This post has been sponsored by Wines of Rioja. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The chilly months are deserving of a little bit more. Hot meal < Hot meal with friends. Simple pasta < Cherry Short Rib
We are pulling back a bit as we end the holiday season. We are taking a look at what life will become going forward. We are finishing our goals and wrapping up our past into a tightly wrapped little box. In the small moments that we’ve catalogued, and the big that we’ve celebrated, we have truly lived 52 weeks of life.
It’s high time we look forward to the abundance that is no doubt before us. And, if not, the hope of abundance. More moments with friends and family. More time to just “be.” More friends to add to your tribe. More forgiveness, grace, and mercy to be given and received. Chasing more goals, fighting more fears, and welcoming the gift another day.
My hope always is that when next year comes to an end, I can look at it straight in the face, stick out my hand and give it a firm handshake for a fair and just fight. We are not victims of the year before us. We are contenders.
And, after a long day in the ring, we need a warm, hot, meal—preferably pasta—to regain our strength. This Cherry Short Rib Bolognese with Pappardelle has become a favorite of mine. Whenever the butcher has some fresh short ribs out on the ice, I pick them up knowing exactly what they’ll be cooked in. Some sweet and slightly acidic cherries, a generous splashing of a red wine from Rioja to be cooked down in a large Dutch oven with fresh herbs, and
I almost always cook with wine. It adds a light acidity and flavor to a dish that can’t be matched. I do get asked, in a blue moon, how I choose the wine I cook with. Any wine that is good enough to drink and has a moderate alcohol content that isn’t overpowering is very food friendly. Rioja is a wine region that produces Spain’s finest wine and checks all those boxes. I never worry when I pair and cook with Wines from
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Cherry Short Rib Bolognese with Pappardelle
Try a deliciously warm and savory dish of Cherry Short Rib Bolognese with Pappardelle. A pull-apart short rib in a decadent red wine cherry sauce.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons sea salt
3–4 pounds beef short ribs, bone-in
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 ½ cup red wine from Rioja
1 ½ cup cherry tomatoes
1 ½ cups dark cherries, pitted (fresh, frozen or canned)
1 tablespoon freshly cracked peppercorn mix
½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 bunch of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
Salt to taste
1 pound pappardelle pasta
Fresh chives, chopped
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Pour the olive oil into a large, cast iron, Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Generously salt the short ribs on all sides. Once the olive oil is moving around the pot easily like a thin liquid, add the short ribs. Sear the short ribs on all sides, about 2-3 minutes. You’ll know it’s time to turn the ribs when they release easily from the bottom of the Dutch oven.
Remove the short ribs from the Dutch oven and set aside. Turn down the heat to medium-low, and add a little more olive oil if needed. Toss in the chopped yellow onion and sauté for about a minute before adding the wine of Rioja, cherry tomatoes, cherries, peppercorn mix, and nutmeg. Stir to combine.
Add the short ribs back into the Dutch oven tucking them into the sauce. Add the fresh rosemary, thyme and bay leaf and cover the dutch oven with the lid.
Place the short ribs in the oven and bake for 2 1/2-3 hours or until the beef is falling apart. Remove the short ribs from the bolognese, and shred. Remove the bone and add the meat back into the sauce. Mix in the tomato paste. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook pappardelle to package directions and toss with bolognese. Top with shredded Parmigiano Reggiano and fresh chives. Serve with Rioja Wines.
Keywords: egg noodles, pasta, short rib, wine
