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.

Tomato Eggplant Soup/Pasta Sauce - no meat

(Not super low carb...but by no means high carb. You can lessen the carb count by leaving out or adding less LC pasta. This is loaded with veggie antioxidents and it makes a great Lenten Friday meal, as the eggplant gives it a slightly meaty texture.)

½ c. red wine
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 eggplant, diced
2 c. celery, diced
1 large onion
1 can tomatoes, slightly drained
3 Tbsp fresh garlic
3 c. chicken broth
1 Tbsp parley
½ Tbsp thyme
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp cayenne
Salt, pepper, Olive Oil

Saute veggies in 2 Tbsp olive oil with 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper and garlic. Add tomatoes. Remove from heat and blend to puree. Return to pot. Sauté just the veggies for approximately 5 more minutes. Add red wine, tomato paste, chicken broth and spices.

-If you want to make soup, add an additional 3 c. chicken broth
-If you are making pasta sauce, leave as is.

Allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

-If you are making soup, add 1 c. uncooked low carb pasta to the pot.
-If you are making pasta sauce, add 1.5 c. uncooked low carb pasta to the pot.

Cover and allow to simmer until the pasta is al dente – approximately 10 minutes, check the package. Serve topped with parmesan cheese and sour cream if desired.