I have been home for almost a week. It has been great to be home again, jiggety-jig!

I have caught up with friends, got some housework done, did a bit of yard work, and still feel like I am behind the eight ball!

I figure I will post at least once a week now, but maybe more often. It all depends on what I have going on.

I have done some cooking but haven’t always remembered to take pictures. So, here are a few things I have done in the past week.

I made Ragú alla Bolognese, a recipe I made with Francesca in Florence, to share with a friend who recently lost their daughter. Courtney has never been a fan of ‘spaghetti’ sauce, but thought this was awesome.

I am not sure if it was because I made it with the ‘only’ type of puree that Francesca recommended or because he has ‘grown up!’

The sauce is not available at just any grocery store but I found it at PFI (Big John’s.) I had gone along with Marilee to be her carpool ‘dummy’ last week and we came back across I-90 and stopped at PFI. They had the Mutti tomato puree that Francesca used.

Ragu alla Bolgonese with Papparadelle

On Sunday I had a few friends over for a fish fry. I have so much fish, both salmon and white fish, left from last year’s trip to Alaska that I need to start using more. It was a fun afternoon with good friends and I hope to do more of them soon

I didn’t take pictures of the fish fry but will post the awesome beer batter recipe from my friend, Judy Bryant.

Beer Batter Recipe for Fish or Other Seafood or Whatever!

1 Egg
1/2 Cup Flour
1 T Cornstarch
1/2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Cup Beer
About 1 lb Fish

Beat egg well. Add flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder, and beer. Mix well to a smooth batter. Cut fish into small portions, wash and pat dry, place between paper towels.

Add fish to batter. Deep fry at 375 degrees for 3-5 minutes.

This is a light and easy batter for fish that fries well and doesn’t come out greasy if you make sure your oil is hot.

On Monday I worked in the yard a while and also washed my filthy car. I can’t believe how banged up the car is even though I had work done on it in the past 2 years. Those areas that were fixed, the paint is peeling away and cracking even though I had no problem for the first 14 years!

Being back in Costco land, I bought some beef short ribs the other day. I cooked them last night using a similar recipe to the one for osso buco.

I browned the meat well on all sides. Added chopped onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. After sautéing the vegetables for a while, I added a cup of red wine. I cooked that down then added the ribs back in along with a pint and a half of home-canned tomatoes and more wine. Put the lid on and put it in the 350 degree oven for about 3 hours.

Braised Short Ribs with Onion, Celery, Carrots and Tomatoes

I also made Risotto alla Milanese (Risotto with Saffron.)

8 oz. Risotto Rice
1 small onion, chopped
1 liter broth, heated with 1 package saffron (I used 2 good sized pinches)
1/2 Cup White wine
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

Sauté onion in butter until soft but not brown. Add rice and stir for several minutes. Add wine and cook until evaporated. Add broth a little at a time and stir constantly. Continue until broth is gone and rice is creamy and smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. When rice is ‘al dente’ stir in another pat of butter and the parmesan cheese.

Risotto alla Milanese

For a vegetable, I sautéed broccolini with shallots and red paper flakes in olive oil.

Broccolini with Shallots and Red Pepper Flakes

The short ribs were topped with chopped parsley and grated lemon zest which add just the right amount of zing! And a little grated parmesan on the rice added a little more richness. It was quite a good dinner and Courtney was most appreciative!

Braised Beef Ribs with Risotto alla Milanese and Broccolini