Beef & Guinness Stew for St Patrick's Day

So last night Kiki and I made Corned Beef and Cabbage in the crockpot and watched Confessions of a GoGo dancer on Lifetime. Pretty amazing night. We were at home yesterday and just decided to make dinner as we passed the butcher and Kiki saw Corned Beef in the window. Both of our fathers are Irish, so we thought it was a good idea.

Of course it took ages to cook in the slow cooker so we kept ourselves sane with thickly sliced soda bread (from Mazzola's) and also some sharp cheddar and crackers.

Today I am working all day, and left the house at 8am. But I wanted to come home to some hot Irish goodness for dinner. This is where the combination of an electrical timer and a slow cooker comes into play. I am making Beef and Guinness stew slow cooking it on low for 6 hours. All the ingredients are in the pot. The timer is set to ping on later today. Ah I cannot wait to see if it is a success. Below is a basic recipe. I also threw in some chopped leek and turnip from last night. I am going to have this with mashed potatoes tonight...

Beef & Guinness Stew

2 tablespoons oil

3 bay leaves 

2 lbs beef stew meat, cut into chunks (with some fat left on the meat) 

1 large onion, peeled and chopped 

2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped 

1 teaspoon dried thyme 

1 teaspoon dried rosemary 

1 teaspoon dried parsley 

1/2 cup beef stock  

1/2 cup Guinness stout 

1 carrot, sliced 

1 stick celery, sliced 

salt and black pepper, freshly ground  

1. Oil the bottom of the crockpot 

2. Add onions, garlic 

3. Place beef on top, then add rest of ingredients 

4. Cook on Low for 6-8 hours, High for 3-4 

5. Stir together, and add a little flour if needed to thicken, cook for another 15 mins. 

6. Serve hot with potatoes.