Pappardelle con Ragu alla Alto Adige

This is great recipe that shows the tremendous diversity of Italian cuisine. This is a rich short rib ragu in the style of Alto Adige(NE Italy, Austrian/Swiss Border). It may seem very non-Italian to most people, yet one thing you'll find that is truly unique about Italian cuisine is that the closer you get to the borders, the more the food changes.

TT = to taste

For pasta:
2 1/2 cups Rye Flour
1 cup AP Flour
5 Lg. Eggs, Room Temp
1T sea salt
2T whole milk

Method:
combine all ingredients for pasta together
knead for a few minutes, then wrap in plastic and set aside for half hour
unwrap dough and cut into 4 pieces
wrap pieces not being used so they don't get dried out
Using a manual pasta roller, start on largest setting - #1
knead pasta through machine ten times
then roll out 3 times on largest setting - #1
then drop down 2 settings to #3, and run through 3 times
then drop down 2 more to second thinnest setting - #5
run through #5 one time, use flour as needed when rolling through the pasta machine, but try not to add too much or dough will get dry
Cut pasta into strips 3/4"-1"X8" with fluted cutter
set on parchment lined sheet tray dusted with some flour
cover with another sheet of parchment until ready to use

For Ragu:
2 flanken Beef Short ribs
6 oz pancetta or speck cut into matchsticks
6 garlic cloves thinly sliced
2 onions, medium dice
1/2 can of whole peeled san marzano tomatoes with juices
1 bottle of beer (I like to use pale ale, but you can use whatever kind you like)
1 1/2 cups of veal stock
4 sprigs of thyme
2 sprigs of sage
1T caraway seeds
1 large carrot, peeled & med dice
1 large parsnip, peeled & med dice
TT salt
TT black pepper
Grated montasio cheese for garnish (substitute vecchio, parmigiano reggiano or grana padano)

Method:
in a dutch oven on med-low heat, add the pancetta and cook until crispy and fat has rendered
remove the pancetta from pan and leave the fat
season the short ribs all over with salt and pepper
turn heat up to med-high
add short ribs to pan and sear all over until nicely browned
once browned remove from pan and set aside
lower the heat to med-low
add the onions and saute for about 15-20 minutes until nice and browned
add the garlic and cook for an additional 5 minutes
add the beer, tomatoes, stock, pancetta, short ribs, herbs & caraway seeds to the pan
cover and bring to a boil
place in 250F oven and braise for 2 hours
remove from oven
remove short ribs and cut into medium dice
skim any fat that rendered on top of braising liquid
add the carrots and parsnips to liquid and simmer until tender about 40 minutes
add the short ribs back to pan and bring up to temperature
most of the liquid should have completely absorbed into the meat.
should be thick and hearty, not runny. If so continue to reduce uncovered until thicker

Finish the dish:
bring 6qts of water to a boil
once boiling, add 2T of sea salt
drop pasta into boiling water in batches
scoop a little of the ragu into a large non stick pan and heat over low
once all pasta begins to float remove from water and add to non stick pan with the ragu and toss together
repeat with remaining pasta until it is all cooked off adding more ragu as needed
add a little bit of pasta water to non stick as needed if ragu becomes too thick
transfer finished product to serving plates and garish with some grated cheese
serve immediately