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I suppose just about every food blog lately has written something about Julia Child, especially since the success of the Julie/Julia Project. Not wanting to be left out of the club, here’s my tribute to the first lady of American Cuisine.
There’s no need for me to present the details of her life. They are well known to most. If not, there are numerous web sites devoted to that. It’s my relationship with Julia that I want to share. While I never was fortunate to actually meet her, I may have been one of her earliest groupies.
The French Chef TV series premiered on WGBH in 1962, and was picked up by my local education channel. I don’t know how I happened upon it, but I have always been glad that I did. Even as a teenager, it changed the way I began to think about food. I had always loved to cook, but I had never been exposed to the world of food as it was shared by Julia. She made it seem reasonably easy even for a novice like me. I was hooked. Home video recording had not yet come to our house, but as often as I could, I watched it when it aired. Sometimes I even managed to sneak it in during college whenever the one television in the Kappa house was not tuned to Jeopardy!
Julia made regular appearances on Good Morning, America throughout the 1970s and 1980s when I was a SAHM for the most part. Television was cheap entertainment during the early days of our marriage when we definitely needed cheap! Julia taught me that I could experiment with new flavors and techniques without a great deal of expense.
The first of her cookbooks that I bought was Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume Two. That was in 1972 according to the date in my copy. It was not until several years later that I managed to acquire Volume One. It actually have both volumes in one now as well. (I’m linking this to Blue Monday with Smiling Sally because it is, after all, blue.)
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Another one of my favorites is this one written with Jacques Pepin. I enjoy the interplay of these two masters as they compare and contrast their techniques and styles. It is an easy-to-follow, beautifully photographed and well-written book that I believe anyone can use and enjoy. I must admit to being surprised when it also contained her famous Boeuf Bourguignon recipe since it had been such a signature dish of hers for so long. Knowing that she was always a resourceful chef ready to utilize the technology then available to her, I believe Julia would be all in favor of using a slow cooker version. She was very much a proponent of slow cooking even if the technique may have been different than mine. After all, this IS beef stew we are talking about here! But what a beef stew it is:)
Beef Burgundy ala’ Crock Pot
2 – 2 1/2 pounds beef stew meat (Julia would use a good chuck or top blade, but use whatever cut you desire that still has a good fat content.), cut into 1 1/2- inch cubes*
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
canola oil for browning the meat
2- 1/2 cups red wine (Use a good medium to full-bodied red wine. DO NOT use cooking wine found on the grocery shelf.)
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2-3 tablespoons butter (real, of course)
18-20 small white onions, peeled and trimmed
1 pound whole baby Portobello mushrooms
2 – 2 1/2 pounds beef stew meat (Julia would use a good chuck or top blade, but use whatever cut you desire that still has a good fat content.), cut into 1 1/2- inch cubes*
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
canola oil for browning the meat
2- 1/2 cups red wine (Use a good medium to full-bodied red wine. DO NOT use cooking wine found on the grocery shelf.)
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2-3 tablespoons butter (real, of course)
18-20 small white onions, peeled and trimmed
1 pound whole baby Portobello mushrooms
Fresh thyme leaves or Italian parsley leaves for garnish
Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a bowl or plastic zipper bag. Add several pieces of the meat to the flour and shake until coated. Continue until all of the meat has been coated with flour. Brown the meat in a preheated skillet in small batches so as not to crowd the pan. Turn until all sides are browned. Do not try to turn too early. If the meat sticks to the pan, it has not yet browned sufficiently. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels. Place in the cold slow cooker.
Add the wine and butter to the skillet and stir over medium heat, scraping the bottom to get the browned bits. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until it begins to thicken. Add the bay leaves, garlic, ground cloves and thyme sprigs. Pour the liquid mixture over the beef in the slow cooker. (You can prepare everything up to this point the night before if you desire.)
Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours, or until the meat is very tender.
About 1 1/2 hours before serving, sauté the onions in about 1 tablespoon of canola oil for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently. They should be lightly browned. Add them to the stew at least 1 hour before serving.
About 45 minutes before serving, sauté the mushrooms for 5 – 8 minutes, or until they are lightly browned. Add them to the stew 30 minutes before serving. Remove the bay leaves and the thyme sprigs.
Taste and adjust the seasonings. Garnish with fresh thyme leaves. This is good served over noodles or potatoes.
Variations: If you are really pressed for time, add the onions (I sometimes use frozen pearl onions.) to the top of the stew without browning. You can do the same thing with the mushrooms. The flavor will be affected somewhat but not adversely.
You can also add small “baby” carrots and small whole, unpeeled potatoes as a top layer to the stew. While this can be done along when you begin the slow cooking, be aware that the vegetables will become quite soft. I prefer to add mine about half way through the cooking if possible. (That’s often when Hubby comes in as his schedule is much more flexible than mine.)
Can’t you just smell it already?
I can smell it! I can smell it! Yum. That looks so amazing. It would be wonderful to come home to that simmering. Thanks for sharing.
Debbie, sounds wonderful and I love crock pot recipies, but Roy is on strict diet and I can’t cook anything, so I will save it for January or so.
Barbara
Debbie, what a nice tribute to Julia. I’m planning on doing one too – I don’t want to be left out. And yes, I can smell your Boeuf Bourguignon and it’s making me hungry for it and it’s only breakfast time here.
Sam
Deb
I can smell it and it smells divine!!
Its a great start of fall meal.
