Recipe Swap - Beef 'n' Guinness Stew

As you may already know, I participate in several cooking groups each month one being the Recipe Swap, another the Secret Recipe Club. The Recipe Swap is primarily participated in by girls on my cooking board, and several girls also participate in the larger scale Secret Recipe Club, and Sarah thought it would be fun if we did a SRC-style Recipe Swap this month. What a great idea!! For the swap I received Hezzi D's Books and Cooks. I participate in most of the cooking groups with Heather, and she always does such a great job, so I was excited to browse some of her recipes that I haven't seen yet.

I had also taken a freezer inventory just before the swap assignments, and beef stew meat was one of the items on the list that I wanted to use up. How lucky for me that Heather had a recipe for Beef and Guinness Stew?!?!? Absolutely perfect for the cold weather, too! Like Heather, I am not a beer fan, so I had to crinkle my nose a little at the thought of using such a dark beer in my food, but I trusted her review that it was great with the beer and I locked in my selection. I wrote out my food calendar for the next couple of weeks, and boy did I kick myself when Wednesday rolled around and I realized that I hadn't read all the way through the instructions. Almost 3 hours to cook! Not that this is outrageous for a stew, I was just a little shell-shocked that my silly self had planned this on a weeknight instead of the prior weekend. D'oh! No worries, I got home from the gym and promptly started working on the stew, and it was done before bedtime, and packaged up for Thursday's lunch. 

Hallelujah, my trust in Heather was well-placed!! The Guinness was a great addition to this stew and I'm so, so glad that I gave it a shot! Add this to your winter menu and you won't be sorry!!

Beef and Guinness Stew

Source: Hezzi D's Books and Cooks

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter
• ¼ cup flour
• 2 lb. boneless chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 4 cup beef broth
• 12 oz. Guinness beer
• 1 tsp caraway seeds
• 5 medium carrots, coin sliced
• 1 medium parsnip, coin sliced
• 3 stalks of celery, chopped

Preparation

1. In a Dutch oven heat the oil and butter.
2. Place the flour in a shallow dish. Sprinkle the beef with salt and pepper then dredge the pieces through the flour. Add the beef to the pan and cook for 5-10 minutes or until the beef is browned on all sides.
3. Add in the onion and cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook an additional minute, stirring constantly. Stir in the broth and beer, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the browned bits. Mix in the caraway seeds and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour.
4. After an hour uncover the Dutch oven and bring to a boil over low heat. Cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 45 minutes add in the carrots, parsnips, and celery. Cover the pot again and cook for 45 minutes.
5. Uncover the pot after 45 minutes, bring the stew to a boil, and cook for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.