It was a slightly-on-the-cool-side, rainy, spring day.
Gray skies.
Damp.
Drizzle.
Perfect day for this type of meal-
hearty and earthy.
Mr. Hawthorne crock-potted
boneless beef short ribs
along with some cabernet sauvignon
and beef broth.
He later added peeled and sliced rutabaga
and whole, unpeeled carrots.
The wine was divine.
Wait a minute.
Did I just say boneless ... ribs?
I did say boneless ribs.
What does that mean?
What is a boneless rib?
The reason Mr. Hawthorne bought this cut
was because of the marbling.
Plus, it was on sale.
But he really liked the marbling.
He considered this extraordinary marbling.
He added freshly ground salt and pepper.
Heat up a skillet.
Medium to high.
Add in butter and oil.
Equal amounts.
The butter is for flavor.
The oil is to raise the smoke point,
so the butter doesn't burn at the higher heat.
When you get the first wisps of smoke,
add in the "boneless ribs."
Sear on one side for 2-3 minutes.
Turn over and sear.
Sear the ends.
Mr. Hawthorne poured 1/2 cup of cabernet sauvignon
and mixed in 1 teaspoon beef base.
He used this mixture - the wine and beef base-
to deglaze the pan.
Heat and scrape.
It always helps to add in some buttah.
Into the cool crock pot,
Mr. Hawthorne put hot "boneless ribs."
(And that's some Sandy-speak
if I ever heard it.)
According to Aunt Sandy,
my world should have just imploded
and I should have been sucked into a black hole.
But nothing happened.
After a few hours,
he tossed in a few shakes of Wondra flour and ...
some peeled, sliced rutabaga
and whole carrots.
Crock pot some more.
Gimme a whoot,
a hip check,
and a sizzlin' hot finger.
This was beyond excellent.
The meat melted before my fork ever touched it.
It was magical.
The rutabaga rocked.
A perfect crisp-tender.
Earthy flavor.
Comforting.
Warm.
Oh you carrot, you.
Tender.
Rooty.
Rustic.
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