Hearty Beef Stew

I recently moved to the Seattle area with my family from Arizona. It is much cooler up here in April (highs in the low 50's) so stew makes a perfect dinner. Even though stew might not be what you want for dinner when it is 100 degrees outside, the flavors are delicious and the meal is easy to make. Also, if you have vegetables left over from other meals, you can toss them into this stew. It's a great way not to waste food.

Serves: 6
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1.5-2 hours

Ingredients:

-1 lb of cubed beef stew meat
-1 tbsp of vegetable oil
-1 cup cabernet sauvignon
-4 cups beef stock
-1/2 tsp dried rosemary
-1/2 tsp dried parsley
-1/4 tsp ground black pepper
-1/2 large golden potatoes, cubed
-2 carrots, cut into cubes
-3 celery stalks, chopped
-1/2 large onion, chopped
-1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved*
-1/2 a bunch of kale, torn into bite size pieces*
-1 tsp corn starch or 2 tablespoons of ultragel
-cold water

*- optional; adds additional color

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a pot and sear the meat until it turns brown. Pour in wine and stock (if you want to forgo the wine, just add another cup of stock. The wine adds a lot of flavor to the stew and all the alcohol cooks out so I highly recommend using it). Stir in the rosemary, parsley and pepper. Heat to a boil, then reduce and let simmer for 1 hour.

2. Stir in all vegetables. Dissolve cornstarch in 2 teaspoons cold water and stir into stew. If you are using ultra gel (which is much easier to use than corn starch and is color and flavorless) sprinkle directly into the stew and stir. Add additional thickener if needed to reach desired thickness. Cover and simmer 1 more hour or until meat is tender. Serve with fresh bread.