I recently channeled my inner Julia Child and made beef bourguignon. Sometimes a girl has to take a break from her stir-fries and break out something different for dinner. And it's fun to try something new, make something special on the weekends when there's more time to prep and cook meals and we can all sit down together to savor it.
Ever since the temperature started dipping, I noticed an immediate change in my cravings. I'm hungry more often and craving heartier food. There's no lack of inspiration everywhere since most people share my sentiments. In particular, this recipe for beef bourguignon that I saw in the recent October issue of Rachael Ray magazine called out to me. Not only did it look good but it sounded extremely do-able. Knowing my own limits, do-able is key! Plus, I've had some very good experiences with Rachael's recipes to encourage me to try this one, and I'm sure glad I did!
I made this with my husband in mind. He loves a good slow-cooked meat dish and if you feel the same way, you hardly need me to sell you on beef bourguignon. The red wine, beef stock, tomato paste (but definitely the red wine) are just some of the components that turn the meat and vegetables in the pot into something magical in a few mere hours.
This makes me think about the first time I ever had beef bourguignon...I'd actually taken part in making it. It was back in High School and I was taking a French cooking class where we made the dish. I remember the teacher telling us she was "sneaking in" some red wine for us to cook with and we were all very impressed with her and ourselves. At the end of each of our cooking projects, we would set the table very properly with linen napkins and all, then sit down to enjoy the meal we prepared. And I remember sitting down at the table after cooking our beef bourguignon and getting to taste what we made. We didn't have wine on the side but we did have some warm French bread and good butter. It was delicious and that is a happy memory for me.
It sure took me long enough to make beef bourguignon again but better late than never. This particular recipe is really relatively simple, do-able to the point of not needing to be a special occasion meal to cook; there's no bouquet garni or any pearl onions involved but what you do put in the pot creates an extremely flavorful stew that puts you in awe of whoever first created it. I think I'll have to make it a point to make this at least once every fall or winter going forward.
