Beef Stew in a Red Wine Sauce

A terrible photo of an absolutely amazing meal!

I have been very lucky this pregnancy, in that I have been able to cook and enjoy it almost the entire time (the first few months were a bit iffy!). I'm also lucky to have a husband that LOVES food and gets really, really excited about trying new recipes and techniques. He's a great help in the kitchen, too. This recipe was definitely one that required an extra set of hands because of all the steps--and because I'm eight months pregnant and the size of a duplex, so I don't move very fast!

In terms of work, this particular recipe is really up there, but the end result is worth it a thousand times over. Every flavor was amazing, every component was worth the work it took, every bite was heaven. Sometimes a dish is just so perfect that you can't help but smile when you eat it (and maybe your eyes roll back in your head a bit--I'm not saying mine did, but . . . yeah, they did). Because we changed the second part of this recipe so much, I wanted to make sure that I blogged it so we won't forget exactly what we did. I'm eventually going to make a family recipe book, which will include our favorite dishes. This one will absolutely be in that book--with a much better set of photos! My push present for this baby is going to be a new camera and lens--thanks, Hubby! Anyway, here is the beef stew in a red wine sauce in all its delicious glory!

Beef Stew in a Red Wine Sauce
*Adapted from Jacques Pépin

First phase:

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 pounds beef stew meat, cut in 2 inch chunks
Salt and Pepper
1 yellow onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons flour
1 bottle dry red wine**
2 bay leaves
1 thyme sprig

**We used Costco's Kirkland Signature Côtes du Rhône, which was inexpensive and yummy. For more sauce, I might use a bottle and a half next time.

Preheat the oven to 350º. In a Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Generously season the meat with salt and pepper and brown in a single layer (you'll need to cook it in batches), about 3 minutes per side. Remove the meat, place on a plate, and set aside. Lower the heat to medium and add a little more olive oil, if necessary. Add onion and garlic and sauté until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the meat and any juices on the plate back into the pot and sprinkle with flour. Stir to coat the meat, then pour in the red wine. Add the bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and bring to a boil, stirring to incorporate all the delicious brown bits on the bottom of the pot. Cover and place in the oven. Cook for 2 hours, or until the meat is fork tender.

Second phase:

1 package of bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 yellow onion, finely diced
15 baby bella mushrooms, diced
15 baby carrots, diced
Salt and pepper

Sauté bacon in a large skillet until cooked through and a bit crispy. Remove and place on a plate with paper towels and set aside. Drain off all but 1-2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and add onion, mushrooms, and carrots. Season with salt and pepper and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly for about 15 minutes, or until the veggies have softened and the mushrooms have released their liquid.

To serve:

Add a healthy dollop of mashed potatoes to a bowl. Place a few delicious pieces of super tender meat on top of the potatoes, then sprinkle on some bacon and a generous amount of the veggies. Top with the red wine sauce and enjoy every blissful bite!

Steak and Mushroom Pot Pie

Hubs has been working a lot of overtime lately, so he decided to take a few days off last week. We had 6 glorious days in which I didn't have to worry about him or do the mostly-single parent thing; it was amazing. We spent lots of family time together, which was great. We went hiking, garage sale-ing, and checked out a few of the local street fairs. Our area also boasts the largest Scottish Highland Games this side of the Mississippi, which just happened to be on the weekend Hubs took off.

If you've never gone to a Highland Games event, you should. It was so much fun! There were bagpipers, dancers, dogs, clan booths, and yummy food. I mean REALLY yummy food. Hubs tried haggis (here's an explanation of what haggis is). Em tried it too, and really liked it. Because all 21-month-old toddlers like haggis. She's an odd little duck! I tried it too, but I was much more excited about my steak and mushroom pot pie. Fall-apart meat and mushrooms in a rich, hearty gravy topped with a puff pastry crust. Yep, doesn't get much better than that! I promised Hubs that I would try to replicate it as soon as possible. It was that good. Well, today I found a recipe that seemed very promising and with just a couple of very small tweaks, I made something that we absolutely loved. This one goes in the permanent recipe file, for sure. And, all in all, it was pretty darn easy too!

Steak and Mushroom Pot Pie

*Very slightly adapted from Simply Delicious

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp olive oil

3 1/2 pounds stew beef (or cut chuck steak into chunks, bone removed)

2 shallots, diced

3 carrots, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

3 cloves garlic, diced

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp dried oregano

Salt and pepper

2 bay leaves

2 cups beef stock

1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 cup milk

2 sheets puff pastry, thawed

1 egg, beaten

Melt butter and olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the beef in batches, making sure not to crowd the pot; season each batch with salt and pepper. This takes between 3-5 minutes total, per batch.

