Beef Stroganoff

Do you pin?  I do.  I was warned how addicting Pinterest was when my friend Lara introduced it to me.  Did I listen?  No.  Of course not.

I love pinning and planning to make things and actually making plans come to fruition.  Last night I was on my cupcake board looking to see if I had pinned a cupcake recipe for a post I'm making in a couple days.  Mike glanced over and noticed the cupcakes.  I pointed out the Inside-Out Carrot Cake Muffins, hoping to show him that I plan with him in mind too and Pinterest time is not a waste of time.  He knodded and then started letting his eyes wander.  He saw the French Toast and Bacon Cupcakes, Dr. Pepper Cupcakes (yes, for him), and the Chocolate Jack Daniel's Cupcakes.  

*sigh*

He quickly proceeded to tell me how great it would be for there to be 40 of those Jack Daniel's cupcakes in our house, ready to go, on February 23rd for his state meeting.  He promised to fund the project and followed up with,  "And you can blog about the cupcakes too!"  That's how he got me to say yes.  I'm such a push over sometimes.

Unfortunately a girl can't live on wine, beer, whiskey, bread, cheese and sweets alone.  So I'm making dinner in the hopes that I still fall in the "good mother" category of life.
Bon Appetit.

Beef Stroganoff
Adapted from Alton Brown

Ingredients:
2 pounds bottom round
Flour for dredging 
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons butter, divided
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 good sized shallots, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound crimini mushrooms, quartered
3/4 cup red wine
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard blended into 2 tablespoons beef broth
2 beef bouillon cubes dissolved in 2 to 2 1/2 cups beef broth
4 tablespoons sour cream

Directions:

1. One hour before cooking, place the roast in the freezer.  It will firm it up and make it easier to slice.  {I defrosted mine in the fridge and just made sure the center was still a little frozen.}  Cut the meat into 1/2 inch strips.  
2. Season the meat and flour liberally with salt and pepper.  Allow the meat to rest a minutes so that the salt can pull a little moisture to the surface, then dredge in season flour.
3. Heat a large pot to medium-high heat.  Add 1 tablespoon each butter and oil.  When the butter begins to foam, ass just enough of the meat to barely cover the bottom of the pot.  Do not crowd the pan.  Turn strips until they're brown on all sides, then remove to a rack resting over a baking sheet (with a lip).  Continue browning the meat in batches, adding more butter and oil as needed.
4. When all the meat has been browned, pour off any grease from the pan, ass the remaining tablespoon butter, then add the shallot, garlic, and mushrooms to the skillet and saute until brown. 
5. Using a shaker or sifter, sprinkle a couple teaspoons of season flour over the top of the vegetables and toss to coat.  Deglaze the pot with the wine, using a spatula to scrape up any stubborn bits.  Stir in the mustard and return the meat and any drippings to the skillet.  Add enough beef broth to barely cover the meat.  
6. Drop the temperature to a simmer, and cover.  Cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in sour cream an serve over wide egg noodles or rice.

It's important to cook with wine you would drink yourself. 

If you wouldn't drink it, why would you want to eat it?

Your food won't taste nearly as good.

Bonus: Drink a glass while you cook and finish the bottle at dinner.