Hello and welcome back to another edition of “What’s Cooking in Keri’s California Kitchen Tonight?” So glad you’re here!
We are experiencing a remarkably cool end-of-summer season. A cool front came down our way from the Gulf of Alaska and our daytime highs have plunged from the low ’90’s to the low ’70’s and upper ’60’s. The sky is dotted with white cotton candy clouds that float by under the care of a gentle, cool breeze. It’s gorgeous! The air is crisp and clean and as the days shorten, the shadows get longer earlier, and the fall season is all around us.
Everywhere you look, there’s pumpkin-spice flavored this or that. Having lived through the flavored coffee craze of the 1980’s, I really can’t get behind the pumpkin-pie-spiced coffee drinks (although I’m told they’re delicious), but in the fall, my tastes do lean in to warmer, cozier meals that are hearty and satisfyingly filling–think soups, stews and long-braised meats that are so tender they melt off the bone; meals with a long cook time that fill the house with tantalizing, mouth-watering aromas of the meal to come.
Today, I’m featuring one of those meals: braised short ribs and polenta:
Let’s get started–here’s what you’ll need:
short ribs–get the short, stout ones that have lots of well-marbled meat on them
onion
leeks
fresh fennel
carrots
celery
garlic
thyme
tomato paste
all-purpose flour
red wine
beef broth
salt, pepper
polenta
butter
parmesan cheese
chicken broth
Serve with red cabbage, as pictured, or a crisp, green salad and a beautiful zinfandel or merlot. Maple-glazed Brussels sprouts would also be delicious with this meal!
Tune in again soon for another edition of “What’s Cooking in Keri’s California Kitchen!”
Until then,
Peace, love and good food,
Keri
