New family favorite: beef bourguignon in the crockpot

I really wish I had time to take a camera class. Trust me; the stew was delicious, even if the picture doesn't capture it.

This recipe is adapted from Julia Child's recipe. I like it because it is a flavorful, hearty stew that cooks all day in the crockpot. The downside of this stew is that it does take about 20-30 minutes to prepare.

1. Fry the bacon. Eat some. Crumple the rest of the bacon and add to the crockpot.

2. Brown the stew meat in the bacon grease. Add to crockpot.

3. Drain most of the bacon grease and saute mushrooms, carrots, celery, leeks, parsnips, potatoes and other stew vegetables in the bacon grease. Add a liberal amount of tomato paste. When tomato paste is nicely malleable, add vegetables to crockpot.

4. Mix in fresh and dried herbs available. I have been using fresh rosemary and parsley, as well as salt and pepper.

5. Pour in red or white cooking wine and stock. I used regular water today and it still tasted delicious.

6. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.

7. Eat with fresh bread or rice. Loosen belt.