How do I love thee? I bring you HP

I agree with Madonna…you sure don’t need diamond rings from a fella to illustrate that his love for you is real…he needs to express himself.

The Fella was out of town for a few days and on his drive back to Hamilton (the beautiful) he stopped by a British food shop to buy me some treats. Included in these treats was one of the most romantic (to me) gifts ever….HP Guinness! I love the mighty HP Sauce – like REALLY love it. When I travel on a plane I carry a bottle on my onboard luggage. I figure if my plane ever crashes in the Andes, and I have to resort to eating other survivors, I will be set because I will pretty much eat ANYTHING with HP Sauce on it. The Fella knew how much this would rock my world so when it comes to expressing himself, I think he came up trumps. He knew how thrilled I would be to find my beloved HP laced with Guinness-y goodness.

There is lots of rumous about the "health benefits" of Guinness and lots of websites that debunk this school of thought.  My great-granny advised me that having a Guinness everyday boosted your iron, pumped up your blood and it kept you from looking "peelie wallie" - a term reserved for the palest of pale blue Scots.  There could be something to this - as my great-granny lived to be ninety-five - and she never suffered from any ailments.  Mind you, her other piece of advice to me was "aye, if electric blankets were invented in my day, I never would have got married - sex...ach!  I'd rather have a fish supper".  Well....can't really agree with her on that one...

What better way to try out my fancy-arsed HP sauce than one of my personal specialties, Guinness stew.  Yeah, baby - a little Guinness on Guinness action made with love for The Fella.

One thing that you have to know about my "recipes" is that I never have exact measurements (unless when it comes to baking) and I rarely follow a recipe exactly.  I always like to substitute items and mix it up a bit.  So here is the "basic" recipe.  Feel free to change it up as you feel fit - throw in whatever vegetables or herbs you have on hand and experiment.

GUINESS STEW
1 package of stewing beef
1 package of "bangers" a.k.a breakfast sausage links (if it is a double layer package just use one layer)
1 medium onion diced
2 carrots chopped
2 potatoes cubed
1 can beef broth
1/4 can of water
1/4 can of Guinness (for the stew - drink the rest of it while you are doing all this bloody chopping)
Pepper (to taste)
Salt (to taste)
Dash of dried thyme
Small plate of flour

Dredge the stewing beef in the flour.   Heat enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom of your frying pan, brown the beef on all sides and place in a slow cooker.  Chop the bangers in half and brown them in the heated pan then add to the slow cooker.  Turn the slow cooker on low.  Add the broth, water, Guinness and the rest of the ingredients.  Cook on low for four - six hours.  

Top with HP (any variety!)

FASHION

I covet these shoes with covety covetness.  How fab would it be to make this stew wearing these Alexander McQueen beauties?  Hey, it's a slow cooker - you can make this hearty meal while you lounge on the sofa looking fabulous south of the ankle.


Thanks for reading

Eat, drink, but don't be Mary - be yourself