Julia Child's Boeuf....(wait for it)....Bourguignon

I have been feeling a bit more confident in my cooking skills as of late. I've been doing a bit more cooking at our house and the dishes (more or less) come out looking edible. Perhaps foolishly, this has given me false confidence in my kitchen skills. Well, nonetheless, I've decided to attempt the Kentucky Derby of cooking dishes (at least since Julie & Julia came out): Boeuf Bourguignon. Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon, that is.

Witness exhibit 1: the recipe

and the workstation

At this point, the beouf is browning which I got the hang of at around the second batch (don't crowd the pan!!). This was the easy part -- I popped it in the oven with some veggies and a bottle of red wine, beef stock and herbs.

Exhibit 2:

After braising onions in brown sauce (the real name -- not very French, Julia) and sauteing mushrooms in butter (Charlie and I bought the big blocks of butter at Sam's to be ready), the house actually smelled like stew -- just like magic!!

Exhibit 3: The Finale


And plated with boiled potatoes with melted butter and chives


All in all, it was a good effort. Not as good as Charlie's stew but still...

Bon Appetit!