Beef Stew

Beef Stew

If I turn down the air conditioner temperature low enough and watch the Hallmark Channel Christmas in July movies then I can pretend it’s not 96 degrees outside.  To complete this clever ruse, I also make a winter supper of beef stew with dumplings.  As I have said multiple times recently, I don’t really care much for this ultra hot weather.  I’ve decided I want to live in 72-Degreeland because that’s my favorite temperature.  I did a quick internet search and learned that San Diego has more days in the 70’s than any other city in the US. But I’m not sure I want to move all the way to California.  So back to the list…next up in the weather lottery is Sydney, Australia.  It also has the majority of its days in the 70’s.  And that’s about it. There are apparently only two places in the world where I could live in daily comfort. They are both far away but after summers like this, it’s mighty tempting!

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Stay Home and Pretend It’s Winter Beef Stew

1 pound beef, cubed

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

salt and pepper

oil and butter

1 cup chopped onion

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

4 +1 cups water

2 1/2 cups cubed potatoes

1 celery stalk

1 cup chopped carrots

 

Dumplings for Stew

6 tablespoons butter, cool

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 cups bread flour (or all-purpose)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

Place cubes of meat in a plastic bag with 1/2 cup flour, salt and pepper.  Shake bag to cover all pieces of meat. Cook meat in a skillet with equal parts butter and oil (a few tablespoonfuls) until brown on all sides.  Add onions and garlic and cook until onions are soft.  Add 4 cups water, salt and pepper, and the bay leaf.  Simmer covered 2 hours adding more water if necessary.  Add the potatoes, celery, and carrots.  Cook until tender about another hour.  Mix together the ingredients for the dumplings. The dumpling mixture will resemble a soft biscuit dough.  Dot the top of the stew with the dumpling mixture and put the lid back on the pan.  Simmer the stew 5 minutes or until dumplings are cooked through.

 

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4 Responses to Beef Stew

  1. Merry Carol July 14, 2016 at 7:02 am #

    Must be a family favorite…I’ve made this stew before but not recently…our air conditioner was off for 16 hours…finally, working again.

    • Julie July 14, 2016 at 8:50 am #

      The smell of slow cooking beef always reminds me of grandma’s house on Sunday.

  2. Anonymous July 19, 2016 at 5:26 pm #

    I’m going to do it as soon as I can buy ingredients. Stew in July will taste good. Thank you for thinking of cooking stew in July

    • Julie July 19, 2016 at 10:02 pm #

      It was very good and then I put some leftovers in the freezer. I’ve had one of them since I cooked it and am saving another for back to school lunches.

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