NEW RECIPE

ENGLISH BEEF STEW

The following recipe is a loose adaptation of my mother's English Brown Stew. It's a great winter meal. I made it a couple of nights ago, and my two-year-old said, "Vewy good, mommy!" My recipe is free of all top 8 Food Allergens. I have given proportions for 12 servings, because I like to make enough so that I can freeze half for dinner at a later date.

2 1/2 lbs organic beef, cut into 1-inch cubes (Grateful Harvest sells organic grass-fed beef stew cubes)
1/2 cup oat flour
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup diced onion
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
big dash allspice
1 tablespoon honey
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup organic ketchup (Trader Joe's or Annie's are both good brands)
5 cups boiling water
1 6.5 oz container D'Artagnan Demi Glace (available in the meat section at most supermarkets -- if you can't find it, omit the Demi Glace and substitute 5 cups low-salt beef broth for the boiling water, but the Demi Glace really is wonderful, so try to find it first)
2 cups pearl onions * (see below for preparation tips)
4 or 5 large carrots, sliced
4 or 5 stalks celery, chopped
2 heaping cups halved baby white potatoes, or regular potatoes, cubed

* To de-skin the pearl onions, cut off their tops and bottoms. Drop them in boiling water and cook about 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. The onions will pop out of their skins easily.

Dredge beef in oat flour, shaking off extra. Heat olive oil in large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown beef in batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Once it's all been browned, add all back to pan. Add garlic, onion, spices, honey, lemon juice, ketchup. Stir well. Add boiling water, and Demi-Glace. Mix. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer, stirring every so often for 1 1/2 hours. Add pearl onions, carrots, celery, and potatoes. Cover, and cook another hour. Adjust salt and pepper as necessary. Serve with a light green salad. Makes 12 servings. Note, it's even better the next day!