Crockpot Guinness Beef Stew

I am doing a fantastic job imagining it's fall around here. Even though the thermostat reads in the 90s. And I am pretty sure that after we close on our new house this week, we will go swimming in the pool this weekend.  Crockpot stew is an easy way to pretend it's fall.  I loved making it in Aspen, it was perfect to come home to after a day of skiing.  Though here in Houston, it is more like a day of swimming, in October.  I adapted this recipe from Blissfully Delicious.

Crockpot Guinness Beef Stew

1 pound stew beef
¼ cup flour
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
½ onion, chopped
1 cup chicken broth
¾ cup Guinness Draught
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
5 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 russet potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
4 mushrooms, quartered
2 cups frozen peas
¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Toss the stew beef with the flour, turning well to coat. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add the beef and crown on all sides. Transfer the beef to the crockpot. Add the onions to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes. Add the broth, Guinness, tomato paste, sugar, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Transfer the skillet contents to the crockpot and add the carrots, potatoes and mushrooms. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, stir in the peas for the last 20 minutes of cook time. Season with salt and pepper to taste, serve.

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Creamy Chicken Stew

It's still hotter than heck in Houston, but in Aspen the fall chill is in the air. I adore this recipe for Crockpot Country Chicken Stew, but in Aspen I don't have a crockpot. So I needed to find a recipe that would work for the stovetop and this recipe from Framed Cooks fit the bill.  I did make some changes, mainly cooking the chicken with the stew instead of adding chicken that had already been cooked.  This stew was fantastic, perfect for fall.  C questioned why it was white instead of brown, since stew should be brown.  I guess he forgot eating the crockpot version, not surprising.  Miss F ate all her carrots and was a big fan of the bacon addition.  And I decided to order a crockpot for Aspen, so we can ski all day and come home to dinner.

Creamy Chicken Stew

6 slices bacon, chopped into ½ inch pieces
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 pound carrots, peeled and sliced thin
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
6 tablespoons flour
4 cups chicken broth
6 small red potatoes, cut into ½ inch dice
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup cream

Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium high heat until crisp. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the bacon drippings in the pot. Add onion, carrots, salt and thyme and cook over medium heat until the vegetables soften, about 5 minutes. Add flour, stir and cook another 2 minutes. Add broth, potatoes and chicken; bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium, stirring occasionally. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Remove the chicken breasts and shred with two forks, return to the pot. Stir in the half and half and simmer for 5 minutes more. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Stir in cooked bacon and serve.

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Crockpot Beef Stew with Cognac

Whenever Ina Garten says "cognac" it always makes me chuckle. She is so dramatic with her pronunciation.  Just one ingredient turns an ordinary crockpot beef stew into something much much better.  And with a much fancier name.  The cognac adds a richness to the stew and I really enjoy the flavor.  That being said, I still like to trash up the leftover stew with a hit or two of ketchup, which is my mom's secret ingredient to beef stew.  I grew up with it and it is very comforting to me, as beef stew should be.

Crockpot Beef Stew with Cognac

1 ½ to 2 pounds stew beef, cut into 1” cubes
3 tablespoons flour
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic , minced
5 carrots, cut into 1” pieces
2 russet potatoes, cut into 1” pieces
½ cup cognac
2 cups beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes
2 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaf

Toss the beef with the flour, salt and pepper generously. Layer the onion, garlic, carrots and potatoes in the crockpot. Top with the flour coated beef. Pour the cognac, wine, broth and tomatoes over top of the beef and vegetables. Add the thyme and bay leaf. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

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Pork and Butternut Squash Stew

With this recipe, I have used the last butternut squash from my farm share. It adds a sweetness to the stew. There is a lot of chopping involved in the prep for this dish, but it is really simple...just set in in the crockpot and forget it. The butternut squash nearly melts away into the chicken broth to create a rich broth. This dish works well in the winter months for when you are looking for a comforting stew, but are looking for a twist on your standard stew.

Pork and Butternut Squash Stew

1 ½ pounds boneless pork, cut into ½ inch cubes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cups chicken broth
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
½ teaspoon rubbed sage
1 bay leaf
2 cups cubed butternut squash
1 large potato, peeled and cubed
2 cups carrots, peeled and diced

Add all ingredients to the slow cooker. Cook on high for 1 hour, then reduce heat to low and simmer 4 hours, or until tender.

Adapted from AllRecipes

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Country French Stew

My friend Kristina gave me this recipe from her mom. She raved that it was the best stew she had ever tasted, too bad I chose a 65 degree plus day to make it! I would agree that it is delcious stew and it has a big bonus that it can be made in the crockpot. When I brought it to the table, C asked for some Ritz Crackers. I was puzzled, why do you need crackers with stew? His logic was that the stew was much like some of the Chunky Soup he enjoys from a can (gross) and he has crackers with that, so why not with stew. At the end of the day, he decided that the stew had a "weird" flavor in it. Miss F devoured a ton of carrots and potatoes, so she obviously didn't agree. I wonder what he considered weird, considering all the flavors in the sauce are things he enjoys. Who knows...I am guessing he will be downstairs for cereal in no time.

Country French Stew
printable recipe

6 slices bacon, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 boneless beef chuck roast, 2 pounds, trimmed of fat cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large onion cut into ½ inch wedges
2 cups carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
6 to 8 new potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups red Zinfandel
1 cup beef both
4 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 can, 14.5 ounce diced tomatoes
3 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1 tablespoon sweet Hungarian paprika

Spray slow cooker with cooking spray. In a nonstick skillet, cook bacon over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp. Place bacon in slow cooker. Discard all but 1 tablespoon bacon fat in skillet. Cook beef in bacon fat in batches 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown. Stir onion into beef. Cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Sppon into cooker.

Stir carrots, potatoes, wine, broth, flour, basil, thyme, salt, pepper and tomatoes into cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

Stir in mushrooms and paprika and cook on low for 20 to 30 minutes more.

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Chicken and Dumplings

I confess, I have never had chicken and dumplings before. It seems as if C hadn't either. I have had dumplings with stew before, which I have to say I like better, but these were quicker and easier than stew. This meal will go into the winter rotation for sure. I sort of took a mish mash of recipes from the internet and compiled this one. I didn't have buttermilk on hand, so I added one tablespoon of white vinegar in whole milk and let rest for five minutes. Works great in a pinch!






Chicken and Dumplings

3 large chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup diced celery
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1/3 cup flour
6 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup heavy cream

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk

In a large, heavy pot, melt butter and heat oil over medium heat. Add carrot, celery, garlic, and bay leaves. Sauté until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour to make a roux. Continue to stir and cook for at least 2 minutes. Slowly pour in the chicken stock, 1 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. Bring the sauce to a boil, add the chicken pieces and reduce the heat back to medium.

Let sauce simmer until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. Stir in heavy cream.

Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs and milk together; pour the liquid in the dry ingredients and gently fold. Mix just until the dough comes together, the batter should be thick.

Using 2 spoons, carefully drop heaping tablespoonfuls of the dumpling batter into the hot mixture. The dumplings should cover the top of the sauce, but should not be touching or crowded. Let the dumplings poach for 10 to 15 minutes until they are firm and puffy. Season with freshly cracked black pepper and garnish with chopped parsley before serving.

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