Christmas Pasta
“We like it with ‘riggies’ (rigatoni) but I love this with pici, bucatini or pappardellle as well.”
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- For the Short Rib Ragu:
- 1 pound hot or sweet sausage (homemade or store-bought), removed from casing
- 6 meaty short ribs about 4 inches long
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
- 2 small ribs celery with leafy tops, chopped
- 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 large shallots, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 large bay leaf
- A few juniper berries, optional
- 3 cups Barolo wine
- 6 cups veal or beef stock
- 1 28- or 32-ounce can San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand
- Herb bundle of a few stems of parsley, 1 stem rosemary and a few stems of sage, tied with string
- For the Pasta: 1 1/2 to 2 pounds dry pasta of choice
- A few handfuls grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (nutty, salty) or Pecorino Romano (tangy, salty), for serving
Bring meat to room temperature. Preheat oven to 325°F with a rack in the center of the oven.
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium to medium-high heat. Add 2 two rounds of the pan olive oil and brown sausage. Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve on a plate.
Cool meat in sauce to room temperature then transfer to refrigerator. Chill to separate fat then skim sauce. Remove meat from bones, discard connective tissue and shred meat with 2 forks; return to sauce.
Heat sauce over medium heat, partially covered. Cook pasta to al dente in boiling, salted water. Reserve 1 cup of pasta cooking water before draining pasta.
Toss pasta with reserved cooking water, a little good butter and a few ladles of the sauce then top with more meat ragu and cheese. Serve with a large romaine and baby kale salad with shaved fennel, toasted hazelnuts, pomegranate and balsamic vinaigrette alongside.