In the same pot, sauté the carrots, celery, and onion until soft and fragrant, about 10 minutes, making sure to scrape up all the yummy bits from the bottom of the pan. 

Add in the garlic and mushrooms and sauté for 8 minutes. Then add the paprika, thyme, rosemary, oregano, bay leaves, and salt and pepper, to taste. Stir well.

Add the beef back into the pot, juice and all. Pour in the stock and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low. Cover the pot and allow it to simmer gently for 1 1/2-2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 355º. 

When the meat is very tender (it falls apart easily with a fork), add worcestershire sauce and taste for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper, if necessary. Turn up the heat to medium-high. Whisk together the cornstarch and milk, and pour this mixture into the pot. Simmer rapidly to thicken, about 10 minutes.

Butter the bottom and sides of a large baking dish. Press one sheet of puff pastry into the bottom of the dish and up the sides. Pour in the beef mixture. Top with the second sheet of puff pastry and pinch the edges together with the bottom sheet. Brush with beaten egg and cut two slits in the top.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the pastry is browned. Enjoy!

Savory Skillet Lamb Chops and Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Savory Skillet Lamb Chops
*From Cooks.com

2 tsp. olive oil
5 lamb loin shanks
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/3 cup water

Slowly heat olive oil in skillet with a lid. Add chops and brown for 2 1/2 minutes on each side. Add the rest of the ingredients to 1/3 cup water. Mix well and pour it over the chops. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 40 minutes, or until chops are tender. Remove chops and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Increase heat to thicken the liquid to a make a gravy, which should take 2-3 minutes.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
*From Paula Deen

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup butter
3 tbsp. honey
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. kosher salt

Add potatoes to a large pot and cover with water. Add a dash of kosher salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and boil for 8-10 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain and return potatoes to the pot. Add butter, salt, cinnamon, and honey. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Serve hot. Enjoy!

Pain Au Chocolat (Croissant and Dark Chocolate) Bread Pudding

I am a firm believer in enjoying life as much as possible, particularly since it is so short. Good food is essential to a happy life, and this is good food. Decadent, rich, deliciously good food. Pain au chocolat is a pastry that you can find in any boulangerie or patisserie in France. It's basically a croissant with a piece of dark chocolate in the middle. It's light, but rich because of the chocolate and it's wonderful. We've been unable to find one locally that stands up to those we ate in France.

Enter Pain Au Chocolat Bread Pudding. It isn't quite the same, but as a dessert, dare I say that it is better? Sprinkle some powdered sugar on top or add some sliced strawberries and you have my new favorite dessert with a fancy topping. This was truly a special dish, one that I will make for special occasions from now on, since, let's face it, heavy cream and croissants with dark chocolate isn't exactly body healthy. It is good for my soul though!

Pain Au Chocolat Bread Pudding 
*From The Comfort of Cooking

Nonstick cooking spray
3 large egg yokes
1 cup milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 croissants, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

Heat oven to 375º. Coat a 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks, milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, salt, and nutmeg. Add the croissants and chocolate and mix to combine.

Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. 

Bake until set and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Serves 4.

Enjoy!

Lapin Rôti (Roasted Rabbit)

While Hubby and I were in France last year, we got a chance to try a lot of different kinds of food, from horse to escargot to fresh chevre to fois gras. One of the meals that stood out the most to us (and the one we thought we had the most success of recreating) was my dish of roasted rabbit at Le Florentin in Bayeux, Normandy. This was our dinner after spending the day at the D-Day beaches and we were emotionally and physically drained. And starving. My beautiful rabbit thigh came out perfectly roasted, moist, and delicious. We decided we had to try making this dish at home.

And today, we finally did it! We picked up a rabbit at our local butcher shop, which came whole without the head and feet. Hubby found a video online that showed how to butcher it (see link further down) and we browned, then roasted the delectable little morsel. And it was SO good! This is a simple recipe with simple flavors, and it really allows the flavor of the rabbit to shine. If you're wondering what rabbit tastes like, well try the recipe!

(If you're still wondering, it's a cross between the dark meat of chicken and turkey. It's incredibly lean, which means it's good for you too!)

