Osso Buco, at Least That Was the Plan???

Ok, how difficult do you think to find veal shank or beef shank to make this dish? On a Thursday evening in the south bay area, apparently, it can be a mission impossible task!!!

Tom and I planned to entertain his ex-boss, Linda and her husband at the beach home that Friday night. I figure if I selected something that can reheat well, I wouldn’t have to take half day off on Friday to cook. Yes, Linda has tons of children commitments such than a Friday would be better than a Saturday or Sunday. What is better than slow cook meat on a cold evening (ok, cold by CA standard)?

I went to Ralphs first, no luck. Then I tried Albertson, no luck. I asked the butchers at both places and they stared back at me like they never heard of the term “Osso Buco”. Then I said veal shank, they shake their head, I asked for beef shank, they continue to shake their head. By now, it is 6 pm, I am tired of driving around in the infamous rush hour traffic, and certainly in no mood of running to a third store since I am pretty confident they won’t have it too. Now, if I were in Irvine, I can just go to the Asian market. Yes, guarantee to have that in stock. But I am up north. No luck.

I looked around; the next best thing would be braised short ribs. Of course, none of it was on display; the butcher had to dig around in the back to see if it is even in stock. By then, I didn’t care how much it costs; just give me some, as it’s going to take another 2-3 hours to cook the ribs once I get them home!!! You guess it, who in their right mind would pay $4.99 per pound of short ribs? I claim to not in my right mind!!!

Knowing my hubby’s (in)capability of calculating time in the domestic environment, I asked him, “What time are you planning to come home tomorrow night?” He said he would leave work around 4:30pm. Our guests were to arrive at 6:30pm. With at least an hour drive on a typical day for him, and probably longer on a Friday night, that would mean “Joanna” will be doing all the prep work at home by herself. No way. I said, “I am leaving work at 3pm, and I expect you to be home by 4:30pm, not leaving work at 4:30pm. I will need your help to clean up the house and set the tables while I cook.”

He hurried up to call the maid. Yes, pick up the phone to call the maid to clean, and very disappointed when he found out the maid would not be available!!! I had to laugh out loud because he knows he would need to clean the place himself now!!!

Tom is pretty good about participating in “team work”, as long as it is clear instructions and details on what is expected of him. I think a few rounds of this would hopefully let him understand that “entertaining” at home is more than just cooking in the kitchen.

Anyway, everything turned out beautifully. He did a wonderful job in following direction and setting the table nicely, including personally hand polishing the silverwares and wine glasses. And I certainly needed him to do that as it took longer than I expected to prep the first course and desert.

The final menu are:

• Fresh baked bread with Dukka - This Egyptian dipping/dunking spices is delish! I wish I have gotten more when I was in OZ. But I guess I have to see if I can find a decent recipe to make my own blend. Basically, you dip the bread in olive oil, and then dunk it in dukka and eat it. Very aromatic.
• Lobster and Butter Lettuce Salad - I didn't have any white wine vinegar at the beach house, so lemon juice was used. I put in some pomelo, as it is in season now and added a touch of citrus freshness to the overall salad. This was soooooooooo yummy.
• Braised Short Ribs with Mashed Red Potatoes - I browned the ribs first, then the veggies, then poured in a whole bottle of red wine. I used a Grenache labeled "Bitch" (yes, I bought it because of its name, was planning to consume it last year when the girls were in town, but too much other consumable were around then...)
• Caramelized Nectar with Orange Almond Flourless Cake - I did not make this from scratch. It was high time to use this gourmet cake mix. I added the caramelized nectar on top. And Tom helped to whip the cream too!

Everyone enjoyed the dinner and conversation. Les was in love with the lobster salad while Linda decided to make short ribs herself the following week!