Red Wine & Thyme Beef Stew w/ Cheddar & Thyme Dumplings

Ingredients:

6 Carrots, from cello bag. (**For me, I think stew carrots are just too big. You could still use them if you like, but I'd probably use maybe 3 of them.)

6 Celery Stocks

1 Large or 2 Medium sized onions diced.

4 Cloves Garlic, diced. 

6 Medium Potatoes

2 lbs. Stew Meat

2 28oz. Cans of crushed tomatoes. (**I love the San Marzano brand!) 

1/2-1c Red Wine of your choice. 

Thyme

Olive Oil

S&P to taste. 

**The stew meat I get from my grocery store is still a bit too chunky for me, so I like to cut the pieces smaller, bite sized. Just so everything can cook at the same pace & it's better for my kids too. It's up to you if you want to do the same. 

Prep all your veggies, cut them into bite sized/uniform pieces. Then in a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil, add the garlic to the pot & cook till fragrant. Next, add your stew meat & season with S&P. Cook & let the juices evaporate for about 5-10 minutes on high, stirring occasionally & watching carefully. Reduce heat to medium-high, add onions & cook till translucent, then add the carrots, celery & wine. Season again with S&P, then add the leaves from several sprigs of thyme. Chop them a bit before adding them to the pot to let the flavor come out. (**I love thyme, so I used about 8 sprigs.) At this point, let the pot simmer for about 10 minutes to let the alcohol cook out & to let the flavors meld together. Next, add the crushed tomatoes & potatoes, season again with S&P, stir, cover & simmer on medium for one hour, stirring occasionally, the same on medium-low for another hour. 

***25 minutes before your cooking time is over, prepare your dumpling batter & add the batter to the pot by the spoonful, cook uncovered for 10 minutes & covered for another 10 minutes. If your dumplings still look wet after the 20 minutes are up, reduce the heat to low & let cook for another 10-15 minutes. Shut off the heat, keep covered, let cool for about 30 minutes & serve warm. Garnish with some Italian Parsley. 

**DUMPLINGS: I used Bisquick. Follow package instructions as directed for dumplings. I seasoned with Old Bay, S&P, Thyme, and about 1/2-1 cup of shredded sharp cheddar. If the batter seems a bit too dry, add another tablespoon of milk and it should be ok.