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your holiday menu

pappardelle ragu, choc hazelnut biscotti + maple blinchiki

katie

Dec 13

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hello my little elves, who is ready to continue on with this beautiful never ending season of cooking and baking and all thing festive!!!! meanwhile you already know the minute it hit december 1st I felt like christmas was already over (that’s a problem i need to unpack another day)

Today’s Menu:

all recipes below!

short rib ragu pappardelle

chocolate hazelnut biscotti

maple blinchiki with stewed apples

but I’ve been loving and embracing all things holiday without losing my mind. remembering this time of the year is about the small meaningful touches rather than the over the top consumption and gifting has really kept me ~grounded~ I mean like, what I ordered for black friday is none of your business but also, remembering to come down to earth and touch grass and craft is important too

plus I really enjoyed tapping into more of a homemade christmas decor vibe this year! just vibing making a ribbon garland + dried citrus decor + a select number of little treats and cozy dishes. keeping it simple, intentional and warm. and a reminder that you don’t NEEEEEED to make an elaborate cookie box this season - I mean look how cutesy and chic biscotti can look in a glass jar with a ribbon! and if you do make a cookie box lemme get one. or at least share a photo in the group chat!

even though I shared on IG stories that I think cookie boxes are lowkey not ideal - I feel like a lot of textures and flavors blend into one and each cookie simply doesn’t get it’s own spotlight and prime freshness, I wouldn’t say shit if someone ever gifted me one. I know how much goes into making those!! but if you have your system down pat for separation and all that, I applaud you.

anywhoooooooos, let’s get into some recipes!

short rib ragu pappardelle

welcome to the sunday stack! I hope you subscribe & stick around <3 paid tiers unlock all of my recipes + content. either way, I’m happy to see you here and appreciate your support!

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3 lbs bone-in short ribs

1 large onion

2 medium carrots

3 small celery ribs

1 whole head garlic, tip cut off to expose all of the cloves

2 tbsp tomato paste

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 large sprig rosemary

1 parmesan rind

2 bay leaves

½ bottle red wine

28 oz can crushed san marzano tomatoes

2 cups chicken or beef broth

2 tsp fish sauce

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp lemon juice

6 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed

salt + black pepper to taste

to serve:

2 lbs pappardelle to serve

freshly grated parm

2-3 cups reserved pasta water

for the meat: pat each piece dry and season with salt and pepper. in a large dutch oven or pot, add a tiny bit of oil and once hot, sear the meat until deeply browned on all sides. do this in two rounds if needed depending on pot size, a 6qt dutch oven should only require one go :) using tongs, transfer to a plate and set aside.

cut the carrots and celery into large chunks and add them to a food processor. blitz until very fine and evenly chopped. transfer to a plate and repeat with the onion. be sure not to turn the onion into a puree.

remove the meat from the pot and add the onions and vegetables, scraping up any browned bites. cook 5-7 minutes until the moisture cooks off. season with salt and pepper. add the halved garlic head, cut-side down and let it caramelize slightly. add 2 tbsp tomato paste and cook 2-3 minutes until it darkens. add the red wine, scraping up any bits and let it reduce by ½ (5-10 minutes)

add the crushed tomatoes and broth, mixing to incorporate. nestle the short ribs in and then add the thyme, rosemary, bay leaves and parmesan rind

cover and braise at 300 F for 3-3.5 hours until fully shreddable and tender.

once ready, remove the meat and garlic head from the sauce and shred with forks, removing any tough connective tissue or large pieces of fat. discard them along with the thyme stems, bay leaves, rosemary and parm rind.

squeeze the garlic cloves from their skins into the sauce (discard skins). if you like a silkier and smooth sauce, use an immersion blender to blitz the sauce before adding the meat back in.

add the meat back in to the sauce along with the fish sauce and sugar. taste for salt and pepper. simmer uncovered for 5-10 minutes to thicken. add the lemon juice.

to turn into a pasta: cook 2 lbs of pasta in heavily salted water, 2 minutes shy of al dente. it should have a decent bite. reserve about 2.5-3 cups of the pasta water. transfer the pasta directly into the ragu and cook over medium heat, stirring in a cup of pasta water at a time, tossing until glossy. throw in the cubed butter and continue to vigorously toss the pasta until emulsified and gorgeeeeouussssss

serve with lots of grated parm on top, a drizzle of olive oil and freshly cracked black pepper

some notes!

serving size

this ragu makes enough sauce for about 2 lbs of pasta. 3-4 oz pasta is typically recommended per person. do with that what you will, you know yourself and your friends.

it may seem like a lot but if you’re already doing all the work and spending all the time - may as well make a couple pounds of it :)

the recipe below uses all the ragu and is enough to serve about 8-12 people, 8 people for a main meal and 12 for a smaller serving. you can easily halve the entire recipe to make a perfect 1 time serving for ~6 person serving

leftovers

you don’t need to use all the ragu for pasta, you can also just enjoy the short ribs over mashed potatoes or even make a bangin lasagna with it

make ahead

this is amazing to make ahead, matter of fact next day ragu is even better after all the flavors had a chance to settle and mingle. you can easily make this the day before, let it cool and pop the entire pot in the fridge. the next day, remove the pot, add a splash of broth and heat over low - or pop it in the oven at 350 F, closed, until hot.

do NOT mix all the pasta with the ragu ahead of time - the pasta really breaks down and softens in the fridge and it’s a real shame to have mushy pasta with such a delightful ragu.

substitutions

I made this recipe using boneless brisket because the butcher was out of short rib and it worked out FABULOUSLY. honestly a great option. just have them cut the pieces into large blocks for easier browning. you can use 2.5 lbs of boneless brisket or boneless short rib if not using bone-in. if the short ribs you’re buying have particularly large bones, use 3.5 lbs bone-in. mine were very small so it depends!

if you would like to omit the wine just use 1.5 cups beef broth + 1.5 tbsp balsamic vinegar in place! simmer for a few minutes, no need to reduce by half.