"Big" Dinner #1, part 1--Milanese Braised Beef

Occasionally, I feel like making a "big" dinner--well, big for me, anyway.  Most of the time I cook a main dish and a simple side or salad; this time, I made a pricey main dish and two nice sides.  Here is my lovely table, full of wonderful food:

And my plate, looking great as well:

First, I will post about the main dish, which is Milanese braised beef.  This recipe is from a book I have called "Cooking With Wine" by Anne Willam.  Most of the recipes are quite involved and ask for a list of ingredients that can get costly in a hurry (thus why I said "pricey" main dish for this one). So far, the couple of recipes I've managed to try from it have been excellent, with this one being no exception.  The side dishes I made are not from it, and will be posted in the next two posts.

Ingredients:

1/4 lb. pancetta, cut into small pieces

2.5 to 3 lb. top round/London broil (long, rectangular cut)

2 to 3 garlic cloves, cut in slivers

3 T. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

salt and pepper

1 T. oil or lard (I used canola oil)

1 T. butter

1 onion, chopped (I used a medium sized yellow onion)

1 bottle Italian red wine (I used a Piemonte Barbera)

1 bay leaf

2 to 3 sprigs fresh basil

2 to 3 sprigs fresh marjoram

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°F.  With the point of a small knife, poke holes in the beef and push 2 pieces of pancetta and a sliver of garlic into each.

2. Roll and tie the meat into a cylinder (pancetta and garlic inside roll).

4. Mix the flour, cloves, cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. pepper on a plate.

5. Roll the meat in the flour mixture, being sure to coat well all over (pat on with hands if needed).  Heat the oil (or lard) and butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat, add the meat, and brown very thoroughly on all sides (around 15 minutes).

6. Add the onion to the pan (with the meat) and brown it as well, around 3 to 5 minutes.

7. Pour in the wine, add the bay leaf, basil, and marjoram to the pan.  Cover and bring to a boil.

8. Transfer to oven and braise for 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours--turn beef from time to time; meat should be tender enough to cut without using a knife (mine was 2.85 lbs, went for just over 3 1/2 hours).

9. Remove beef from pan and place on a platter, cover with foil to keep warm.  Strain remaining sauce and return to pan.  Boil sauce for 10-15 minutes to reduce; serve with meat and enjoy!