Beef Stew

This is another stew recipe in which the flavor is enhanced by preparing ahead and refrigerating overnight prior to serving. Reheat in 300° oven for 45-60 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs lean beef, cut into 1" cubes
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Freshly ground pepper
• 6 strips bacon, cut into lardons
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, quartered
• 1 can beef broth
• 1 1/2 cups red wine
• 1 onion, peeled and studded with 8 whole cloves
• 12 small carrots, peeled and cut into thirds
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 TBS fresh parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 300°.

Sauté bacon in a large skillet just until brown and crisp. Remove from pan.

Thoroughly coat beef cubes with flour and season with pepper. In small batches, add to the fat in skillet and brown quickly on all sides, turning frequently. With slotted spoon, remove browned beef to large pot. If needed, add olive oil to the pan to finish browning the meat.

In skillet, brown mushrooms and transfer to pot.

Add beef broth and wine to the juices in the skillet and bring to a boil. Pour liquid into pot and add garlic, crumbled bacon, onion, carrots, bay leaf and parsley. Cover tightly and bake in oven for 3 hours. 6 servings.