Beefy Onion-Mushroom Soup

1# Black Angus beef top round steak

fresh ground black pepper

2T aged dark Balsamic vinegar

2T EVOO

Cut the beef, across the grain in 1/2" thick slices.  Cut the strips into 1/2"-1" pieces.  Pepper them, add vinegar and oil, toss in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate a couple hours or overnight.

2-4T butter

2 stalks celery

1/3 lg. bell pepper

1c well cooked crispy bacon crumbles

7-8c cold fresh water - a little at a time

2-1/2# white and baby portabella mushrooms

1-3/4# Vidalia, purple and yellow onions

2T aged dark Balsamic vinegar

2T beef Better Than Bouillon

3/4c sour cream - optional

3T flour + 1/2c± cold water to make a roux

Sauté-stir-fry the beef in a little EVOO and butter, in a 5-6 quart pot. Add a little water to the pan, stirring to loosen all the browned bits, brown again and repeat the deglazing until the meat is nicely browned.

Cut the mushroom stems, flush with the bottom of the cap. Finely chop these, celery and peppers then add with the bacon. This gives the soup more texture and flavor. Sauté this 15 minutes, then add the sliced and onions and mushrooms - separately cooked, vinegar and soup base. I sautéed the mushrooms last and used a baster to pull out 1c of nice dark mushroom broth to add to the big pot before letting the rest evaporate until the mushrooms were cooked. 

Stir all this together, and stay with it during the browning stage. Simmer on low-medium heat until everything is nicely browned, adding a little water or more butter if needed. At the very end you could add a little red wine or Vodka if you'd like, for another dimension of flavor. Simmer and stir another couple minutes. Add the rest of the water and stir gently, cover and simmer for at least an hour on very low heat.

At the end, add the roux and bring back to a low bubble for 5 minutes, to thicken the soup, stirring the entire time.  Serve now, or uncover and cool a half hour before stiring in the sour cream. Heat it back up to serving temperature.

Plate with warm, crusty garlic bread or cornbread and a side of fruit or a mixed green salad. . .Lin

Tuscan Beef With Tomato, Carrots and Potatoes - - - - - - - (Italian Beef Stew)

1⅓# black angus beef

1c Peggy's Salad Dressing *

3T rinsed caper berries

2T minced garlic (fresh or jarred)

2T Montosco Gusto Si

~ "Mix Per Carne —

~ Tuscan Seasoning For Meat"

28oz. diced tomatoes & juice

1 lg. onion - rough chopped

3 med. carrots - rough chopped

2c baby red potatoes - halve the big ones

1 sm. head green cabbage - cut in chunks

Marinate the meat for several hours with the first group of ingredients, stirring occasionally.  This can be left at room temperature during this time and actually will absorb the flavors better that way than if it's chilling.  At the end, strain off the marinade into a little bowl.  Save for later.  Sauté the meat, in the remaining juices, until nicely browned, then simmer it for about a half hour, covered.  Add all the remaining ingredients, including the marinade.  Cover and simmer an hour or longer.

There's just something about really good quality meat!  This beef was 3# of boneless beef ribs.  I divided it into 2 packs of meat that I fat-trimmed and cut into 1" cubes.  Then I packaged and froze it.  After about an hour I though, geez, I'd really love to make some of that into a nice chunky stew!  I can go days and days and weeks even, without eating a lot of meat, and then all of a sudden I'm Super Carnivore!!  Give me MEAT!!  Good Quality - Humanely-Raised, Healthy Meat!!  😃  So this will be my Meat Fix for the next week or more.

Chicken is another.  I had some really great Italian Chicken in a Red Sauce with Brown Rice when I was in the Chicago area last week, visiting my sister-in-law.  My nephew cooked up a favorite recipe of theirs.  It was simple, but full of great flavor.  Now that has me craving a variation of my old Chicken Cacciatore recipe once again!  That'll probably be coming up soon here 😉 Chicken, red olives, onion, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes - maybe over Linguine or Fettuccine.  Oh yeah, if that sounds good, be watching for it! . . . Lin