The Stew Report

What's Cookin'? Well, my Fannie Farmer beef stew didn't turn out as well as hoped. I was unable to obtain bone-in stew meat because I was shopping at Kroger that day and my Kroger's butcher shop does not cut its own meat in-house. The bones, as I have learned, provide flavor from the marrow and thickness from the gelatin. I settled on a boneless chuck, in hopes that the fat would give more flavor.

I did a little trick told to me by my aunt: I put in the vegetables in large chunks for the first hour and a half. Then I fished them all because by then, the vegetables were "spent": flavorless and overcooked, having given up their flavor and nutrients to the broth. I put in new small chopped vegetables for the last 30 minutes or so.

After 90 minutes of simmering, the broth was still as thin as water, so I made a rue. I added only two to three tablespoons of the roux to the five to six cups of broth. At the time, the thickness seemed perfect. I left the stew in the refrigerator overnight so the flavors would mature. Tonight at dinner, unfortunately, the reheated stew was downright pasty. My very nice husband swears that it tastes good and is entirely edible, even if the broth needs to be thinner. I have learned that a roux is a powerful tool!

In news that you all care more about I'm sure . . . John is still sick and so is his mama now. John is enjoying more and more having books read to him. At least three times John has brought me a book and crawled into my lap for reading. John has also learned the delightful noise made by flapping one's finger over one's open lips while making a tone--how does one explain it better than that? Lastly, I've noticed that John is really falling in love with his daddy these days. He clearly misses him during the day. When Chris finishes work, John is eager to play with him and is upset if Chris doesn't stop right then to make a few minutes for him. It's precious!