I love the recipe you’ve created for the crock-pot. It’s on my to-do list for cooler fall days.
I loved Julia Child and I loved the movie. In fact, I reviewed it on my blog. Happy Blue Monday.
Thanks for coming by and the invite to cook something up.
i do not really cook much, but will see if i can come up with a recipe for you.
Glad you liked my snowman.
blessings,
barbara jean
Loved the movie and I think everyone that’s ever seen it craves beef bourgignon!
Thanks for visiting Linderhof!
I just went to see the movie last week and I came home and cooked up a storm. I was drooling for some beef bourgignon when I saw Julia cooking it in the movie. I will have to try your recipe. I would participate in your crockpot day but I only have a few recipes for my crockpot and the ones I have are not really good.
Joyce
oooooooo how yummy.
Thanks for visiting my blog…it led me here so I can enter your Crock Pot linky ! Thanks 🙂
For people who receive the PBS Create channel, they are going to be rebroadcasting their delightful show with J. Pepin and Julia cooking together.
This was a delightful post! I just love your blog Debbie!
I’ve been wanting to try this and what better way than to use the crock pot!!!
Happy Cooking
Robin
All Things Heart and Home
Oh, what a delicious recipe. I do love crock pot cooking. the recipe has the look of a gourmet meal.
I am going to post a crock pot recipe that I have made tomorrow. I will also be doing Outdoor Weds. See you tomorrow.
Hugs…Jeanne, backyard neighbor
Oh Debbie thank you for finding your way to my blog. This recipe sounds delish and will definitely be one I will try very soon. I can’t participate in tomorrow’s Crockpot Wed. but will next week hopefully. I’m leaving for the beach early in the morning and will be gone almost a week. So I’ll be back to blogland seriously later next week. I will be following your blog. Great find!! Blessings.
looks tasty! I loved this movie too 🙂
Mmmm! Yummy!
Thanks for sharing with TATT. 🙂
Looks very flavorful! I will try to join you some Wednesday when I have a crock pot recipe. I don’t have many crock pot recipes. I usually try the crock pot recipes that the ladies post on Tempt My Tummy Tuesday. Wishing you well with your Crock Pot blog carnival.
Oh that looks so good. I am not a crockpot cooker but I think I may need to buy one and give this a try. I used to use one but I guess when the last one burned out I did not replace it. With cooler temps coming, it seems I should try it again.
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment on my carrot cake recipe. It is so good. Try it sometime. And I shall get me a crockpot and join in your meme. Blessings.
Sounds yummy! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for inviting me to join your Crock Pot Wednesday. I will pass along this site to my sister-in-law. She is a teacher and relies heavily on her crockpot for the family meals.
Mmmm. Sounds divine! Thank you for inviting me to join Crock Pot Wednesday. Hopefully all these yummy recipes will inspire me to use mine more:)
PS: I just noticed we’re using the same blog design! You have fabulous taste:)
That looks yummy Thanks for asking me to link up. I will be back next week to do this. Thanks again.
My son is sick today but I will be joining the party next week! Thanks for the reminder. 🙂
Sounds like a wonderful recipe! Sorry I didn’t have a recipe to post again for this week. I’m not much of a crock pot cook but I really want to be! I’m really enjoying all the wonderful recipes here! I’m going to start tying to experiment with a crock pot recipe once a week. I’ll be playing along more often soon 🙂
Oh wow… this looks SO good, and I’m getting hungry waiting for my husband to get home and fire up the grill….
Ummm… I haven’t used a crock pot in years, but I just may have to dive into some closets and see if I can find mine. that’s if one of my kids hasn’t hauled it off to her apartment.
This looks EXCELLENT.
Cass
This sounds wonderful. I can’t wait for the cooler fall weather to gove it a try.
thanks – I’ll try to keep linking until I run out of crockpot recipes 😉
You failed to mention what time you are serving … I need a little more notice than this please. Chuckle!
Have a great weekend. TTFN ~ Marydon
Debbie~I’ve posted pics of the sign Lindsey made for me. Hopefully when I start feeling better I can join back in again on Crockpot Wednesday. Hugs
Thanks for stopping by and making sure I knew about your meme. I’ll dig up some more crock pot recipes to enter in the future.
Thanks for your comment. My whole day was shot with canning tomatoes this morning and playing bridge this afternoon. We play with a duplicate club. Anyway, I haven’t had time to visit today. I hope I can catch up tomorrow. Please don’t delete the Mr. Linky. Smile! I was watching the show tonight too. GO TEXAS TENORS. I voted for them. Did you know Dana, at the stone Rabbit, knows them because of her son?
I loved doing the crock pot event today. I have lots more faves to share.
Hugs, Jeanne
Oooo that looks good. I can’t wait for fall to REALLY get here so I can start to do more heavy dishes like this. Yum!
Thank you for the recipe…it looks fabulous and I love cooking in a crock pot…I use one atleast 2 to 3 times a week…I will give this recipe a try….It sounds good putting it over egg noodles….
Thanks very much for the recipie! I tried it last night and it came out wonderfully – One change I did have to make was to add about three cans or so of beef stock to have enough moisture for the beef and veggies to simmer in the crock pot. I also added some extra butter and wine to keep the flavors balanced. The gravy wasn’t as thick as in the original recipie, but no one was complaining! 🙂 Thanks, again.
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Kate Flouee
bug detector spy
LOVE this… what a great post. Would love for you to link this in our Star Recipes Collection!