Steak & Mushroom Stew

I'm not sure how it happens, but Christie and I always manage to receive countless catalogs in the mail every month... only a couple of them are from places that we actually shop. I'm not very likely to buy an oriental rug or Costco quantities of party supplies through the mail, but one of the catalogs that I actually enjoy paging through is from Williams Sonoma... mostly because they include recipes to entice you into buying ridiculously expensive cooking gadgets.

Following on the theme of comfort food that I've been on lately, I came across this gem for a lovely beef stew and thought I'd give it a go. Williams Sonoma helpfully included it to showcase their $300 slow cooker that has a removable insert that is oven/stovetop safe, which is probably a great idea but instead of laying out that much money for a $8 cut of meat I picked up at Safeway I went with one of the dutch ovens I have laying around to brown the meat and cook the vegetables. Our guests seemed to really enjoy the meal, so I can only imagine how much better it would have been with the high priced accessory.

As a note, the photo you see below is from the second time that Christie and I enjoyed this meal. The first time we enjoyed it with some friends and I served it as recommended by the fine people at Williams Sonoma... with mashed potatoes. This seemed a little odd to me at first, but now I'm wondering why I've never had beef stew served this way before... trust me, it's definitely worth a try.

6 oz. thick cut bacon, diced
3 1/2 - 4 lbs. chuck roast, cut into 1 in. cubes
Salt and Pepper
2 small onions, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery stalks, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp. tomato paste
3/4 lbs. cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp. veal demi glace (optional)
3 tbsp. dijon mustard
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

In a large dutch oven over medium-high heat, cook bacon for around 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Poor bacon fat into bowl. Season beef with salt and pepper and brown in bacon fat 8 - 10 minutes, in batches if necessary.

Reduce heat to medium; warm 1 tbsp. bacon fat. Cook onions, carrots and celery 10 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste; cook 1 minute. Add mushrooms; saute 10-12 minutes. Stir in demi-glace, mustard, beef, bacon, broth, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and transfer to a slow-cooker. Cover and cook for 4 hours on high. Skim off fat and stir in parsley. Serve with mashed potatoes.

Serves 6 - 8

Adapted from the Williams Sonoma Catalog, Holiday 2009

Coming Soon: Stir Together Cake

Southwest Tuna Noodle Bake

A new year has come to my favorite food blog... unfortunately it has taken me quite a while to get around to updating. Reflecting on the last year I see that I've averaged about 3 posts per month, which isn't quite the one post per week the I was shooting for. Resolutions aren't really my thing, but hopefully I'll get inspired to make some more posts in this new year.

The weather around Seattle has not been nearly as extreme as in other parts of the country, but it is definitely winter here... gray and wet. What better time to sit down to a nice comforting casserole? We didn't eat a lot of casseroles in my house growing up, they're something I've come to love in my later years. Christie has probably been an influence concerning that since casseroles were a normal occurrence in her home growing up.

I'm usually prone to use the recipe you can find on the Campbell Soup website for tuna noodle casserole when I'm in the mood for some old school comfort food, but this recipe caught my eye in one of the many cooking magazines that make their way to our house. There have been a lot of terrible puns going through my head about spicing things up with this recipe, but I think I'm going to leave that alone for now. I did receive three new cookbooks for Christmas though, so hopefully some new and exciting things will be coming through here soon...

1 package egg noodles
2 1/2 cups milk
2 cans water-packed tuna, drained
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chilies
2 cups crushed tortilla chips

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the milk, tuna, soups, cheese and chilies. Drain noodles and gently stir into tuna mixture.

Transfer to an ungreased 13 x 9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with tortilla chips. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until bubbly.

Makes 6 servings

Adapted from: Simple and Delicious, November/December 2009

Coming Soon: Steak and Mushroom Stew