Slow Braised Beef Short Ribs with Raspberry-Blueberry Sauce and Gremolata

MMM.. these slow braised short ribs are melt-in-your-mouth tender and juicy, with a ton of flavor (read: fatty). I highly recommend using grass fed beef short ribs, and I just can't emphasize enough how much more delicious and flavorful grass fed beef is compared to regular beef. However, any kind of beef short ribs do have a high fat content, which is why I won't be making this dish regularly, only once in awhile. Don't say I didn't warn you - you might have to bust out your sweatpants!

The sauce that is paired with the short ribs was absolutely delicious. The original recipe called for 3/4 cups of red wine to be added to the braising liquid (later turned into sauce), but since I didn't want to drink any alcohol and I knew that only some of the alcohol would have cooked off had I included it, I substituted blueberries and raspberries instead. When pureed, the blueberries and raspberries produced about 1 cup of juice and gave the sauce a nice sweetness that balanced out the saltiness. Other options could have been red seedless grapes, cranberries, blackberries, etc, or their respective juices.

The only part about this dish I could have done without was the gremolata. This was my first time making and tasting gremolata, which is traditionally made with lemon or orange zest, garlic, and fresh parsley, and honestly, it was a bit too strong for my preference (partly because of the raw garlic - whew!).

Slow Braised Beef Short Ribs with Raspberry-Blueberry Sauce and Gremolata Adapted from Alice Waters' Chez Panisse Café Cookbook Ingredients: Beef short ribs • 3.5 pounds beef short ribs - cut 2" thick • Salt to taste • Freshly-ground black pepper to taste • 2 large yellow onions, roughly chopped • 2 tablespoons olive oil • 1 leek, white and pale green parts only, roughly chopped • 1 small to medium carrot, peeled, and roughly chopped • 5 cherry tomatoes, roughly chopped • 6 garlic cloves, smashed • 6 sprigs thyme • 6 sprigs parsley • 2 bay leaves • 1 pint raspberries • 1 pint blueberries • 4 cups beef stock Gremolata *¼ cup chopped parsley *Zest of ½ lemon, minced *1 large garlic clove, minced Directions: 1. For the ribs: Preheat oven to 475°F. Cut the ribs into squares, so that each piece includes a bone. Season the ribs with salt and pepper; be generous. Arrange ribs bone-side down in a roasting pan and roast until lightly browned. This should take about 20 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, put 2 tablespoons olive oil in large skillet and turn heat to medium-high. Add onions, and saute until onions are starting to soften, 6 to 7 minutes. Add leeks and carrot, and cook until slightly softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, garlic, thyme, parsley and bay leaves and saute 2 minutes more. 3. Spread vegetables into a roasting pan, and arrange ribs on top of vegetables, bone-side up. Puree blueberries and raspberries together in a blender. Add the puree and enough beef stock to barely cover ribs. Cover pan tightly with foil and place in oven. 4. When braise begins to simmer, after about 20 minutes, loosen foil and reduce heat to 350°F. 5. Turn ribs about once an hour. After 1½ to 2 hours, test meat with a fork; meat should be tender, nearly falling from bone. Raise heat to 450°F and return ribs to oven for a final browning. 6. After about 10 minutes, remove from oven. Pour off and strain braising juices into a large skillet, pressing down on the vegetables to extract all their juices. Discard vegetables. Allow liquid to rest for five minutes, then skim off grease from surface. Bring strained and skimmed liquid to a boil, and reduce to about half. Pour liquid back over ribs and reheat if serving immediately. (Or alternatively, refrigerate for a few hours or overnight and skim solidified grease off the surface. Then, reheat sauce, and serve next day with gremolata.) 7. For the gremolata: Just before serving, mix chopped parsley, fresh lemon zest and minced garlic and sprinkle over short ribs.