Beef Bourguignon for Fifteen

*I like to start with the pie crust(s) and get them in the fridge.*

*I don’t have a food scale in Eden, so I have to eyeball the weight distribution of the top and bottom crusts.*

*Four crusts are ready for the fridge. I think it might not* *even be 8 am yet…*

In keeping with the theme of cooking for family, last Tuesday, I made beef bourguignon and two scratch blueberry pies. Local Gondola egg noodles, Caesar salad, and fresh bread baked by Peanut rounded out the meal. I cooked for adults and all five grands; egg noodles ruled over mashed potatoes for the littles.

It’s a habit; I usually like to prep dessert first or at least get it started before I start on the main. Pate Brisée must chill in the fridge for at least an hour before rolling out, so that’s usually first in line. With three pints of blueberries and basic pantry staples (I don’t always have heavy cream on hand, but you know), you can have a homemade pie that pleases everyone. I’m not sure why I baked two; probably fear of not having enough; yikes, we only ate one. I must have cut small serving slices.

*Here, I have the beef cubes on a kitchen towel. I did the laundry, so this towel was immediately washed. I like to keep Kosher salt in a large canning jar for easy access.*

*When doubling or tripling a recipe, it’s best to use double* *or triple cookware for quicker and more even results. I love my Staub cookware, which is a worthwhile investment.*

*Burning off the Cognac! (watch your eyelashes) :*)

The day before, I purchased all of the stew’s ingredients from Braymiller Market in Hamburg. If I can avoid a large-format grocery store, I will shop small at every opportunity. Braymiller Market stocks local frozen meats; I picked up three or five—I can’t remember which—packages of pre-cut stew beef, five packages of Gondola egg noodles (probably two too many), and all of the vegetables.

It helps to have room-temperature dry beef cubes before browning, so I’ve implemented that prep routine without even thinking about it anymore. Defrost your beef, lay it on paper towels on a jelly roll pan, and refrigerate until needed. I then like to pull out the tray and let it temper while I prep the other vegetables before salting and peppering the whole mess. When I have lots of extra time, I buy a chuck roast or two, hand-trim, and cut the beef cubes myself. That takes an extra two-hour chunk of time, and I didn’t have it in me this go-round. I also skipped the small whole onions in this version; I was time-pressed and cooking for family and kids.

*Caroline and* *I are plating. Not our best-looking presentation yet served up with lots of love. There were lots of moving parts that day.*

*The men* *relax* *while we get the food ready.*

*Peanut’s bread, sliced and ready to serve.*

You might wonder why I made a stew in August. That’s a fair question. The weather was cool, I was cooking for a large crowd, and I needed something easily transported from one house to another. I made the stew and prepped the pies in Eden, packed up the house and helped Caroline pack up her kids and all her luggage (her flight back to Boston, MA was the next morning), and drove the dinner to Buffalo, where we boiled the noodles, reheated the stew, and baked off the bread and the two pies. It’s all a process.

*Trying to get a photo of the five grands together. It was hilarious.*

*The gang’s all here, not sitting still. 🙂*

Sure, it would be easier to order pizza or takeaway for a large group; I’m just not always into that. Of course, we love a Mister Pizza dinner party, and we do that regularly when Caroline and her kids are home, too. Booie hosted a Mister Pizza dinner party for us on her rooftop earlier in the week, and it was sublime. I love that my kids now host dinner parties; thank you, Booie. There are seven dinner nights in any given week, so there is much room for pizza and beef bourguignon.

Every Day Dress, Beef Bourguignon for Fifteen.