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French Fridays: Belgian Beef Stew with Beer and Spice Bread – David Lebovitz’s My Paris Kitchen

March 19, 2016 by Renee

Belgian Beef Stew-2737Carbonnade flamande au pain d’épice

This recipe could not have come at a better time. We’ve been experiencing some fabulously warm weather here in NYC the past few weeks, but alas, this weekend, to celebrate the Spring Equinox, a dip in the thermometer and another snowfall is in the forecast. The heat in my house has been turned back on and all the windows are tightly closed. So it’s only apropos that we recreate this hearty stew on this last, cold weekend of winter.

Beef carbonnade is popular in Belgium and in the north of France where the winters are long and the ales are plentiful.  The “winter warmer” beers are brewed to be stronger, richer and more full-bodied and taste great when you are curled up next to a roaring fire while you are wrapped in your snuggliest blanket or here, where it’s used to slowly braise a piece of meat into tamed tenderness.

The crucial choice will be, of course, which beer or ale you choose to use for your carbonnade. The variety will really transform the character of the dish depending on the beer’s profile. Needless to say, a good Belgian ale, perhaps of the Trappist variety, such as Chimay, would really be the best choice, but another, with good character, particularly an amber ale, will work just as well.

The distinctive feature of this dish is the spice bread coated with a thin layer of mustard (I used Maille Dijon, of course) that is used to flavor and thicken the sauce. Using the French classic, pain d’épices, a deeply-infused bread spiced with cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and honey, it’s reminiscent of gingerbread or Lekach, a honey-cake, and is intensely aromatic.  The bread’s distinctive flavor improves with an overnight rest, giving the flavors time to mellow.  

Pain d'epices -2658

As the dish cooks, the bread breaks down and melts into the braising liquid, providing a thick, rich and slightly sweet and sour sauce that clings to the tender hunks of beef.  

While the stew is simmering, during its last hour, you have just enough time to make a batch of herbed fresh pasta to go alongside.

Herbed pasta-2744

Get the recipes for Belgian Beef Stew with Beer & Spice Bread on pages 198 and 293 of My Paris Kitchen.  The herbed fresh pasta can be found on page 230. 

For details on recreating these recipes, check out the CookTheBookFridays site and see others who are also cooking the book-

You can also buy the book here:

MyParisKitchenDavidLebovitz-269x337
 

 

 

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Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links to my Amazon Associate’s account. This means I receive compensation if you make a purchase using these links.

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Filed Under: Kitchen Sink, Cook The Book Fridays- My Paris Kitchen Tagged With: Beef, Cook the Book Fridays, My Paris, Spice Cake, Stew

« French Fridays: Dukkah-Roasted Cauliflower-Cook The Book Fridays-David Lebovitz’s My Paris Kitchen
Bruschetta with Grilled Zucchini and Ravioli with Asparagus »

Comments

  1. Piebird says

    March 20, 2016 at 1:28 am

    Wow! You pulled out all the stops with fresh pasta. Impressive!

  2. Shirley (Flourishen Test Kitchen) says

    March 20, 2016 at 2:14 am

    I was at a complete loss when it comes to beer. The wine store could not offer much help either. I like your recommendation of a Belgian ale.. That’s what I’ll get next time.

  3. Teresa says

    March 20, 2016 at 9:14 pm

    The pasta sounds like a wonderful choice to accompany the stew. And I especially love your photo of the stew at the top of your post. I’ve really enjoyed the bread and am looking forward to having an excuse to bake it again when I (eventually) make the stew.

  4. Cher says

    March 20, 2016 at 10:09 pm

    The pasta was a lovely idea. Beautifully done!

  5. Katie says

    March 22, 2016 at 10:13 am

    Gorgeous!! and congrats on your feature by David Lebovitz this week, Renée! Glad you all enjoyed the stew.

  6. Betsy says

    March 22, 2016 at 8:20 pm

    I’ll admit that this stew (any stew) wasn’t my favorite, I am enjoying the variety of bases people made. Your homemade pasta might take this week’s prize! Hurrah!

  7. Jenniferc says

    March 23, 2016 at 11:03 am

    Your photos are beautiful–the stew was certainly not photogenic in my kitchen =) I made David ‘s mashed potatoes but the fresh herbed pasta looks amazing! I do have a pasta maker somewhere I’ve never used…hmmm…

  8. Karen says

    March 24, 2016 at 6:59 pm

    It all looks delicious, and now I can’t wait to make the herbed fresh pasta!

Trackbacks

  1. Bruschetta with Grilled Zucchini and Ravioli with Asparagus says:
    March 28, 2016 at 10:59 pm

    […] nights in the past week. Having made David Lebovitz’s Herbed pasta as a side to the delicious Belgian Stew with beer we had last weekend, and remembering how easy and fun making pasta by hand is, we’ve become a […]

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