Tomorrow night, I have company coming for dinner. This is an annual event where we have dinner with friends and family and then go to the Clifton Haunted Walk. It’s a wonderful-yet-scary event in a nearby village where a local park is transformed, for one night only, into a haunted woods. It’s a charity event that is both fun and terrifying. We’ve been going for years, and I still remember the year the kids were old enough to go with us. They were so excited, they couldn’t sleep for weeks ahead of time.
But part of the fun is the dinner beforehand and then the late-night party afterwards. And for this year’s dinner, I’m making this wonderful Beef and Butternut Squash Stew. I’ll be serving it with a simple side salad and crusty bread and hot apple cider. We’re saving the adult beverages for the after-party since it will take all of our wits to wander through the dark woods while avoiding spooks and ghosts!
Autumn Beef & Squash Stew
Ingredients
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pounds boneless beef chuck trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1 1/2" chunks
- 2 strips bacon cut crosswise into 1/4" pieces
- Olive oil
- 2 medium Vidalia onions cut into 1/2" wedges
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and smashed
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 ½ cups dry red wine
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves about 4 sprigs
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 pound small baby potatoes cut into 2" chunks
- 1 pound butternut squash peeled, seeded, cut into 1 1/2" chunks
- 4 carrots cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 stalks celery sliced 1/2" pieces
- ¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
Instructions
-
In a large, leak-proof plastic bag, mix together the flour, salt, and pepper. Add the beef and shake it well to coat all the meat. Let this sit for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
-
in a heavy stockpot or dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium-high heat, stirring frequently until the bacon is crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside.
Add enough olive oil to the bacon drippings to equal 2 Tablespoons of oil. Reheat the oil and add half of the meat chunks to the pot. Shake off any excess flour as you add the meat to the pot. cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is browned. Remove the meat with a slottted spoon and place in a bowl.
Repeat until all the meat is cooked, adding more olive oil, if necessary.
-
In necessary, add more olive oil to brown the onions. Cook and stir the onions for 5 minutes or until they begin to brown. Stir in the garlic for 1 minute and then add the tomato paste. Return the beef, bacon, and any remaining flour on from the beef bag to the pot. Stir well and add the chicken broth, beef broth, and wine. Stir in the bay leaves, thyme, and paprika. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender. Stir occasionally.
-
Stir in the potatoes, squash, carrots, and celery. Return to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender. Add more beef broth if stew seems dry.
Serve immediately with fresh parsley.
