Bœuf à la bourguignonne

Also known as bœuf bourguignon (beef burgundy), this hearty beef stew is a classic of French cooking. I've wanted to make one since the end of summer. Fall and winter are the times to eat the classic plats mijotés that are so typical of home-style cooking in France. For this one, we went to see the butcher that used to drive to our house once a week.

The meat with herbs and aromatic vegetables before being doused in red wine.

You may remember that we "fired" him a few months ago. His stuff is great, but expensive. We just couldn't justify his prices on a weekly basis. But once in a while it's nice to get something exceptional. The beef in this dish is joues de bœuf (beef cheeks), a very tasty and tender cut and one that we don't really see in the supermarkets. I added some onion, carrot, garlic, allspice, black pepper, bay leaves, and fresh thyme and rosemary. What you can't see is the poitrine fumé, sliced smoked-cured pork belly (bacon), on the bottom. I covered the meat with red wine to marinate it for about twenty-four hours. Then it cooked long and slow to be ready for today's dinner.

We'll serve it with potatoes, although a very common accompaniment to this dish is tagliatelles (egg noodles). Since I'm making a pasta starter, I thought potatoes would be better with the main course. If I get it together to do photos of the finished dish, I'll post them later.