Uh, hello? Anyone still there? Anyone?
So, I’ve been kind of absent around here. I would love to say that it’s because I’ve been off traveling the world or curing cancer or something equally amazing and time consuming.
But nope. I’ve just been living my life, hanging with my family, writing, and yes, cooking. Today, I cracked out my crockpot and made something so delicious, I decided it was time to bring this little corner of the blogosphere back to life. Even if it’s only to help me remember the meals I’ve made that I’ve particularly enjoyed as I endeavor to use up all the treasures I receive through my weekly organic produce delivery and my monthly meat CSA box.
So, without any further ado, I bring you another edition of Cooking From My Box (paleo style).
Slow Cooker Beef, Pork and Vegetable Stew with Cauliflower Puree
For the stew:
1T cooking fat of your choice (today I used leftover bacon grease from breakfast. That’s right. I said it. bacon grease.)
1 pound each beef and pork stew meat, cubed (you could use all of one, but I had both, so I used both)
1 large onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T chili powder
1 T cumin
1 quart beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes
2 large carrots, cut into chunks
2 large or 4 small sweet potatoes, cut into chunks
1/2 lb green beans, ends trimmed, cut into 2 inch pieces
Dry your meat with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. In a saute pan or cast iron skillet heat oil or fat until shimmering. Working in batches, brown the meat on all sides and put it into the slow cooker. To the pan, add the onion, diced carrots, and celery. Cook until softened and maybe a little brown, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder and cumin, stir and cook until fragrant. Deglaze the pan with about 1 cup of the beef stock, then pour the veggie mix, the rest of the broth, and the tomatoes on top of the meat. Set your slow cooker to low and let it cook for 8 hours.
5 hours into the cooking, add the chunked carrots and sweet potatoes, and the green beans.
For the Cauliflower Puree:
1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 T butter or ghee
1 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
Put cauliflower, garlic and stock into a large pot. Cook until cauliflower is very tender, 20-25 minutes. Put it into a blender or a food processor with the butter/ghee and process until smooth. Taste, add salt as needed.
To serve, spoon the puree into the bottom of a bowl and ladle the stew on top. If you’re like me, you might want to add a dash of chipotle tabasco to you stew.
Bon appetit!