Lapin Rôti (Roasted Rabbit)
*Adapted from Cooks Recipes

3-4 tablespoons olive oil
1 rabbit (look for a young rabbit, between 1 1/2-3 pounds)
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 cup white wine
1 teaspoon rosemary
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (we didn't use any)
Salt and pepper

First, butcher your rabbit. Here's a helpful video: How to Cut Up a Rabbit.

Add cut pieces to a bowl of salt water.

Heat oven to 350º. In a large, heavy skillet heat olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Pat dry rabbit and season with salt and pepper. Add to skillet and brown on both sides for 4-5 minutes or until golden. Prepare your other ingredients and have them ready to go (mis en place).

Place rabbit in a shallow baking dish. Add your chopped onion to the remaining oil in the skillet and stir. Cook on low heat for 10 minutes, stirring constantly, or until onions have softened. (Ugh, check out the oil mess on my stove. Splatter screen Stephanie! Go put it on your grocery list! Geez.) 

Add crushed garlic and stir. Cook for another 2 minutes. Add wine and rosemary, stirring well. 

Pour the sauce over the rabbit and season again with salt and pepper.

 

Bake for 45 minutes. Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley and enjoy!

Chicken, Leek, and Shallot Pot Pie

Have you ever been intimidated by a certain fruit or veggie in the produce section of your grocery store? Well, that's how I felt about leeks until we had them in what felt like every dish while in France. Leeks are a staple there, so every time I eat them, I can close my eyes and pretend that we're back in a café eating quiche full of this mild onion-flavored veggie.

For Hubby and I, France means happiness, so I thought a dish with some French flavors would be perfect for our Valentine's Day dinner. We loved this turkey pot pie, so I adapted it using chicken, shallots, and leeks to make this delicious, filling, and slightly fancy main dish. It was a definite hit!

And it really did make us think of France, which made for a very romantic dinner. And then he went to work . . . Eh, the life of a cop's wife.

Anyway, bottom line: This dish is yummy! And it's a really lovely presentation, so it would make a great dish for a dinner party too!

Chicken, Leek, and Shallot Pot Pie
*By me!

3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (about 2 1/2 cups)
2 refrigerated pie crusts, thawed (let them sit on the counter while you make the filling)
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon parsley
1/4 teaspoon sage
1/4 teaspoon rosemary
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Pinch of salt
Pinch of nutmeg
1 1/2 cups Southern style cubed potatoes, thawed and warmed in the microwave
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

Heat oven to 425º. Slice leeks and mince shallot.

 Melt a little bit of butter in a skillet and add leeks and shallots. Sauté for about 5 minutes on medium heat, until tender. Add in minced garlic and cook for about 1 minute longer, then remove from heat and set aside.

In a large saucepan, melt butter and whisk in flour to make a roux. Cook for 3 minutes, whisking frequently. Gradually add in milk and chicken broth, whisking to combine.

Stir in seasonings and cook until bubbly and thickened. 

 Add in chicken, warmed potatoes, leeks, shallots, and garlic. Stir to combine.

 Roll out one pie crust into a 9-inch glass pie plate. Press into the bottom of the dish and spoon the filling onto the crust.

 Top with the second crust, pinch and flute the edges. You can use any excess crust to decorate the top of the pie. Cut several slits in the top of the crust. Separate the yolk from one egg and discard. Brush the top of the crust with the egg white.

 Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. During the last 15-20 minutes cooking, cover the edges of the crust with foil to prevent excess browning. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Chicken Breasts Diable

Hubby chose this recipe from Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan and when I saw the title, I expected it to be spicy. This is delicious, but it's definitely not spicy. According to Dorie, diable, which means "devil" in French, means there will be mustard in the dish, and dijon is about as spicy as it gets in French cuisine. The lack of spice didn't mean a lack of flavor, however. This was very good and so easy. From skillet to plate it took less than 30 minutes and Hubby loved the dish. We will be making this one again and again!

Chicken Breasts Diable

*From Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan

4 chicken breasts, pounded lightly, at room temperature

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper

1 medium shallot, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely minced

1/3 cup dry white wine

*(I used chicken stock because we drank all the wine the night before . . . )

1/2 cup heavy cream

3 tablespoons dijon mustard

1-2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce

Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 200º. Pack the chicken breasts dry. Put a large skillet over medium-high heat and add butter and olive oil. When the butter is melted, add chicken to the pan. Cook until well browned, about 4 minutes each side. Add a small amount of oil to the pan if it dries out. Cut a breast to make sure it's fully cooked, transfer to a baking dish or rimmed plate, season with salt and pepper, cover with a foil tent, and keep it warm in the oven while you prepare the sauce.

