Winey Beef Stew

Make this before it gets warm again...because this will warm you through and through!

3 slices of bacon
3 lbs pot roast, cubed
½ c. flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, ½ tsp cayenne pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp butter
1 box beef stock
¾ bottle of decent red wine
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 can tomato paste
1 ½ Tbsp balsamic vinegar
½ Tbsp molassas
3 Tbsp heavy cream
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
3 bay leaves, 1 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp ground cloves
1 Tbsp Lemon zest – about 1 lemon’s worth
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp salt

Veggies
4 stalks celery – left in large chunks
16 oz baby carrots
10 oz. portebello mushrooms, cut into bite size pieces
½ onion, diced


Cut up bacon into bite size pieces and begin rendering off bacon fat. Cube pot roast into 1.5 inch cubes, cutting off any hard pieces of cartilage. Dredge pot roast cubes in flour mixture. Once bacon is cooked, remove it from the pan, leaving drippings. Add butter and oil and brown dredged pot roast cubes in fat.

Once all sides are well browned, remove meat. Add beef stock and scrape brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add wine, mustard, tomato paste, balsamic, molassas, and heavy cream. Add spices and lemon zest. Stir well and bring to a simmer before re-adding bacon and meat to the pot. Turn heat down and simmer meat on low for approximately 3 hours.

Add veggies and allow to simmer for at least another 2 hours, better to let it go for 3 hours. Remove the celery and run it through the food processor before re-adding it to the sauce. Remove meat and shred with a fork. Re-add it to the pot. Stir well to combine, add salt and pepper to taste. Serves well with low carb pasta, rice, or just plain as a very thick stew.