this was a match made in culinary heaven!
To start, you'll need 2 packs of meaty short ribs (about 6 ribs per pack). I find that Publix has the best ones, but do what you love. In a large, deep skillet on medium high, heat 2 tbsp. vegetable oil until it shimmers. Once it's nice and hot, add your ribs. We're going to be browning each side of the ribs (which is a bit harder than it looks!). I suggest using tongs to turn the ribs on each of their 6 sides, a minute or 2 on each side, until they're a uniform brown color. By no means is this step intended to actually cook the meat through so don't freak out. There's lots more cooking to be done!
Transfer the ribs to a plate and set aside for now. To your skillet, add 3 roughly chopped onions and saute for 5 minutes. Sprinkle 3 tbsp flour over the cooked onions and add 1 tbsp tomato paste. Stir to combine it all and cook for another minute.
You'll now pour an entire bottle of red wine (I prefer a nice Cabernet) into the skillet with your onion mix and add your short ribs back in as well. This is starting to look AMAZING! Hopefully you have a deeper skillet than I did!
Bring this to a boil, then simmer for 25 minutes. While that's cooking away, grab a dutch oven or roasting pan. I used a roasting pan since I don't have a dutch oven...it's on my list of cooking items to obtain. I DO, however, have an herb garden which is very useful for this recipe. If you're as lucky as me, good for you. If not, you can get these herbs fresh at your grocery store. Pick up some seeds while you're out and you too can have an herb garden of your very own!
You'll need 8 sprigs of thyme, 4 sprigs of oregano, and 2 sprigs of rosemary along with 10 sprigs of parsley (which I did not grow this year, so I used a couple tbsp of dry).
These herbs will go into the roasting pan to hangout for a while til our simmering is done. You'll also need to cut a whole head of garlic in half horizontally and place that in the roasting pan as well. Once your skillet items are done, the entire contents will be added to the roasting pan along with 4 cups of beef broth.
I don't know why this is sideways. I'm annoyed.
This whole magical conglomeration gets covered in tin foil and goes into your 350 degree oven for 2 hours. The suspense might kill you so....while we wait...
Let's make dessert!!
I'm about to share with you the best recipe for flan in existence. My Dad's mom Mima gave this recipe to my Mom who gave it to me. THIS is how flan is supposed to taste and evey time I make it, I am reminded of my grandmother and her amazing food. As she is no longer with us, this recipe is part of her legacy to my family.
In a medium sized saucepan with a metal handle, heat 1 1/2 cups of sugar and 1/2 cup water on high heat. This is our caramel sauce and will need to boil until it reaches a beautiful golden brown color. Watch it carefully as it burns easily and will NOT make your house smell like heaven. Possibly more like the "other place..." Once it reaches golden brown, remove it from the heat and turn the pan to coat the sides of it twice. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes.
In a blender, add the following: 6 eggs, 1 cup sugar, 1 10oz can evaporated milk, and 1 generous tsp of vanilla. Blend for 2 minutes. Pour this mix directly into your carmel coated saucepan. Boil some water. Place the saucepan of flan in a square pan or dish with high sides. Pour boiling water in the dish so that the water comes halfway up the sides of the saucepan. This is called a water bath and it will help your flan cook evenly on all sides.
Pop the whole thing in your 350 degree oven for about 50 minutes. You'll know your flan is done when it jiggles only slightly when you tap the pan. If it's still quite wobbly in the center, give it another few minutes in the oven. Remove the pan from the water bath and place it on a cooling rack. Let it cool for at least 30 minutes. Once cooled, run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the sides of the flan. You're now going to flip the saucepan over into a round pie dish or plate so that the flan comes out of it with the amazing caramel coating & "juice" on top. Cover and place in the fridge to serve cold after dinner. I like to sum up these 3 steps as "cool it, flip it, fridge it." I need these little mnemonic devices to maintain my sanity.
By now, your short ribs should be nearly done bathing in their winey herby garlicy juice. I'm sure you're getting antsy to try this dish you've slaved over. Not really, since the majority of the time it's just been sitting there in your oven cooking, but shhhh your guests don't know that! They'll be impressed by your hours of work!
Take that sucker out of the oven and pull off the foil. Prepare to be amazed!
Dinner is served! I like to make twice baked potatoes to serve with this dish. I'll post that recipe soon (super easy!). Here's a photo of my plate (jealous?):
I know you're gonna want to inhale this food as if you've never eaten before, but be sure to save a bit of room for your flan. It should be nice and cold by now. Slice like a pie and spoon some of that yummy caramel "juice" over the top. Creamy deliciousness!
Try it. You'll like it.
-Sam
Now I am Hungry!
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