Fall Beef Stew

Hey there lovelies! Yesterday, with it somewhat fall like here in AZ ( 84 degrees! Brr!) I decided I wanted to make Beef Stew. This is Shane's favorite. He always begs me to make beef stew, he even tried to make "stew sundays" which, never caught on. But once in a while I will grab all the stuff and surprise him with it. Yesterday was the day. 

I usually make stew with just regular potatoes, but I was feeling fall-y and decided to make it with orange sweet potatoes, which I found to be delicious. Shane liked it but I know he likes it with regular potatoes best.  "But look how colorful it is!", I said to him. I don't think color matters to a meat and potatoes guy. 

Every time I make beef stew, I always feel so cozy and homey. Kind of like I should be wearing a bonnet and living on a prairie, and Shane should be wearing suspenders or something. Is that weird? I mean,  I don't own a bonnet or anything.

Apparently, people have been making stew forever. I read that there are stew recipes in the old Roman cookbook Apicius written back in the fourth century. As well as in the French cookbook Viandier .

Recipe:

Stew meat

Sweet Potatoes (or regular, whatever you want)

Flour

Peas

Carrots

Onion

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

So, take a freezer bag and add a cup of flour, and your stew meat. Shake it all around! Get your pot, and add some olive oil to the bottom of it. Once it's heated, add a few pieces of meat, with the excess flour shaken off, and brown it on all sides. Once all your meat is brown, add in your sliced onion to the oil on the bottom of the pot. Sautee until translucent, and then begin to add some flour to the bottom, stirring as it thickens. Once you are done, add the rest of your beef, cubed sweet potatoes, and carrots back into the pot. Cover with water, and let simmer for an hour and a half. Once the time has passed, come back and lets thicken the stew. I just make a roux. In a cup, I add some flour, and some of the stew water and stir until there are no lumps. Pour it back in and continue that process until you are happy with the consistency. Add your frozen peas in, and wait about 20 minutes to serve!

Don't forget the cornbread!

Enjoy!