Autumn Vegetable Beef Stew

By Addie

Apple cider and a little bacon give this homemade beef stew great flavor. If you don't care for rutabaga, replace it with turnip, more potatoes or another root vegetable.

Ingredients

• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds lean stewing beef, cut in 1-inch cubes
• 1 slice bacon, diced
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1 1/2 pounds potatoes (about 5 or 6 medium potatoes), diced
• 2 medium carrots, peeled, thinly sliced
• 2 ribs celery, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 cups diced rutabaga
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

Preparation

Step 1

Cook bacon, beef, and onions a large skillet over medium heat until the beef is browned and bacon is cooked. Put the beef and onions in the slow cooker with the bacon, beef broth, apple cider, potatoes, carrots, celery, rutabaga, bay leaf, rosemary, and pepper. Cover and cook for 7 to 9 hours. Combine flour with cold water to form a smooth mixture. Stir into the beef mixture, turn to HIGH, and continue cooking for 15 minutes longer.
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REVIEWS:

I make a lot of stews and soups in the winter time, and this one was probably the best I've made yet. It's very similar to a Welsh Caul, which I normally make in March for St. David's day, but I think it would work all autumn and through the winter. I followed the recipe exactly as it was written but doubled it, and it came out perfect with 8 roughly 500 calorie servings. As the other reviewers said, the apple cider gives it a nice, sweet undertone, and my favorite thing about this recipe is that it doesn't call for salt, and it doesn't need any. I served it each day with a whole grain roll for dipping in the broth and a chunk of white cheddar cheese. If you've never had rutabaga before, it's very subtle in this dish and I'd suggest just going for it! Very easy, very yummy, and even my 10-month-old liked it!

Absolutely Delicious!! This stew is AWESOME! We have made it twice now and everyone gobbles it up. The apple cider gives it a little twang and it is addictive. We did not add rutabaga and first time accidentally used apple cider vinegar and still came out good but had to add a little more sugar back to balance out. Follow recipe as is and you will not be disappointed. Easy to throw in crock-pot and delicious! We serve with rice or Spatzel! Thanks"

Loved this! This was so yummy! The apple cider gave it such a nice sweet flavor. The only thing I did differently was using butternut squash instead of the rutabaga since that was what I had on hand and I used another 1/2 cup or so of the cider to deglaze the pan and added that to the crock pot. This was so good and perfect for the fall/winter season.