Lower the heat to medium, toss the shallot and garlic into the pan and season lightly with salt and pepper.

Cook, stirring, until just softened, about 2 minutes. Pour in the wine and stir it around to pick up the yummy bits off the bottom of the pan. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer for a few seconds.

Pour in the heavy cream. As soon as it reaches a boil, stir in the mustard and worcestershire sauce. Taste and add more pepper, mustard, or worcestershire sauce, depending on taste.

Remove chicken from oven. Pour any juices on the plate into the sauce and stir again. Serve the chicken with the sauce and enjoy!

French Bread Baguettes

After our trip to France, Nick and I have been obsessed with finding bread that is similar to what we had while there. Every meal in France includes a basket of bread for the table. It's amazing. And impossible to replicate. I haven't given up yet, but I don't have high hopes for finding a recipe and technique that measures up to a real French baguette. I don't want to sell this recipe short, because it was very good. The flavor was great and the texture was great, but it wasn't a French baguette. It didn't have the crusty crust or the air-pocketed interior we came to expect in our bread. As a first try, it wasn't bad and I will definitely make it again, but without the hope that it will match up to the multitude of bread we consumed in France.

French Bread Baguettes

*Bread machine recipe

1 1/8 cups water, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon granulated sugar

3 cups bread flour

2 tablespoons wheat germ (this can be found in the cereal aisle)

1 3/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

Cornmeal for dusting

Place all ingredients, except cornmeal, in the order listed in your bread machine fitted with a paddle attachment. Select the dough program and push start, which will mix, knead, and allow the dough to rise.

When cycle is completed, remove the dough and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Punch to deflate and let rest for 10 minutes.

Divide dough into 2 equal pieces. Shape each piece of dough into a long narrow baguette and place on a baking sheet that has been dusted with cornmeal. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise 30 to 40 minutes in a warm place. While the baguettes rise, place a pan of hot water on the bottom rack of the oven and preheat to 425º.

Dust dough gently with additional flour. Using a serrated knife, make 4 diagonal slashes in each loaf, about 1/4-inch deep. Bake bread in a preheated oven 25 to 30 minutes until browned and hollow sounding when tapped. Cool on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely, slice, and enjoy!

Leek and Potato Soup and an ASPCA Donation

For Christmas, my wonderful hubby bought me Dorie Greenspan's cookbook, Around My French Table. I think I've paged through it about 10 times since Christmas, and I want to make every single recipe in the book. Today I decided it was time to try one out, so I chose a simple soup recipe. According to Dorie, "Soups don't get simpler or more French than leek and potato." Amen. The best part about this one is that, while it's amazing as is, it's also a great base to add other ingredients, such as fennel (which I'm going to try next time), spinach, watercress, corn, or chicken. All I needed was a baguette and some good French wine and I could have closed my eyes and imagined we were back in Paris at a café watching the beautiful people strolling along the Rue Cler. Ah, l'amour.

Another reason I chose to make a soup recipe is to support Branny Boils Over in her Charity Souper Bowl in the month of January. Every link to a soup recipe made by a participant means she will donate $1 to the ASPCA. I'll be making a few soup recipes this month and I will also be donating to the ASPCA to help in the contribution. So, in the spirit of the Charity Souper Bowl, here is the leek and potato soup recipe, which I am dedicating to our fur babies, Gus and Joey.

Leek and Potato Soup

*From Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Salt and white pepper (I had black and it worked just fine)

3 leeks, white and light green parts only, split lengthwise, washed, and thinly sliced

(I only had 2 leeks, so I added 3 extra potatoes)

1 large russet potato, peeled and cubed

6 thyme sprigs

2 fresh sage leaves (optional)

4 cups chicken broth

3 cups whole milk

Melt the butter in a dutch oven or soup pot over low heat. Add the onion and garlic and stir until they glisten with butter, then season with salt and pepper.

Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, until the onion is soft but not colored. Add in potatoes and leeks.

Pour in milk and chicken broth.

Add thyme, sage, and a little more salt.

Increase the heat and bring the soup to a boil. As soon as the soup bubbles, reduce heat to low. Cover the pot, cracking the lid a little bit and simmer gently for 30 to 40 minutes, or until all the vegetables are soft. Taste and season generously with salt and pepper.

At this point, you have a few choices: you can ladle the soup into bowls as is, or you can mash the vegetables, which is what I chose to do with an immersion blender.

Garnish with parsley and enjoy!