Beef Stew

I have been wanting beef stew for a while. I like it at least once during the winter but the hubby isn't a big fan. I've always made it using one of those seasoning packets you get at the grocery store and liked it just fine. Since those contain soy they were out of the question (our son has several food allergies). I came upon this recipe the other day and thought I'd give it a try. Usually anything I make from the Pioneer Woman is good so I thought I'd give it a go. If you know me at all, you know that I rarely follow a recipe totally. I'm always making substitutions to use what I have on hand and this recipe was no exception. Here are the changes I made:

* I used the beef stock instead of the bullion cubes since they contain soy
* I used frozen stew vegetables. They contained pearl onions but I love caramelized onions and the flavor they add to dishes so I used the regular onion called for in the recipe also.
* I added extra frozen carrots. I had about 1/3 of a bag left in the freezer so I through them in.
* Same with the corn. It was frozen and there wasn't a whole lot left so I added it also. The boy is also allergic to corn so I took his out of his servings.
* I did not have tomato paste on hand so I used a couple tablespoons of ketchup. I didn't measure; I just put some in.

The stew was a big hit with everyone in the family. The kids were excited just smelling it cooking wondering what it was going to be. We loved it at out house and it will definitely be added to my recipe box. Hope you will give it a try also. You can find the original recipe here: Beef Stew with Beer and Paprika