Mushroom Bourguignon

One of my favorite recipes when craving a French inspired dish is bourguignon, a red wine based French stew capitalizing on hearty vegetables like mushroom, artichoke hearts, and carrots. This dish has several layers of flavor; earthy mushrooms, pearl onions for a sweet note, and artichoke hearts, carrots, and celery bringing additional flavor and texture.

Ingredients

16-20 ounces of mixed mushrooms, such as shitake, chanterelle, cremini, portabella, or button, roughly chopped into chunks

1 cup pearl onions, boiled and peeled (thawed if using frozen)

1 onion, chopped roughly

1 head of celery, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 shallot, diced

6 garlic cloves, chopped finely

3 carrots, peeled and sliced

1 cup artichoke hearts, quartered (frozen, not jar marinated)

3 bay leaves

2 Tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup dry red wine such as Cabernet

1/4 cup coconut aminos, tamari or soy sauce

1 Tablespoon herbes de Provence

1 cup vegetable stock

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

Freshly ground black pepper

Rosemary or thyme sprigs to garnish (optional)

Instructions

1. Add the mushrooms, onions, pearl onions, garlic, shallot, celery, carrots and artichokes to a large pot or Dutch oven. Cover and saute the vegetables for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a splash of water if the vegetables stick to the pot.

2. Add the bay leaves, tomato paste, red wine, coconut aminos, and herbes de Provence to the pot. Stir it all together. Cover and let it cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the celery and carrots are tender.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and vegetable stock. Then stir that mixture into the pot of vegetables. Simmer for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens to your liking. Season with freshly ground black pepper to taste.

4. Serve over mashed potatoes on plates or bowls. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary or thyme.