I recently watched some of the NFL draft with my husband and that is a far more interesting event than it sounds. It is actually pretty funny to listen to some of the comments they make about these athletes and their guesses as to how they ended up as athletic and strong as they are. Take, for instance, a tight end drafted this year in the first round out of University of Iowa. He is a home grown Iowa boy and is very tall and strong. People have theories about homegrown farm boys from the corn state. The corn is the sole reason they have all their strength. Duh!

If this same kid was from Rancho Cucamonga, California, they probably wouldn’t really be spouting off theories based on geographical location why he is so strong. But since he’s from Iowa, it’s the corn. It’s most definitely the corn.

Being from Idaho, I would hear the same thing about potatoes. These boys that grow up on corn and potatoes all the time make the greatest athletes, apparently. While I’m not planning on being drafted in a professional sport (this year, anyway), I can appreciate some appreciation for corn and potatoes.

I did love growing up in a potato-farming town and having to peel potatoes every Sunday for a nice, home-cooked meat and potatoes meal on Sundays. Now that is the right way to start (or end, depending on how you look at it) your week.

Even though it’s May, and not typically the time of year people are thinking about stews and heavy meat and potatoes kind of meals, bear with me. For people like me who are always looking for a chance to make this kind of meal--Sundays are your new best friends. It could be the dead heat of July and you can get away with a nice pot roast and mashed potatoes on a Sunday.

My friend nonchalantly told me the other day how her husband made a delicious stew over the weekend and I was super jealous. It’s probably been a good decade since I’ve had stew and it was long overdue. When my friend told me this I was thinking, “Who has time to make stew?!!”

Oh, Mary. Your mother did. You know, the mother with EIGHT children! If that woman had time to make a delicious stew and not whine about it, so can you.

I had a gut feeling to check out the stew recipes from Pioneer Woman first and that was a brilliant and inspired idea. Of course it’s no surprise that she has a phenomenal (and a lot easier than I thought it would be) stew recipe that you’ve got to try out on Sunday. You won’t regret it.

Are you cool with stews and other meat and potato meals any time of the year? Please share your thoughts and/or theories of athletic abilities based on geographical diets in the comments below.

The Pioneer Woman’s Sunday Stew and Mashed Potatoes

Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 3

Ingredients:

STEW:
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. butter
2 pounds beef stew meat (chuck roast cut into chunks)
salt and pepper
1 whole, medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 ounces tomato paste
4 cups low sodium beef stock or broth, more if needed for thinning
several dashes worchestershire
1/2 tsp sugar
4 whole, carrots, peeled and diced
2 whole, turnips, peeled and diced
2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley

MASHED POTATOES
5 pounds russet potatoes, peeled
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. seasoned salt
salt and pepper, to taste


Directions:

Salt and pepper stew meat. Heat olive oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add butter, and as soon as it melts, brown half the stew meat until the outside gets nice and brown, about 2 minutes. (Turn it as it browns.) Remove the meat from the pot with a slotted spoon and put it on a plate. Add the rest of the meat to the pot and brown it, too. Remove it to the same plate. Set the meat aside.

Add the onion and garlic to the pot, stirring it to coat it in all the brown bits in the bottom of the pot. Cook for two minutes, then add the tomato paste to the pot. Stir it into the onions and let it cook for two more minutes.

Pour in the beef stock, stirring constantly. Add the Worcestershire and sugar. Add the beef back to the pot, cover the pot, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer, covered, for 1 ½ hours to 2 hours.

After 1 ½ to 2 hours, add the diced turnips and carrots to the pot. Stir to combine, put the lid back on the pot, and let it simmer for another 30 inutes. The sauce should be very thick, but if it seems overly so, splash in some beef broth until it thins up enough. Feel free to add beef broth as needed!

When the carrots and turnips are tender, stir in minced parsley. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Serve piping hot in a bowl with mashed potatoes, letting the juice run all over everything. Sprinkle with extra minced parsley at the end.

MASHED POTATOES

Cut the potatoes into quarters and cover with water in a large pot. Boil until potatoes are fork tender, about 25-30 minutes. Drain the potatoes, then put them back into the same pot. With the heat on low, mash the potatoes for 2 to 3 minutes to release as much steam as possible.

Turn off heat, then add cream cheese, butter, cream, seasoned salt, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Serve potatoes immediately or spread into a buttered baking dish to be reheated later. To reheat, put them in a 375 degree oven, covered in foil, until hot.