1 1/2 lbs stew beef, cut into 1 inch chunks •  2 C green peas, frozen
2 C carrots, peeled & sliced  •  1 lb sweet potatoes, peeled & cubed
2 T olive oil  •  3 C green beans, frozen or fresh  •  1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced  •  1 tsp salt  •  1/2 tsp pepper  •  1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp celery seed  •  4 C beef broth, organic  •  1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 T parsley, dried  •  additional salt and pepper to taste

When there is still snow on the ground and a chill in the air I enjoy having a hot pot of stew, soup or chili cooking slowly in my kitchen. Slow cooking is such a great way to meld flavors together and tenderize meats. I love that I can prep dinner early in the day and not worry about it again until it’s time to eat. This hearty recipe just happened to come together as I had stew meat and a lot of sweet potatoes I needed to use. The ingredients in the stew go really well together, although the potatoes and carrots are slightly sweet, the meat, green beans and peas balance the flavors making this a delicious savory dish.

Set slow cooker at a low temperature and cook for 6 hours

Directions: This recipe is super easy to make, you could literally dump all the ingredients in your slow cooker and 6 hours later viola, Beef and Sweet Potato Stew for dinner. However, I don’t recommend just dumping everything in because you want to enhance the individual flavors each ingredient brings to the dish. Before I begin assembling and prepping the ingredients for this stew I pour the beef stock in the slow cooker and begin to heat it. I then begin to saute the onions in the olive oil until tender in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the onions are tender I add in the minced or crushed garlic and saute until golden. Add in the diced sweet potatoes, chopped carrots, bag of frozen peas and frozen green beans and cook for a few minutes just to meld flavors, salt and pepper to taste. Carefully pour vegetables in the slow cooker and use the same skillet to brown meat. Salt and pepper the meat and sear it on a high heat just until browned. Once the meat is browned I add it to the slow cooker. Stir in celery seed, dried parsley and ground nutmeg, top with the bay leaf and cover slow cooker allowing it to simmer on low for about 6 hours. Meat will be tender when ready to serve.

Serves 6

notes: I like large chunks of meat and veggies in my stew but you can dice them to your desired size. 

… Happy Friday.