So, here we are. My final recipe of the season. And it’s nothing groundbreaking – I grew up on Campbell’s Chunky so I’ve been eating something similar for a few decades. But this version is full of farm-goodness and embraces my own values and contradictions. I’ll explain why, for those who might be interested.
I think it’s safe to assume that if you subscribe to a veggie CSA and go so far as to read the farm blog, you care at least a little bit about where your food is coming from. That can be for a lot of different health, environmental, ethical and social reasons. Regardless, I’m glad you’re here. And you may already know a lot about food sovereignty – which is the right for people to define and participate in their own food and agriculture systems. By choosing to get veggies from Root Radical, you’re embodying that sovereignty with your appetite and dollars.
The existing food system being what it is, it’s not possible for me to always eat in a way that feels totally values-aligned. You will see my “buy local” bumper sticker parked at the grocery store. In this stew there are many homegrown, scratch-made ingredients. But also imported celery. Grocery store beef from a farm in who-knows-where raising cattle with who-knows-what standards. Frozen peas. Currently, the food system is not built in a way for all of us to have access to affordable and adequate locally-grown food all the time. But working at and eating from the farm gets me a little bit closer. Going to the Memorial Center farmers market and making connections gets me a little bit closer (the bread pictured below is the Rustic Loaf recipe from their newsletter). Connecting with all of you engaged eaters gets me a little bit closer.
All that to say, thank you for another great season of building community together around locally & responsibly grown food. Have a wonderful winter.
Farmer’s Beef Stew
Ingredients
- olive oil
- 4 small onions
- 2 ribs celery
- 1 kg beef any cut you prefer, or just get stewing beef
- dried thyme
- dried parsley
- dried oregano
- salt and pepper
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 3-4 large parsnips
- 6-8 medium carrots
- 3-4 medium potatoes
- broth
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 1-2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1-2 cups frozen peas
Instructions
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Lots of prep work here. Dice onions and celery. Cut beef into bite-sized pieces. Peel the parsnips, carrots and potatoes and cube into similarly-sized chunks.
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Add onions and celery to a pan with a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat until fragrant (2-3 minutes).
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Add beef to the pan and brown, turning so each piece is cooked on all sides. Add thyme, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper. Measure those with your heart – I just did a big sprinkle of each. Add tomato paste and stir to coat beef – cook for 4-5 minutes.
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Put parsnips, carrots, potatoes and the pan mixture into a slow cooker. Cover with broth until everything is submerged and give it a good stir. Place bay leaves on the surface, cover, and let cook on high for 3-4 hours (until veggies are fork-tender).
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Around the 3 hour mark, check on your stew, and if it seems close to done, then you can remove the bay leaves and add the frozen peas.
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Make a cornstarch slurry by combining 1-2 tbsp of cornstarch with 2-3 tbsp of water and stirring well. Add this to the slow cooker and let it cook for another 20-30 minutes.
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Serve warm with crusty bread or your other favourite accompaniments!