Enjoy a bite of festive cheer in the form of pics from our annual cookie swap. (Who can blame us for favoring house cookbooks Cookie Swap, Mad Hungry, The Crabby Cook Cookbook, The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free, and Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunch Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies?)

It all looks very orderly and civilized. But mere moments after documentation, the subjects of these photographs were gobbled up by a gaggle of hungry bookmaking elves. . . . Happy holidays!

Based on the tenets that men eat more, with gusto and at any hour of day or night, Lucinda Scala Quinn’s Mad Hungry offers the perfect response to “I’m starving! What’s there for breakfast/lunch/dinner?” Liberating eaters from processed and artificially enhanced foods, this collection of recipes emphasizes cooking fresh and satisfying food that can be enjoyed by all. So dig into Sour Cream Waffles, Savory Chicken Pocket Pies, Chinese Celery Salad, Seafood Paella, and German Apple Cake. This cookbook guarantees no one will leave the table hungry.

Luscious Oven-Braised Short Ribs

Most recipes for short ribs tell you to brown the meat on the stove top before adding the braising liquid and cooking it. This recipe doesn’t, eliminating the mess, time and attention that this step requires. The ribs do their own work in the oven while you putter around doing something else. Add the potatoes in the last forty-five minutes, or omit them and serve the ribs with noodles, rice or polenta if you prefer. The meat in its sauce turns out luscious.

Ingredients:

1 onion, finely sliced
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1 leek, cleaned and finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
4 sprigs fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup red wine
½ cup soy sauce or tamari
1 tablespoon sugar
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3½ pounds short ribs
2 to 3 Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut in quarters (optional)

1. Mix all ingredients except the meat and potatoes in a 9 x 15-in. roasting pan. Add the ribs and rub all over with the marinade. The meat should fit comfortably in a single layer in the pan. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for 6 hours or up to overnight.  Occasionally turn the meat over in the marinade. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes prior to cooking.

2. Preheat the oven too 400ºF. Braise the short ribs for 2 ½ to 3 hours, reducing the heat to 350ºF after an hour. Turn the ribs over. Add the potatoes in the last 40 minutes of cooking. Add water to the pan if too much liquid evaporates. You want to end up with glistening ribs in a reduced glaze.