Christmassy stew and brown bread

Last Sunday, I went into a bit of a cooking craze, and once I was done with the 50 something gougères, I decided to make a cranberry and mulled wine stew inspired by fellow blogger Retro Chick, and some whole-meal bread for later in the week.
I had the re-heated stew tonight and it was amazing! I had the bread with soup for lunch earlier in the week, and it was lovely too.

Christmassy Stew

For four people, you will need:

• a pack of lean diced beef
• 1 big onion
• a few carrots (I used 4)
• a small suede
• 1 leak
• a few mushrooms (I had 6)
• a beef stock cube
• a bottle of mulled wine
• a couple of handfuls of fresh or frozen cranberries

Heat a bit of olive oil in a heavy casserole dish, and brown the beef with salt, pepper and a bit of flour. This will create the base for a thick flavoursome sauce. Once the meat is browned on all sides, add the finely sliced onion, and keep stirring until translucent. Crumble the beef cube, stir well and add a bit of water to create a thick gravy.

Add the peeled and sliced carrots, suede cut in rough chunks and sliced mushrooms and stir well so everything gets coated in the gravy.

Pour the wine, add the cranberries, and leave it to bubble away on the hob for a few hours while enjoying the smell spreading in your house. 

Mine was on for about 4 hours, and then re-heated for half an hour a couple of days after.

Because it's packed with vegetables, you don't really need anything to go with it, but it is lovely with boiled potatoes or just rustic bread.

Next time I'll do it, I think I won't put a leak in and will add a few spices, maybe a clove and a stick of cinnamon to make it even more Christmassy!

Bread

I am not a bread maker, this is only my second attempt, so there is plenty of room for improvement!

For one loaf, I used:

• 7g sachet of fast-action yeast
• 500g strong whole-meal flour
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 300ml of warm water
• salt
• sugar

In a little bowl, mix the yeast with a couple of tablespoons of warm water and a teaspoon of sugar. This will help the yeast become active.

Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl, make a well in the centre and add in the oil, yeast mixture and remaining water. Mix well (I started with a spatula and finished with my hands to make sure I mixed all the flour in). Once the preparation seems even, tip it onto a floured surface and knead. After a few minutes of hard work, make it into a smooth ball, place it in a lightly oiled bowl and let it rise for an hour.

Once risen, knead it back, reshape it into a loaf and place it on a lined baking tray to rise for another hour. 

When it's done, dust the loaf with a bit of flour, cut a cross into the top of the loaf and bake in a preheated oven (thermostat 6 to 7) for about 40 mins. Steam helps creating a thicker crust, so you can try placing a little bowl of boiling water in the oven whilst the bread bakes.

To know if your bread is ready, make sure it is golden brown and sounds hollow when knocking underneath.