Ale-Braised Short Ribs plus an idea for the leftovers

A great recipe that we've now made twice from William-Sonoma's Slow Cooker cookbook:

Ingredients:

• 4 to 5 lb. bone-in beef short ribs, cut into 3-inch pieces
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 2 yellow onions, cut in half lengthwise, then thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 butternut squash, about 2 lb. total, peeled and cut into bit sized chunks
• 1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced plum (San Marzano) tomatoes, with juice (or buy the big can and use the other half for the leftovers)
• 1 bottle (12 fl. oz.) ale or dark beer (I've used a chocolate stout and breakfast stout before)
• 3 Tbs. all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup water

Directions:

Brown the short ribs
Preheat a broiler. Generously season the ribs on all sides with salt and pepper. Working in batches if necessary, arrange the ribs on a broiler pan and place under the broiler. Broil the ribs, turning once, until well browned, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the ribs to a slow cooker.
Cook the short ribs
Scatter the onions and garlic over the ribs. Add the squash. Pour in the tomatoes with their juice along with the ale. Cover and cook until the meat is separating from the bones and the squash is tender, about 5 to 6 hours on high or 7 to 8 hours on low.
Thicken the sauce
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the ribs and squash to a shallow bowl or platter and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Skim the excess fat off the sauce. Put the slow cooker on the high-heat setting (if your slow cooker insert can go on the stove I would do that instead, the sauce will thicken faster). In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and water. Whisk the flour mixture into the sauce and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon the sauce over the ribs and squash and serve immediately.

Now for the leftovers.

Let’s say you made Short Ribs recently, browning them and braising them with a copious amount of red wine or beer and aromatic vegetables. You have, of course, saved not just the uneaten meaty bits, but the rich liquid and tender vegetables as well.

So you shred the meat off of the bones, if there is any left on them (tossing the bones into the freezer for future stock-making if you do that) and toss it into a pan with the leftover braising liquid and vegetables. You add half of a big can of San Marzano tomatoes (squished up), with the juice, and a splash of olive oil. And when everything is warm and soft, you pass about 3/4 of it through a food mill (I go with the medium disk). You put it all back in the pan, taste it, adjust the seasoning, add a palmful of fresh herbs (thyme and savory leaves in this case or whatever you have on hand) and let it continue to cook and reduce while you make your favorite kind of pasta. We have used Barilotti.

Then take your pasta (cooked to your liking) and add it to the pot of sauce, ladling in a bit of the starchy pasta water for good measure. Toss to coat. Turn off the heat. Add a generous amount of freshly grated cheese. No green cans allowed. Add another sprinkle of fresh herbs if you’re feeling sassy.

Plate up some for your sweetheart, and then for yourself. Sit, clink your glasses, sip, taste, smile. Leftovers do not have to be boring. Again this is just an idea we found on the internet that turned out to be one of the best Bolognese sauces that we've ever had. Enjoy!!