Winter Stew...

Friday night I was able to have 2 of my really good friends Katherine and Rani over and we had some good girl time..we had a lot of catching up to do ;) it reminded me of the days of old when we would get together every other week at starbucks for accountability, these two ladies have cared for me spiritually for years...and I couldn't thank them enough for their friendship!

Anyways I am usually a little skeptical about trying a new recipe when I have people over for dinner, but I bit the bullet and tried this stew recipe I had been eying in my Southern Living "Light and Easy Comfort Food" cookbook....and it turned out great...Whew! So here it is:
Pork & Squash Stew:
Ingredients:

• 1 pound pork shoulder (I used pork butt instead....worked just as well...and I imagine you could also just substitute with beef as well)
• 3 tbs flour
• 4 teas. oil
• 3 cups chopped onion
• 2 1/2 cups chopped carrots
• 1/2 teas. dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 teaspoon pepper
• 1 (12oz) beer
• 2 cups (3/4'') peeled cubed butternut squash (about one pound)
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley (1 teaspoon dried was fine)

Trim fat from pork, cut into cubes. Set aside. Place flour in ziplock plastic bag. Add pork, shake to coat. Discard flour. Heat 2 teas. oil in nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Brown pork on all sides (about 8 minutes), then remove and set aside. Add remaining 2 teas. oil to pan, add onion and carrot; saute 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Add pork, beer, rosemary, salt, and pepper to skillet. Bring to boil; cover, reduce and simmer 30 minutes. Add squash; cover simmer 25 more minutes until squash is tender. Sprinkle with parsley.

We served it over risotto.

Also for those who aren't familiar with preparing/storing butternut squash (this was my first time buying the whole squash...I usually buy it already cut and ready to cook) here is some helpful info I got from www.digsmagazine.com

choosing and storing butternut squash
Choose a squash that feels heavy for its size, with blemish-free skin, and no soft, moldy spots. Thanks to its thick skin, butternut squash keeps for a good long time (up to a month) when kept in a cool, dark place. Don’t store squash in the refrigerator, as the cold temperatures will actually cause the squash to go bad much more quickly.

prepping butternut squash
Unlike summer squash, the peel of winter squashes is too tough for eating, even when cooked. To peel a butternut squash, cut off the ends of the squash. (You’ll need a good heavy chef’s knife to cut a butternut squash). Quarter the squash – I find it easier to cut latitudinally first (the short way), then to cut each section in half. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and fibrous innards from the bulbous bottom ends and discard. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the peel.

Here's my happy hubby enjoying his left over stew ;)

Enjoy!