Beef and Mushroom Stew with Dumplings

I thought it was high time for a food post.  I mean, it's been a whole week since Thanksgiving and all. ;)

This was the first dish that I made in my new Le Creuset dutch oven.  It is adapted from a cut out I had from a magazine, but it's old and I can't tell which magazine or I would give proper credit.

olive oil

2 lbs beef stew meat

flour

1 lb cremini mushrooms, crumbled or chopped

1 med/lg portobello mushroom, crumbled or chopped

2 onions, chopped

2 T. tomato paste

1 T. fresh thyme

1 c. sherry

4 c. beef stock
1 c. water
1 sm (Jiffy) box biscuit mix
2 T. mixed herbs

Season some flour with salt, pepper and paprika in a shallow dish.  Dredge the beef in the seasoned flour and brown in batches in a small amount of olive oil. Reserve meat on a plate.

Add onions and mushrooms to the pot (and a little more oil if needed) and saute on medium until softened, about five minutes.  Turn the heat to high.  Add the sherry and scrape the brown bits from the pan.  Cook one minute.  Add the stock, water, reserved meat and tomato paste back to the pot.  Return to a boil.  Remove from heat, cover pot and put in a 350 degree oven for two hours, periodically checking and stirring.

Mix the biscuit mix according to package directions, adding the chopped fresh herbs.  Drop the dough as dumplings on the surface of the stew.  Return uncovered to oven for fifteen minutes.  Let stand for ten minutes before serving.  You may need to adjust the thickness of the stew.  If after the two hours before you add the dumplings it is too runny, make a small amount of slurry and stir it completely into the stew.  If it is too thick, add a little water.

Yum.  This was a hit at our house and will be making return appearances.  Bon Appetit!