After a long day, I was shopping, and saw boneless short ribs on sale at Bianchini’s.  I did not want to get too involved, but figured I could compromise, and still make an excellent dinner. I have found that the Knorr Homestyle Stock concentrates are bearable – not as good as homemade by any stretch, but pretty good for how easy they are. So, I picked up three short ribs, weighing 1 1/2 lbs total; carrots, onion, and celery; some fresh time and bay leaves (hate paying for bay leaves, but once in a while…); the work:

I salted and peppered the ribs, and let them rest while I ‘made’ the cheater stock; browned the ribs while I diced two onions; removed the ribs, softened the onions in the same Dutch oven (ten minutes); added some minced garlic; de-glazed with a glass of red wine; added three (small) carrots, chopped; two celery stalks, chopped; and returned the meat; added enough stock to almost cover the ribs; tossed in a grab of fresh thyme and two fresh bay leaves; brought to a boil and simmered for two hours. At the same time, I was dealing with e-mails, and generally still working.

I will now make some pasta; while that cooks, I will remove the ribs and cook the sauce down a bit, which I will pour over the meat/pasta; I also have a two artichokes – so, with a limited amount of effort, and very little expense, we have a fantastic meal.