For now, I'll stick with some recipes

I've had a lot on my mind the past few days.

But, I don't really feel like blogging about it. Instead, here are some tasty offerings from good friends William and Sonoma that I think you'll enjoy. Hope my introspection leads to some blog-worthy comments soon.

Beef Bourgignonne
from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen

Oui, this recipe was fantastique. I cut the ingredients in half, which was plenty for 3 or 4 average-sized appetite people. However, I was cooking for my husband, so there were NO leftovers! Quel horror. I also omitted the bacon and mushrooms (hubs loathes mushrooms, I'm indifferent). Resist the urge to skip the browning step before adding the beef to the crock pot - it really makes a difference.


Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

5 lb. beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch pieces

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

5 thick bacon slices, cut into 1-inch pieces

5 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch
pieces

2 yellow onions, sliced 1/4 inch thick

5 garlic cloves, chopped

2 bay leaves

6 fresh thyme sprigs

6 fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs

1 lb. white button mushrooms, halved

1 bottle Pinot Noir

1 Tbs. beef demi-glace

Steamed baby red potatoes tossed with
butter and chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for
serving (optional)


Directions:
Place the flour in a large bowl. Season the beef with salt and pepper, add to the flour and stir to coat evenly. Transfer to a plate, shaking off the excess flour.

In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil until almost smoking. Working in batches, brown the beef on all sides, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a slow cooker.

Add the bacon, carrots, onions and garlic to the sauté pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer to the slow cooker along with the bay leaves, thyme, parsley and mushrooms.

Off the heat, pour the wine into the sauté pan and set over medium-high heat. Whisk in the demi-glace and bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the pan bottom. Add to the slow cooker, cover and cook until the meat is fork tender, 6 hours on high or 8 hours on low. Discard the bay leaves.

Transfer the beef bourguignonne to a platter and serve with steamed potatoes. Serves 10.



Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
adapted from Williams Sonoma Bridal Cookbook

There are a lot of butternut squash soup recipes out there, but this one is perfect because it's fast - and healthy. To make it really perfect, pre-roast the squash and store in the refrigerator so that you can whip up some soup when the mood strikes.

1 large butternut squash
1 large yellow onion
4-5 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup half and half
1 tbl. unslated butter

Preheat oven to 400F. Peel and chop the squash (it will roast faster if you chop into smaller pieces). Spread on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until soft when pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, finely chop onion and saute in the butter until translucent and slightly brown, about 10 minutes. In a medium saucepan, bring to a boil the chicken stock and add the onion and roasted squash. Simmer about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.*

Using a food processor, immersion blender or blender, puree the stock mixture in batches. When all batches are complete, add back to the saucepan and warm over medium-low heat.

If you care to, sprinkle some parmesan or shaved fontinella on top. I served this with cumin-toasted pita and a green salad.



* This step is actually really important, especially if you're using a blender. I have minor burns on my forearms to prove it! Boiling soup WILL force the lid off your blender. Cheers!