Food: Low calorie beef stew - the perfect winter comfort food
Sometimes in winter, only comfort food will do, so yesterday I plugged in my slow cooker and set about bubbling up a cold weather stew feast.
I was inspired by this beef bourguignon recipe from Sunrise Senior Living, but as I don't like the taste of red wine and I'm counting calories at the moment, I switched things up a little. Technically mine is just a beef stew, but it's still really tasty and warming.
For my low fat version of the recipe which serves four, you will need -
400g diced casserole beef 2 peppers chopped (I used red and yellow) 200g diced onions 200g mushrooms chopped 400g can of chopped tomatoes 40g tomato puree 2 garlic cloves Bay leaf Oxo cubes Fry light
The method couldn't be easier, as it's all just chucked in the slow cooker and cooked on high for three to four hours.
I sprayed my slow cooker with fry light and then added the onions, then the garlic, beef, peppers, mushrooms, bay leaf and some seasoning. Next I poured in the whole can of chopped tomatoes and then 400ml of beef stock made with boiling water and a few oxo cubes. I like to add a lot of oxo as I like my stew really rich and meaty - this helps in place of the red wine too.
I left the whole thing to bubble away for a few hours. Once it was nearly done I added the tomato puree and a couple more oxo cubes crumbled straight into the stew, as this helps to thicken the sauce. We served our stew up with some steamed carrots and mash made with skimmed milk rather than butter, and the whole meal comes in at just under 500 calories. Not bad for comfort food!
*I was compensated for the cost of the ingredients in this recipe
What's your favourite cold weather comfort food dish?
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