Braised Beef Over Spiralized Sweet Potatoes

This is an easy throw-it-all-together kinda dish that simmers all afternoon and is ready for dinner. It's the perfect lazy weekend dinner. Or, in this case, a one-pot savior after an afternoon of pulling out all the carpet in our house. We are in the middle of swapping out carpets for hardwood floors. I can't wait till it's done!!

Jake and I spooned the sauce over spiralized sweet potatoes while I served it to the boys with regular pasta. "Thanks, Mommy! Real pasta!!" they hollered in unison. Apparently, they aren't fans of my spiralized veggies. More for us.

Ingredients 

Beef

• 1 T  olive oil
• 2 to 2-1/2 pounds beef, cubed (I used chuck...you can use really any cut of meat because it braises so long that it will be tender)
• 1 C onion, peeled and diced
• 6-8 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 C diced carrots
• 1 C diced celery
• 2 C broth (I used beef broth only, but you can swap in some wine or water, too)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 C thinly sliced basil
• 1/4 C chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 t red pepper flakes
• freshly ground salt, as needed
• freshly ground pepper, as needed

For Serving

• cooked pasta or pasta equivalent (I used spiralized sweet potatoes that I just barely blanched)
• parmesan for serving, optional

Procedure 

Beef
Heat the oil in a large, dutch oven. Add the beef into the pot. Sear on each side for  3 to 5 minutes - until a nice brown begins to appear. Add the onions and garlic to the pot. Let them cook until the onion is translucent and beginning to caramelize. Add in the carrots and celery. Cook for another 3 to 5 minutes.

Pour in the broth or combination of liquid that you're using. Stir in the bay leaves, thyme, basil, parsley, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Then, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover. Let the meat braise for 3 to 4 hours - longer is fine, if you need to. You can leave the beef in cubes or shred the meat a little bit.

Once the beef is tender. Remove the cover and turn up the heat to reduce the sauce to your desired thickness. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

For Serving

To serve, mix some of the ragu in with your pasta. Portion out your pasta into individual servings. Spoon more sauce over the top. Serve immediately. You can grate parmesan over the top, if you like; I didn't have any this afternoon, so I skipped it.