Loaded Beef Stew with Mashed Potatoes

A hearty beef stew made with carrots, onions and celery and served over a heaping bed of creamy mashed potatoes: it’s basically Shepherd’s Pie in stew form.

It’s officially spring, but winter isn’t taking the hint. And while I’m hankering for shorts and sandals weather, that doesn’t mean that I’ll thoroughly enjoy a few extra days (or weeks) of soup season while I can. There’s little more satisfying on a chilly day than a hearty beef stew or a heaping bowl of creamy, steamy mashed potatoes. But together? Well, you might stop wishing for spring to come afterall!

The idea for this recipe came after I posted a food styling tip in my facebook group about using instant mashed potatoes to style soup (the potatoes offer a moldable surface under the liquid to help ‘prop’ up the soup bits and make them more visible on the surface). Someone commented that this—mashed potatoes served with soup—was actually a thing, and, well, it got me thinking that it’d actually be pretty darn delicious.

I originally wanted to do a loaded potato soup with mashed potatoes, but thought that might be a bit too much potato for one bowl. Ultimately we settled on a hearty beef stew served over a mound of creamy mashed potatoes. Like an inverted Shepherd’s Pie, if you will (and indeed, Shepherd’s Pie Stew is the alternative name for this recipe).

The stew itself is quite simple, intensifying the inherent flavors by reducing it on the stove until it’s thick and luscious and bursting with flavor. Inexpensive chuck stew meat serves as the base, combined with your basic stew veggies and little more than chicken stock, tomato paste, and a dash of soy sauce for depth of flavor.

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from Love and Olive Oil http://ift.tt/2pv3Tji