I’ve been meaning to post this for a while now, but haven’t been able to find the time to write it. Now this isn’t exactly the cheapest sandwich out there ( close to 30 bucks for all the ingredients!), but it’s darn worth it if you ask me! Plus, most of the work is done by the trusty ol’ slow cooker, so it’s an easy dinner.

This special sammich is tender, red wine brazed chuck short ribs shredded then topped with caramelized onions and cheddar cheese on your favorite baguette and pressed on a panini press (as I call my George Foreman grill).

*Please ignore the side dish! This was a failed attempt at oven fried green tomatoes! I will be posting a successful recipe for green tomatoes as soon as I get around to it!   

For the short ribs:

• 2 Pounds Bone-In Chuck Short Ribs
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, roughly chopped
• a few sprigs fresh thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• a couple cloves of garlic
• 1 cup red wine
• Enough beef stock to almost cover the short ribs and veggies in the crock pot, I’d buy the 32 oz size just to be safe!
• 4 tbsp butter, divided

In a skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat, and sear short ribs about 2 minutes on all sides, and remove from skillet. Add remaining butter to the skillet and add veggies, cook until slightly softened, scraping browned bits of meat from the skillet and add to the bottom of the slow cooker. Put short ribs on top of veggies, add seasonings, garlic, wine, and pour the stock over the short ribs until they’re almost covered. Cook in the slow cooker for at least eight hours.

Caramelized onions:

• 2 large sweet onions, sliced
• 1/2 a stick of butter
• 1 tsp salt
• a few splashes of balsamic vinegar

Melt the butter in a skillet. Add onions and salt and cook and stir for 30 minutes until onions are nice and caramelized. Add a few drops of balsamic to the onions and remove from heat.

To put it all together:

Remove short ribs from crockpot and discard bones (or save as a tasty treat for your pup!).  Shred short ribs and set aside.

Take a loaf of French bread or your favorite baguette and slice it in half. Smear the bread with some horseradish sauce or dijon mustard ( or your favorite sandwich spread ) top one side with the shredded beef, then caramelized onions, and sliced cheddar cheese.

Preheat a panini press or your George Foreman grill. Place a piece of foil on the bottom of the grill then put a piece over the sandwich. Press the sandwich and cook until cheese is melted and bread is nicely toasted.

Serve with chips or fries and an ice cold beer!