Beef Short Ribs with Cippoline Onions and Mushrooms

While at the butcher I saw these beautiful short ribs and had to get them.  Then I had to figure out what to do with them.  I had a bag of left over cippoline onions and decided a bourguignon style recipe was my best bet.  There are a ton of different ways to make this, some marinated some with items in bundles.  I did my best to simplify this so that it was tasty but still pretty easy.

Ingredients:

2 large, boneless short ribs (half lb per person, more if smaller)

4 pieces of bacon, diced

2 large onion, cut into half moons

About 20 baby carrots

2 cloves of garlic, whole

2 tbsp of tomato paste

4 sprigs of fresh parsley

2/3 of a bottle of red wine

4 cups of beef broth

4 sprigs of fresh parsley

1 bay leaf 

About 20 cippoline onions, peeled and cut in half

8 oz of cremini mushrooms, washed, bottoms trimmed and cut in half or quarters

3 tbsp of butter

3 tbsp of flour

Salt and pepper

In a large dutch oven, cook diced bacon over medium heat until just crisp.  Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel to drain.  Turn the heat up to medium high.  Season the short ribs with salt and pepper and sear in the same pan using the bacon fat.  Be sure to sear all sides including the ends until well browned, about 5 minutes per side.  Put the meat to the side on a plate, turn the heat back down to medium and add the onions and garlic cloves.  Allow the vegetables to cook until just softened, about 5 minutes.  Add in the tomato paste and stir for about 2 minutes.  Pour in the wine and stir to combine.  Add the beef broth, season with salt and pepper and then place the meat back into the pot.  Add the carrots around the sides of the meat.  Add in the bacon, bay leaf and parsley.  Cover with the top slightly ajar.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.  Simmer for an hour and a half.  Put the pot, uncovered, into a preheated 400 oven for a final half hour of cooking.  While the pot is in the oven, melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat.  Add in the cippoline onions and allow them to lightly caramelize, about 8 minutes.  Add in the cremini mushrooms and cook until they are just beginning to give off their liquid.  When the pot is ready to come out of the oven, stir the flour into the onion and mushroom mixture and stir for 2-3 minutes to make a roux.  

To serve, take the pot out of the oven.  Remove the meat to a plate.  Strain all of the vegetables and bacon out of the sauce.  Add in the onion and mushroom mixture and bring to a boil then simmer until the sauce has thickened.  Add the meat back in and coat with the sauce.  Serve the carrots on the side and the meat and sauce heaped over some mashed potatoes.