Monday, October 15, 2012

Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon in a Pumpkin!


Every Fall, we make some sort of stew in  a pumpkin.  It has become a rite of passage for us and and our friends. Last year we made French Chicken Stew in the pumpkin.  This year my husband wanted to make Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon again.  We had made it several years back, but that was BNC, before new camera, so I redid the pics and and post. Ever since he got Julia's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, he will only make Julia's recipe for beef stew.


First, you cook your stew recipe on the stove or in the oven, and then place the stew in a cleaned out pumpkin, rubbed with oil.  Be sure that the pumpkin that you buy, will fit in your oven.  You bake the pumpkin and the stew, just until the pumpkin is soft inside, so when you scoop out the stew, you get a spoonful of baked pumpkin, about two hours.  Do not over bake!  The bottom of the pumpkin gets done sooner than the sides. The stew just stays warm in the pumpkin. Yum!  This is the best way to eat stew in the Fall, is a wonderful presentation, and gets rave reviews.

If you are making Julia's recipe, be aware that it is a lengthy process, but well worth it.  The depth of flavors is remarkable, and you will savor every bite!  Scott did the sub-recipes for the Brown-Braised Onions and one for the  Mushrooms Sauteed in Butter the night before. He used Angus trimmed Beef Stew meat for the stew. Cooking these two vegrtables separately, gives the juices a deep brown color, which is enhanced with red wine. The meat is browned separately in the bacon drippings , then combined with sauce ingredients and baked for 2-3 hours in the oven. then the mushrooms and onions are added to the stew We added more carrots to the recipe, because we like carrots.  That is the only change we made to Julia's recipe.  We served boiled, Baby Red Potatoes with Parsley on the side. on the side.  Bon Appetit.

 
Now if you don't have the time to make Julia's recipe, or you don't want to,  here is the original recipe that we started making several years ago, Pumpkin Stew from Taste of Home.  This recipe adds potatoes and diced tomatoes, a basic stew recipe, but very good none the less, and less time consuming.  You're the cook,so you can decide which version of stew you like, and you won't be disappointed with either one. You could also make chili in the pumpkin, mmm maybe next year, chili!

I linked up this recipe to Steph's Bite By Bite, All Things Pumpkin Link Up

 I also linked up my recipe to Brandie@The Country Cook's Weekend Potluck #39
Stop by and say Hi to Brandie!

 

17 comments:

  1. Becky, this dish looks absolutely divine! I love your family's annual rite of a meal in a pumpkin. I've skirted around making Julia's recipe until now, as this inspirational post has changed that. Thank you for sharing...brava!

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    1. Brooks,
      You are welcome! Send me a picture, when you make it! Bon Apetit!

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  2. That is such an inspired dish, I love love love the idea of stuffing the pumpkin! :D

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

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    1. Uru,
      it is so much fun to bake a pumpkin with stew in it, and it tastes so good.

      Delete
  3. Very interesting and creative! It sounds great!

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    1. Pam,the stew tastes so good, especially if it's baked in a pumpkin!

      Delete
  4. Wow! Lovely treat for autumn and even Halloween

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    1. Medeja,

      This would be a great idea for a Halloween party, and lovely presentation.

      Delete
  5. That is awesome...I just bought a small pumpkin and this is how I will make it!

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    1. Debbie,
      Send a picture to me, when you make your stew in a pumpkin. I'd love to see it.

      Delete
  6. Such comforting dish perfect and seasonal. Real nice!

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    1. Thank you, Shulie,
      This is such a comforting dish, and you get baked pumpkin besides.

      Delete
  7. I've made Julia's classic boeuf bourguignon and it was amazing. I think it would go very well with the flavor of roasted pumpkin.

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    1. Anita,
      I think that the flavors of Julia's boeuf bourguignon deepen even more, baked in the pumpkin.

      Delete
  8. I've always wanted to cook, or at least serve something like that in a pumpkin!! I have a friend who did it years ago, and I've never forgotten it! Not sure I have the patience for Julia's recipe, (maybe someday!), but I love this idea!! Happy fall, Becky!!

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  9. Kim,
    Happy Fall to you. You don't have to make Julia's recipe for beef stew. We have made chicken stew, and maybe next year chili.

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  10. Becky, that looks delicious! I wouldn't presume to speak for Julia (though I enjoyed an acquaintance with her), but I really don't think she'd mind your addition of a pumpkin to the recipe. If you check out my adaptation of her recipe, you'll see I've made a few changes--but none so colorful as your beautiful pumpkin!

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