TUSCAN STEW A LA ESPOSITO

l carrot, scraped and cut into quarters
l med onion, peeled and quartered
l rib celery, cut in half
3 large parsley sprigs
4 cloves garlic
3 whole basil leaves
2 tbsps. fresh thyme
2 tbsps. fresh marjoram
l tbsps. fresh mint
2 tbsps. fresh rosemary needles
4 whole sage leaves
l/3 cup olive oil
l-3/4 lbs. stew beef, trimmed of all visible fat and cut into l” cubes
l-l/2 tsp. salt
l tbsps. corasly round pepper
l cup vin santo or moscato wine
2 cups hot beef broth
In food processor mince together carrot, onion, celery, parsley, garlic, basil, thyme, marjoram, mint, rosemary and sage. Set aside. In ovenproof l0-l/2×2-l/2″ saute pan heat 2 tbsps. olive oil and stir in the minced veggies and herbs. Saute them stirring occasionally until they soften but do not let them brown. Transfer ingredients to a dish and set aside. Heat oven 300. Dry the meat with paper towels; sprinkle meat with s&p. Add the remaining oil to the pan and when oil begins to shimmer add the meat and saute turning the pieces frequently to brown them. When there is no more liquid in the pan raise the heat to high, add the wine and allow it to reduce by half. Lower the heat and pour in the beef broth to cover the meat. Return the beggie mixture to the pan and stir in the peppercorns and lemon zest. (see below the remaining ingredients for this recips) Add the bay leaf. Cover the pan and bake in the oven for l hour. Peel and core the pears. Dice 2 of the pears, then cover and set them aside. Puree the remaining pear in a food processor and blend until smooth. Stir the pureed pear into the meat mixture. Cover the pan and bake for an additional l-l/2 hrs. adding more broth if necessary. Five mins before meat is done, add the diced pears and remove the bay leaf. Serve immediatley. This stew can also be refrigerated for several days.
Remaining ingredients: l tbsps. whole green peppercorns in vinegar, drained
Grated zest of l lemon
l whole bay leaf
3 ripe Anjor or Bartlett pears.
Serves 4 to 6 Maryann Esposite “Bringing Italy Home”