Holiday Hangover

The title today may be a bit of a misnomer. While I didn't drink all that much over the holidays, I sure do feel hungover. There's a distinct level of BLAH when the holidays are finally over. I feel like not enough time was spent with my family. I've eaten too much good food (is there really such a thing?). I'm exhausted and definitely not looking forward to going back to work. I've seen a number of successful relatives, and I'm considering the flaws in my life.

I have the day to myself today. I chose to spend it relaxing with the pets, staying warm in the sub-zero temperatures, cooking, and watching movies. The movie I chose this morning was "Julie & Julia". I'm not really sure why I chose it. While I love food, I'm no girly-girl, and I don't like Julia Child. I don't really know anything about cooking from a professional point of view, I'm not a very good blog writer (as you can plainly see) and I'm not a huge fan of french food. Nonetheless I'm feeling foodie today, and wanted something cheerful. Unfortunately, the movie didn't have the effect of cheering me up. If anything it made me feel worse about my life. As both women find themselves wondering where they're going, and what they're doing with their lives, I think the same thing about my own. Julia Child goes to Le Cordon Bleu, then writes a book, Julie Powell starts project to cook her way through it. Where am I going? What project am I taking on? I can't go to school for cooking, and while I love to cook, I'm not sure I'd ever want to be one. Baking has some appeal, but I'm terrible at pastry and cake decorating is something everyone seems to be doing these days. Besides, I'm not rich, and my work leaves me little enough time for eating and sleeping as it is. Cooking my way through Julia Child's cookbook has clearly been done before and I'm sure nobody reads this in the sea of blogs that are out there.

I hate to admit it, but I'm beginning to believe that I'll be one of those people who just goes through the motions. Forever working a job I hate because I have to and never really loving what I do. I'm not even sure I'll ever be able to say "Well, I dislike my job, but it pays for this hobby that I love". The real question is, can I live like that, for the rest of my life? Well, I guess we'll see, won't we?

At any rate, there was more than one scene in the movie today that mentioned Julia Child's Beef Bourgignon and I've had a craving for beef stew with dumplings for ages now. It only seemed right that I make stew for dinner. My grandmother used to say that if you were baking, you should follow the recipe exactly, making minimal changes, but if you're cooking, you should just follow your heart (or stomach I suppose). So I'm making this beef stew without a recipe, hoping for something close to my grandmother's, though she used to put kidney in hers and I'm certainly not going to put it in mine. It's cooking right now, so I'll update you later with how it turned out.

Beef Stew with Dumplings

1lb stew beef cubes (I used strips of brisket cut into 1"x1" chunks)
5 medium carrots rough chopped
3 stalks celery rough chopped
3 cloves garlic peeled and smashed with the side of my knife
10 new potatoes halved
2 litres beef broth
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
6 large shallots peeled and halved
1 cup flour
1 cup young red wine
water
3 bay leaves
olive oil
buiscuit mix
butter
milk

I'm estimating all of these measurements and feel free to do the same yourself, substituting wherever you like.

Put the cubed beef in a ziploc bag with the cup of flour and shake to coat. Heat a big soup pot until drops of water thrown in sizzle. Pour in about a tablespoon or two of olive oil. Take the beef out of the bag of flour and put them all in an even layer on the bottom of the pot. Leave it for a minute or two until you're sure it has a crust, then flip them all over and repeat. Prep all your veggies while you're waiting for the meat to brown and when it's done add the wine and stir to get all the good bits on the bottom up. Then add the carrots, celery, potatoes, shallots, bay leaves, garlic, salt and beef broth. Add enough water to cover the veggies. Bring to a boil then simmer on low for at least an hour, it's done when you're happy with it, if you want a thicker broth then add flour or cornstarch or bisto (mix it with a little water to form a thin paste first or you'll end up with clumps). About ten minutes before it's done make up the biscuit mix according to the directions on the package, add a little more milk or water than it calls for (so the batter isn't dry and flaky but pliable and doughy) drop it by large spoonfuls into the pot and simmer for ten minutes or until the dumplings are cooked. Enjoy!

For dessert I'll be making a cherry angel food cake with cherry cream cheese icing (both low fat!).

I"m including in today's post some Christmas tree pictures from family and friends as well as a better picture of my own tree taking with my brand new camera!