1. Beef Stew

As I said in my New Year’s Resolutions post, this year’s Big Goal is to finally finish up the last twenty Dinner is Served 1972 recipe cards. Well, I am happy to say that I already have one for you! Granted, I think I made this back in November, but I am posting it now. It counts toward my resolution. Totally counts.

Like I said, I made this in November. I am assuming that at the time it was “stew weather,” much like “sweater weather.” But I do know that it wasn’t as cold then as it was during the POLAR VORTEX. It got pretty damn cold here. Cold enough that I was able to bust out my new fur hat that I got as a gift for Christmas:

It is fabulous and matches my silver Persian lamb perfectly. I don’t know how my brother and his fiancee did that. Did they even know that I own that coat? I think maybe they bought it for me because it looks a lot like this hat:

I feel the way Lindsay looks in that gif. It was so weird to come back to work on the 2nd of January (a Thursday), then have a 3 hour delay at work (on Friday) and then go straight back to the weekend. I guess it’s good to ease yourself back into work that way after almost 2 weeks off (yes, one of the perks of working in higher ed!), but really it just messed up with my mojo. And my sleep schedule. I don’t know what day it is anymore. I seriously thought I could sleep in this morning. And my alarm clock is on the fritz. I was late to work twice last week. I am a hot mess (see La Lohan, above).

BUT STEW!

This was unlike any other beef stew I ever had before. My mum’s stew has spaetzel-like dumplings. And peas. And carrots. But never artichokes.

I actually made this all the day before I served it. Which, “they” say is great for soups and chilis and stews. To have them sit. Flavor-melding or some other such thing.

I think it may have been the truth in this case. Here are the obligatory food prep shots:

And here is the finished product:

It’s a little unconventional, no? Not a stew really, more like a beef pot pie. Well, that depends on your definition of a pot pie. Yesterdish just did an in-depth report on whether or not a pot pie has to have a bottom crust. 

But what made it great is that it was pre-portioned. Each biscuit (and the stew underneath) was one serving.

I liked it. I liked it because it was beefy, hearty, and very unconventional (at least to what I was used to). And the biscuits? Well, in my world you can’t go wrong with a biscuit. For serious.

Those faces of unbridled elation and joy? That’s me when in the presence of buttermilk biscuits.

The dessert was fab. I can’t remember the name of the French almond wafers that I used, but I can tell you that I got them from my friendly neighborhood Safeway.

So that, as they say, is that.

One down. Nineteen to go!