Amuse Bouche: Peasant Dish my Ass, Do you know what a good Pinot costs these days?

I don't want to hear a word about beef bourguignon being a peasant dish. NOT A WORD. I put a whole damn bottle of pinot noir in there and peasants can't afford that shit.

And besides, how the hell else was I going to use up the rest of that beef tenderloin that I was so cunningly tricked into buying at the store?

What can I say, meat, much like cheese and red wine, speaks to me. I listen. I heed.

So part 2 of Bonne Annee, is most certainly beef bourguinon. Now, I know you're going to read this recipe and ask me where the bacon is, but I have had turkey bacon 3 times this week and I am just damn sick of it.

Trust me, the magic's in the pinot.

Beef Bourguignon

1 tablespoon good olive oil
2 pounds of beef tenderloin, (left over from that shitton of beef you got talked into buying)

SaltFreshly ground black pepper
1 pound carrots, sliced
2 yellow onions, sliced
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1/2 cup Sherry
1 bottle of GOOD Pinot Noir
1 box beef broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pound pearl onions
1 pound fresh mushrooms roughly chopped

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in your DUTCH. Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. In batches in single layers, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove the seared cubes to a plate and continue searing until all the beef is browned. Set aside.

Toss the carrots, and onions, 1 tablespoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper in the fat in the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.

Add the sherry, stand back, and ignite with a match to burn off the alcohol. Put the meat back into the pot with the juices. Add the bottle of wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme.

Bring to a simmer, cover the pot and place it in the oven for about 1 and a half hours or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.

Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and the flour to make a buerre manie and stir into the stew. Add the pearl onions.

Saute the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned and then add to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.