In a braise of glory.

Oh, fall, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

1. Hot apple cider
2. Football season (or at least snuggling up with those parked on the couch)
3. Crisp mornings
4. Cozy wool jackets
5. Apple picking
6. Boots
7. "Fall Back" (woohoo!)
8. Foliage
9. Our friends' annual lakehouse retreat (yes, I realize this is not the first time I've written an ode to fall in the form of a list)
10. Return of the braise

If you haven't all read Cooked by Michael Pollan, I highly recommend it. Not only is it a delicious read, but it's extremely informative and does a great job distilling cooking methods down to the four elements: fire (barbecuing), water (braising), air (baking), earth (fermenting/pickling/brewing). The chapter on braises in particular was reassuring and demystifying: sauteed aromatics + browned meat + simmering liquid. How hard could that be?

There's something particularly satisfying about taking all day to chop, lovingly brown and impatiently peek into a burbling pot of deliciousness while your aforementioned football-watching-couch-snuggler is within arm's reach. Every time you open the lid a magical steam bursts forth and the pot's contents have transformed yet again.

A braise is always a great way to use up fridge vegetables, take advantage of an inexpensive cut of meat, and at the very least make neighboring pets curious.

Braises always get better with age and are a wonderful excuse to eat pasta.

Speaking of excuses, braises always warrant spending unnecessary amounts of money on gorgeously hued, enameled cast iron (you saved all that money on a reasonable cut of meat!).

My goal is to make a new braise every time the Pats play at home. Here's the latest (we were fabulous and served it over gnocchi):

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Spicy Pork Ragu

From inpatskitchen.com via Food52

3 to 4 lb pork shoulder roast (ideally bone-in)

Salt, pepper and olive oil to season the roast

3 T olive oil

2 c diced onions

1/2 c diced green bell pepper

10 large brown mushrooms, sliced

4 cloves minced garlic

1/2 t crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 t dried basil

1/2 t dried oregano

1 t ground fennel seed

1/2 t black pepper

1/2 t salt

28 oz tomato puree

14 to 15 oz can of whole plum tomatoes, chopped

Preheat the oven to 425*F. Season the roast generously with salt, pepper and olive oil; roast for 30 min. until brown.

While the pork is roasting saute the onions, green pepper, mushrooms and garlic in olive oil in a Dutch oven until the vegetables just begin to soften. Stir in the basil, oregano, red pepper flakes, ground fennel, salt and pepper and saute a minute more. Add tomatoes and tomato puree.

Snuggle the roasted pork down into the sauce, cover and roast in the oven at 350*F for about 2 hr. After 2 hr., remove the roast from the Dutch oven and pull the meat off the bones, shredding as you go - this is key. Return the meat to the pot, cover and continue to roast at 325*F for 1-1 1/2 hours.

Serve over excused pasta and bask in deliciousness.