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1
The morning of the day you're cooking the ribs (or the night before), rub them generously with salt and pepper and the Tbs. of thyme. Wrap them up and refrigerate them all day (or even overnight) until ready to cook.
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2
Preheat your oven to 325F. In a large Dutch oven heat about 2 Tbs. of butter over medium-high heat, until foaming. Brown the ribs on all sides, working in batches so they aren't crowded while browning. Transfer the browned ribs to a plate and set aside.
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3
Turn the heat down a bit, add another chunk of butter, and stir in the chopped vegetables (including the onion and garlic,) thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thoroughly browned. Add the red wine, scrape all the browned bits from the bottom into the wine, bring to a boil and reduce the liquid by half. Then stir in the chicken stock and heat to boiling.
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4
Nestle the short ribs back into the pan, standing them on their sides, and surrounding them with the liquid and vegetables, but not fully covering them. Pour in any of the meat juices that accumulated on the plate as well. Place a moist sheet of parchment directly onto the top of the meat. Put the cover of the Dutch oven on and put it into the oven to braise for 3 hours.
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5
Remove the pot from the oven, uncover (remove and throw away the parchment paper), and transfer the short ribs to a baking sheet. Turn the oven up to 425F and stick the ribs in for 10 minutes (or a little less) until the are lightly browned on the outsides.
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6
In the meantime, skim the fat off the top of the broth in the Dutch oven. Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs. Bring the juices to a boil, then simmer until thickened slightly. Return the browned ribs to the sauce. (I know a lot of recipes have you strain the vegetables out, but for some reason I really like having the soft vegetables in my sauce, so I leave them.)
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7
At this point you can cool and refrigerate it until the next day, then gently rewarm it and serve. Or serve it right away, accompanied by the Gorgonzola pudding and your choice of greens. Garnish with a bit of chopped parsley, if you'd like.
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8
Preheat your oven to 350F (you can also use a 325F oven, if you're baking this at the same time as the ribs, and just increase the baking time). Whisk together all the ingredients except for the black pepper (it will be lumpy).
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9
Butter a small baking dish (9 inch) and pour the pudding mixture into it. Sprinkle the top with freshly ground black pepper. Cover the baking dish with foil, place it in a larger baking dish and put it into the oven. Add hot water to the larger baking dish until it comes 1/2 or 3/4 of the way up the sides of the dish with the pudding (this is the only way I've figured out of making a water bath without me spilling all over as I try to put it into the oven. Maybe you're more coordinated than me, though.) Bake until the pudding is set, about an hour (longer if you're using the lower baking temp.). Serve warm.
