January 25, 2013
It was my turn to host book club this week and as the
hostess I got to cook dinner for my BC pals as well as choose the next book
selection. Both are things I love to
do.
Cooking for me is stressful when I’m trying out a new recipe
or technique. But, cooking for BC is
easy. My friends are highly supportive
and rarely do they criticize. I mean,
why would they? Someone else is cooking for them. I get that. When I’m the guest I’m highly appreciative
of their efforts and I’m supportive – even if everything does not turn out
perfectly or as planned.
So, for my recent Book Club meal I chose something I’ve
never done before. “I must stretch my skills.” – was my thinking before I
embarked on my culinary mission! So with
that (and after watching Julie and Julia for the 100th time),
I decided to cook Beef Bourguignon (alas . . . not Julia’s).
Anyway, the recipe I used was Ina’s. As in Ina Garten. She’s never steered me wrong in my culinary experimentation world. You can find her
recipe and nice instructional video here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/beef-bourguignon-recipe/index.html
I made some minor changes (due to what I had in the pantry
and the weather), but for the most part the ingredients and technique was fairly
close.
Changes I made (mostly due to reviewer’s recommendations):
-Doubled the amount of carrots
-Used Brandy (on hand) instead of Cognac (Cognac is pricey!)
-Prepped everything on the stove-top per the recipe (up to the
mushrooms & butter/flour slurry part) then I put the whole thing in my
crock pot instead of the oven because it turned out to be a really warm day –
in January no less! So, I cooked the
stew in my crock pot for 4 hours on low.
At about the 2 hour mark I added the onions, mushrooms and butter/flour
slurry as per the recipe.
-After 4 hours of slow cooking, I let the whole thing cool. Then
I put it all in my Le Creuset Dutch oven and into the refrigerator it went.
-The next day (yes, it was a two day process!), I took it
out of the refrigerator, skimmed the fat solids, and slowly reheated the stew
on low for about an hour before it was time to eat.
- I served it over chunky mashed potatoes instead of the
bread that Ina recommends, and I think noodles would work well too.
Warning: This really is quite a process to cook – it’s
definitely a “Treat” dish – but the results are amazing and totally worth it!
So invite some friends over and have a go.
Let me know how it went. I’d love
to hear what you think of this dish.
My menu, about 8-10 servings:
·
Salad Greens dressed lightly with a raspberry
and citrus vinaigrette (homemade) and tossed with thinly sliced Fuji apples, crumbled
feta cheese (could also use goat cheese), and toasted pecans
·
Beef Bourguignon served over chunky mashed
potatoes, with French bread (for sopping up the broth – A requirement!)
·
Gingerbread cake (used a Trader Joe’s mix that I
had on hand) dusted with powdered sugar served with a small scoop of vanilla
ice cream
·
Wine was a 2009 David Bruce Pinot Noir (a local
winery and totally fab!).
And, if you are a diehard fan, here’s a link to Julia Child’s
recipe (very similar to Ina’s after all!): http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/recipe/julia-childs-beef-bourguignon-8222804
Alas, I forgot to take a picture in my lovely china, but here it is as my lunch the next day. It was even more delish!
Hugs and good eating,
Janet J.
P.S. The book I chose was: Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns. Can’t wait to read it!
