Boeuf Bourgignon

I'm not a huge fan of stews, but this one is just sooooooo yummy. Who wouldn't enjoy tender meat slowly simmered in red wine? I decided to serve this with a baked potato only because I didn't want to wash another pot to make mashed potatoes. It turned out to be an excellent accompaniment. This is French comfort food at its finest.

Ingredients

4 slices bacon, chopped

1 lb cubed beef

2 Tbsp flour

1 large carrot diced

1 large onion diced

1 clove garlic minced

1 bottle red wine (minus a glass or 2!)... preferably Burgundy but any will do

1 bay leaf

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 container button mushrooms quartered and sautéd in butter

beurre manie (1 tbsp butter kneaded with 1 tbsp flour) - optional

Directions

In a large pot on medium heat, fry chopped bacon until crisp. Set cooked bacon aside on a plate with paper towel.

Meanwhile, toss beef cubes in flour in a bag until coated.

Fry beef in batches in the bacon fat until beef is brown on each side. Place fried beef on paper towel and season with salt and pepper.

If you need more oil at this point, add some olive oil to the pot and sauté onions, carrot and garlic until softened.

Deglaze pot with the wine making sure to scrape the brown bits in the bottom of the pot. Add the bay leaf, thyme, tomato paste and season with salt and pepper.

Reduce heat to low and simmer for at least an hour and a half or until the beef is fork tender.

Half an hour before serving, sauté mushrooms in butter in a separate skillet until golden brown then add to the pot. If sauce needs thickening (and if you want that 'certain je ne sais quoi...'), add the beurre manie and cook for 15 minutes more.

Serve with a baked potato (scrubbed, pierced and baked straight on the oven rack for 45 mins at 400F)