Tuesday, April 28, 2009

In Which Melisa Comes Out as an Omnivore

There have been a few changes in my kitchen of late. I've written recently about my changing body and my increasing need for protein. I have been madly craving meat in recent months much as I did through two of my pregnancies. I'm pretty sure it's all about the protein and meat is doing the trick.

Vegetarians, I love you, and I'm glad to have you here. But this might be a good time for you to go elsewhere because this post is going to be flesh-heavy. But come back soon, OK? I promise the meat posts will be few and far between.

Anyone still here?

Good.

There are only two beef dishes I know how to make and I'm rather burned out on one of them (brisket) which leaves me with my second specialty: beef stew. I recently scored a lovely enameled cast iron Dutch oven which goes from stovetop to oven to table and this purchase was responsible for a sudden glut of beef stew.
I first started making beef stew many years ago during my second pregnancy. Julia Child's recipe in The Way to Cook was so very good that I've never really bothered looking for another. The key? Most of a bottle of red wine. That and tomato puree make for tender meat in a very flavorful sauce.

I make this on the stove top and then transfer to the oven for long, slow cooking, though a crock pot would also be an option. Either way, served with a green salad and some crusty bread, it's hard to come up with a simpler, more satisfying meal.

The recipe is here.
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2 comments:

Elizabeth said...

Scandalous!

Actually, neither of my kids are vegetarians any more, though I think Zac still considers himself to be mostly veg. And I have eaten meat on three occasions in the last two months. Not exactly falling off the wagon, but I did *highly* enjoy it....

I'm not ready, though, to eat meat *in* something. I prefer the plain old meat by itself, and to not have to commit to eating it in something I'd prefer to have the option of eating without meat. (Does that make sense?)

Anyway, enjoy! I think I'll always be mostly veg, or at least always eat less meat than I used to. But I'm not feeling nearly so dogmatic about it anymore.

Gianna said...

Thanks for wwriting