Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Cook bacon in 1 Tbsp hot oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon, leaving drippings in pot.
2. Cook beef, in 3 batches, in hot drippings over medium-high heat until beef is browned on all sides; set aside.
3. Add carrot and sliced onion to pot; cook, stirring ocasionally, until browned. Remove vegetables from pot; drain and discard drippings. Return beef, bacon, and vegetables to pot and season with salt and pepper, if desired.
4. Sprinkle flour over mixture; toss to coat. Place pot in oven for 4 minutes; stir. Return to oven and bake 4 minutes longer. Remove from oven and reduce heat to 325°F. .
5. Add wine and 3 cups stock to beef mixture. Add tomato paste, garlic, thyme leaves, and 1 bay leaf. Bring to simmer. Cover, and place pot in lower third of oven. Bake 2½ to 3 hours or until beef is fork tender.
6. Meanwhile, melt 1½ Tbsp butter with 1½ Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add pearl onions, and cook 10 minutes, turning skillet to brown onions on all sides. Add ½ cup beef stock. Place 4 sprigs parsley, 2 sprigs thyme, and 1 bay leaf in a piece of cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine. Add herb bouquet to skillet. Cover, and simmer 40 to 50 minutes or until onions are tender and liquid has evaporated; set aside.
7. Melt 2 Tbsp butter with 1 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, and cook until mushrooms are browned.
8. When beef is tender, pour mixture into a seive set over a saucepan. Wipe out Dutch oven, and return beef mixture to pot. Add cooked onions and mushrooms to beef mixture.
9. Skim fat off sauce in saucepan. Bring sauce to a simmer, and skim off any additional fat as it rises. There should be about 2½ cups of sauce thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. If sauce is too thin, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until thickened. If too thick, add some additional broth to sauce. Pour sauce over beef mixture in pot; cover, and simmer 4 to 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
10. Cook pasta according to package directions; toss with 3 Tbsp butter until melted. Serve beef mixture with pasta.