Beef Stroganoff - Sort of

When I was at the grocery store the other day looking for beef soup bones, I decided to pick up a package of beef stew meat so that I could add some meat to the stock. After all, soup bones have been scraped clean of nearly all the meat, so I needed to supplement the stock.

However, I knew I would not need all of the stew meat for the stock. What to do with the rest? Aha! I could find a recipe for Beef Stroganoff and make that while the beef stock simmers away. I had a plan, so when I got home I began looking for a recipe. I have had a lot of success with Tyler Florence's recipes, so I decided to go with his recipe for Beef Stroganoff over Buttered Noodles.

My mise en place for the Beef Stroganoff includes (from left rear) wide noodles, black pepper, sherry (to replace the cognac I don't have on hand), the last of my homemade beef stock, kosher salt, stew beef, carrot, garlic, fresh thyme, bay leaf, onion, butter, sour cream, Herbes de Provence (to replace the fresh parsley) and Dijon mustard. You will note that I don't have mushrooms here. I was asked by my daughter to leave that ingredient out of the recipe. I'm a good mother, so I did as she wished.

The recipe says to pat the meat dry and season with salt and pepper before sauteing in a large pan.

Meanwhile, the carrot was chopped and added to the beef stock, along with the thyme and bay leaf. The stock was heated to allow the flavors to meld.

Once the beef browned, the onion was added and cooked until soft.

Then the sherry was added and this cooked for a few more minutes. I added the minced garlic at this point, since I would not be sauteing mushrooms. Be careful to not burn the garlic, as it will become bitter.

The beef stock was strained and added to the pot.

I might as well toss the carrot and herbs into my stock pot. Waste not, want not is my credo.

Now, back to the Beef Stroganoff. Since I had a burner occupied with the stock, I switched to the slow cooker to finish off this dish. The meat mixture simmered for a couple of hours.

The noodles were cooked according to package directions and then mixed with butter.

Just before we were ready to eat, I added the Dijon mustard and the sour cream. Deciding that the sauce needed more cream, I added a splash of heavy cream to the sauce.

Well, I have to admit that I Semi-Ho'd the rest of the meal with canned French-style green beans and Yoder's Homestyle Mashed Potatoes that I had doctored with butter, salt and heavy cream.

This was a good dish, but it was not quite what I had in mind. The sauce was not nearly as thick as I would have liked. I will keep looking for a better recipe.