4th Day of Halloween - Beef Stew with Pumpkin Surprise

Today is a bit of "one of those days" for me today, and I'm sure I'll blog about it soon but I didn't want to miss out on my pledge to post something each day of the 31 days of Halloween.

Today's little tidbit is going to be about pumpkin, specifically how to sneak this very nutritious gourd into a meal that not only will your family eat, but they will likely never even know it is there! 

This time of year, I begin making soups and stews in earnest.  I just LOVE a nice hot soup or stew, paired with some fresh, hot bread or biscuits. 

I often get asked by my friends how I make my beef stew.  I never use quite the same recipe twice, as I like to use up whatever veggies I have lying around, but I'll give you the basic idea.  I had never added pumpkin to my stew before, but on a hunch decided to try it. I've been really enjoying the squash, carrot or pumpkin soups that Lois' Natural Marketplace (Scarborough, Maine) makes, and I've tried my hand at them (and each try has worked pretty well for me), so I took the idea of pureed veggies to thicken the broth of my stew.  It came out great, so here's the recipe I used! Trust me, your family will never know the pumpkin is there!

Beef Stew w/ Pumpkin Surprise

INGREDIENTS
1.5-2 lbs stew beef

4-ish medium carrots, peeled and cut into bite size pieces

4-ish potatoes (do not peel, just scrub well first), cut into bite size pieces

2-3 stalks celery, chopped

1 large onion, diced

1 green onion, chopped

4-5 cups water or broth

5-6 beef bouillion cubes (if you aren't using broth)

1 tbsp Red Hot or similar hot sauce (optional)

1/2 or so of a can of pumpkin puree or 1 cup freshly pureed pumpkin

salt, pepper to taste

2 tbsp butter (optional - can use olive oil, too)

cornstarch to thicken if desired

1.  Throw butter in big pot (if using a croc pot, do this in a separate skillet - then, when veggies have been sauted, add to croc pot before adding meat, water, spices and such). Add both kinds of onions and begin to saute. Then begin to add all the chopped veggies as you finish chopping them.  Throw the meat in last and then add all the rest of the ingredients.  Make sure you have enough water/broth to cover everything...if not, add 1 cup more water at a time until you have as much as you need.

2. Bring to a boil.  Boil for about 5-10 mins, then simmer for about 30-45 mins, until all veggies are soft and the meat is cooked through.  If using a croc pot, set it on high for about an hour, then turn to low and let it cook all day (if you don't have an hour to wait, just cook on low and it should be fine by the time you get home at dinner time).

About  10 mins before you are ready to eat, throw the biscuits into the oven or slice up the fresh bread and enjoy!

What is the surprise, you ask? The surprise is that you won't really taste the pumpkin, and it will serve to thicken your stew a bit.  I hardly ever use cornstarch to thicken my stews, but then I like mine a little more liquidy than some people do. I just love hot broth I can soak my bread into!