Boeuf Bourguignon: Revised

Another slow-cooker favourite! This recipe literally means "burgundy beef" in French, and it is simply a delicious beef stew made with red/burgundy wine. I served this when my father and brother came over after a cold day of ice fishing. I also made it for a group of my friends for a cold and rainy cottage weekend! It's great on a chilly day, it will feed a crowd, and it's so sophisticated! I adapted this recipe from the Crock Pot website.  

Never forget the red wine in this recipe! It's what makes it so darn good. **April 2010: I have found a better way of making this - I have changed very little on paper, but the effects are tremendous. Please enjoy!**

6 strips bacon, diced
3 lbs. beef rump (or any tasty cut), cubed
1 very large carrot, sliced on the bias
1 onion, sweet, diced
1 tsp. each salt and pepper
1 10-oz. can condensed beef broth
2 c. red/burgundy wine
1 can tomato paste *(used to be 1 Tbsp.)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. thyme, whole
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 Tbsp. mustard powder *(used to be 1 tsp.)
1 bay leaf
1 - 2 lbs. fresh mushrooms, sliced
*Extras, if you like: diced celery, diced tomatoes, chopped sweet peppers.

3 - 4 Tbsp. flour
3 - 4 Tbsp. butter or oil

Cook bacon until crisp. Brown beef cubes with bacon, and add to your crock pot. Add remaining ingredients, except the flour and oil, into the pot as well. Mix gently. Cook on HIGH for 5 - 6 hours, or LOW 10 - 12 hours.

A few minutes before you are ready to serve, heat up the butter or oil in a small skillet over medium heat, and whisk in the flour until it has formed a uniform paste. Stir this mixture into the crock pot, and keep the heat on until the stew has thickened significantly. Use more oil and flour if you want your stew to be thicker. *(Before, I had you add the flour before the long, slow cook - this is incorrect! You get a much nicer, thicker texture by adding your roux slurry afterward. The long cook just ends up breaking down whatever flour you added in the beginning)

Serve over lots of creamy, buttery, whipped potatoes (skin-on)!