Autumnal Beef Casserole

Gosh, the last post was waxing lyrical about summer suppers - now here we are in Autumn. Where have I been? Well, I have passed my time at home in the summer winds and rain, and in France in a little gallic sunshine. Today, as I went about my business, I noticed the rustle of the dried out little brown leaves being blown around the edges of the house - a sure sign that the season has changed. I take no notice of temperature - where I live it is irrelevant (i.e always cold). It is more subtle details which give the seasonal game away: the smell of woodsmoke, the sharpness of air, the shortened days and a more golden light.

'Tis time for a casserole, thought I. Salads no longer seemed appropriate (if they ever were). I dug around in the freezer and unearthed some beef chunks. I knew I had parsnips and carrots. What more could a girl want? The meat was stuck in the microwave to defrost and then I was ready to go.

Took an onion, peeled and sliced. Threw it into a casserole dish warming with mild olive oil. Peeled and sliced two fat cloves of garlic. Threw them in with the meat and a good shake of plain flour. Browned the meat off, added sea salt flakes and twists of black pepper. Finished off a jar of dried oregano, popped in a bay leaf and a sprig of fresh rosemary from the garden and then bathed the meat in about 250ml of red wine. I then pottered back to the freezer and found a tub of homemade stock from some long forgotten roast chicken. Defrosted it in the microwave and poured it in (about 500ml). A squeeze of tomato puree (about 1 tablespoon); a shake of balsamic vinegar (but a teaspoon or two of sugar would have been fine too); a slug of orange juice. What have I forgotten? Ah yes, some dried porcini mushrooms: I boiled the kettle and put them to soak for a few minutes in about 200ml of hot water. The whole lot then got sploshed into the casserole. I peeled a good sized parsnip, halved it down the middle then chopped it into chunks; ditto a large carrot. Both then went in with everything else. Lid on, and thence to the floor of the Aga roasting oven. (I would imagine this would equate to a medium hot ordinary oven). All you want to do now is reduce the juices and cook the carrot and parsnip - so just keep an eye on it till you are happy that this is done.

Meanwhile, I peeled a large potato and two small ones and did likewise with a sweet potato. Chopped them all into chunks and brought to the boil in salted water. 20 minutes later I drained them, added a generous knob of butter and about two tablespoons of soured cream and gave them a good mash. Perfect, creamy, flavoursome. Over the pan of boiling potatoes, I had steamed chopped cabbage. This I now sauteed for a moment or two with butter and sprinkled with salt and ground pink peppercorns. Slap onto a warm plate and there you have it. Full of flavour, very nourishing - and hugely comforting, with a glass of red wine, on a cool autumnal night.