Rutabaga

in my last post i mentioned beef and rutabaga stew and how GREAT it is. TaDa from Being Healthier asked me to post the recipe. (and since i LOVE posting recipes i couldnt say no!)

BEEF AND RUTABAGA STEW (makes five servings. 6 pts each.)

1 lb beef, fat trimmed and cut into cubes (i buy the stew meat cuz its cheap and already cut up)

1/4 cup flour

1 large onion, chopped up in big pieces

1/2 cup dry red wine

1 cup water

1 cube beef bouillon

2 tbsp worcha-cha-cha-shah-shire sauce ;-)

2 tbsp olive oil

10 cloves garlic, chopped (this sounds like a lot but it mellows as it cooks)

1 tsp thyme

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1 lb rutabaga, peeled, chopped into 1-inch pieces

1/2 lb green beans, cut in half

1. combine beef and flour in a large bowl. stir to coat the beef in the flour. in a large pot (dutch oven) cook the beef and chopped onion in a little bit of canola oil over medium-high heat until the beef is browned and the onion starts to get tender (about 4 minutes).


2. add the wine, water, bouillon, worcestershire sauce, thyme, black pepper, and olive oil to the pot. bring to a boil. reduce heat. cover. simmer 30 minutes.


3. add chopped rutabaga to pot. bring to a boil. reduce heat. cover. simmer 1 hour.


4. add cut green beans. cover. simmer 20 minutes, or until beans are just tender and rutabaga is soft (like a cooked potato)
   

the rutabaga (also called swedish turnip, yellow turnip, or wax turnip) comes in a wax coating. peeling it it kinda irritating. i used a potato peeler. cutting it is difficult. you need a good knife! i cut it in half first.then i cut it into slices and cut the slices into cubes.

when the rutabaga is raw it looks exactly like what it is....a root. it's actually a cross between a cabbage and a turnip! (*thank you wikipedia*)

but once its cooked, it turns a orange color that looks like sweet potato. it has the consistency of potato too. and takes on the flavor of everything else in the stew. *scrumptious* im sure this could also be done in the crock pot. from what i read about converting a recipe for a slow cooker, i think you just reduce the liquid and cook this particular recipe on low 8-16 hours or high for 4-6 hours. but i have never actually TRIED it in a crock pot MYSELF....but i think i will!

(sorry about the cell phone pic!)