Channel Your Inner Julia Child with Beef Bourguignon

For years, I had been hesitant to make this typically heavy and rich beef dish. I prefer to eat lighter dishes that energize and fill me up without weighing me down. Beef stew? No thank you. But then, over Christmas I was going through some old photos and journals from my culinary school days and happened across one faded entry, which had a few wine splashes on it, mind you, that said this: Today in class we made beef bourguignon! I have to say, I felt a little like Julia Child simmering that pot of beef and wine all afternoon. It turned out to be delicious although next time Im going to add more mushrooms. So, I decided to give it another try.with more mushrooms this time. It was remarkably easy to make, just time consuming. When my wine has reduced all the way to a thick, velvet sauce and my potatoes were done, I called my boyfriend and casually invited him over for lunch. Then, I served us this. We drank the rest of the wine that I didnt use in the dish itself, and practically licked our plates clean. Leftovers were even better that evening. And then again for lunch the next day. Dont forget the roasted potatoes! They make this dish complete.

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Jenna Weber is half of the Fresh Tastes blog team. She graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in 2008 and, since then, has worked as a pastry chef, bread baker and freelance food editor. Currently, Jenna blogs full-time on EatLiveRun.com where her delicious daily recipes and quirky culinary musings appeal to thousands. She lives in Northern California and, when not in the kitchen, can usually be found on her yoga mat.