Love People and Cook Them Tasty Food

The past few months here at Utterly Engaged, we’ve been brainstorming ideas on how to bring more love to our blog. So we decided to share with you something that’s been inspiring us lately, including ideas and inspirations that you’d never consider for your wedding day or maybe even for your life after you say “I do”. It’s always been our desire to create a space that will inspire you to love a little more, live a more intentional life, and create more moments of togetherness. Isn’t that what saying “I do” really is about? So today we’re taking a leap and hope that you’ll join us!

Today we’re starting with our first new column, Tasting with Pace. Every Thursday, before the weekend hits, we thought it would be fun to share with you our love of food. No more dry chicken or overcooked beef for wedding receptions. No more excuses to not know what or how to cook when you first move into your newlywed home. We’re here to help you discover food that’s in season and that’s so good for the soul. Say hello to Pace!

Pace Webb is the Chef and Owner of Taste of Pace (a MATCH MADE member) that is a full service  catering company based in Los Angeles specializing in Western European Cuisine with international elements utilizing seasonal and local ingredients. Taste of Pace, is renowned for their monthly underground, invite-only Supper Club as well as being tapped to cater high-end celebrity and charity events.

Pace’s journey to start her own lifestyle food brand and catering company started at the age of 17 when she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She took this experience as an indication that she needed to reevaluate what she put in her body. Studying alternative nutrition gave Pace the foundation and love for the impact clean food has on the body. After studying abroad in Rome, she became classically trained in Western European Cuisine. Now, cancer-free with a fresh lease on life and a passion for traveling, living in over seven cities around the globe, Pace created her company to focus on wellness, new creative food combinations and most importantly, rich joie de vivre! Pace’s sparkle, and performance-like art for feeding people comes naturally as a fourth-generation entertainer. Her unique view on food and general panache for incredible flavor pairings has caught the eye of major brands such as Yahoo, Jell-O and Acura, hiring her to create recipes and host web series. She pens her own blog, and contributes to various food and lifestyle magazines, including Utterly Engaged and Chalkboard Magazine. Hosting weekly cooking classes in her downtown loft/kitchen allows Pace to give back to her community, and inspire a new generation with healthy, simple and fresh local ingredients. Pace currently lives the fabulous life in the downtown Los Angeles Arts District with her dog, Willie Nelson.

For our first post for this column we’re starting with braised meat. Can we get an amen, puh-lease!?

“I like to consider myself the braised meat queen. As a matter of fact Sharon from Culture Brain has promised me a sash with said title. I think it’s the great satisfaction of taking a tough cut of meat and making into the most succulent tender dish you’ve ever had. While short ribs are super popular, we make ours with a slightly different twist. ” – Chef Pace

Miso Sapporo short ribs topped with pickled ginger and micro shiso
serves 12

INGREDIENTS
6 lbs. short ribs
32 oz. sapporo beer
32 oz. veal stock
2 oz. miso
garnish: micro shiso
garnish: pickled ginger
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
salt and pepper to taste

METHOD
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Liberally season the meat with salt and pepper. Heat a skillet on high. When pan is hot enough add the vegetable oil and brown meat on all sides. Transfer to a deep oven-safe dish and set aside. Remove meat and deglaze pan with sapporo. Reduce sapporo by 1/3. Whisk in miso. Add reduced sapporo and veal stock to dish with meat. Cover the dish with a tight lid or a layer of plastic wrap followed by aluminum foil. Braise in oven for about 6 hours or until fork tender. Remove from oven and cool. Press gently between 2 sheet trays and wrap securely with plastic wrap. Allow to cool for about 8 hours. Remove from refrigeration and cut into neat portions. Skim fat off of braise liquid. Portion about 6 oz and reduce until sauce consistency. Re-heat portioned ribs with braise liquid. Serve ribs with sauce and garnish with micro shiso and pickled ginger.

So there you have it! Our first of many many more delicious recipes to come to inspire you to cook more and feed the people you love : )

CREDITS { Thank you to Joel of Studio EMP for capturing these savory dishes and recipes created by Taste of Pace. }