semi-homemade?

 

I have a dirty little secret and it involves cans of soup, yep...those innocent looking little red and white cans.  I do not usually like to go the "semi-homemade" route, but some recipes are just too good (and easy) to resist (don't judge me). In the day, cooking with cans of soup was all the rage, (think chicken divine or green bean casserole) but those days are long gone (or are they?), with only a few hanging on for dear life...this is one of the recipes I can't stop making, it is just too insanely good. The recipe actually takes about three hours to cook but after the initial browning of the meat it is virtually fuss-free, allowing you to relax and occasionally inhale the intoxicating aroma of simmering meat wrapped in a rich, golden, onion, and mushroomy sauce.

The recipe began life (many years ago) as "beef bourguignon" and was my "go to" company recipe. As time went by, I started playing with the recipe adding potatoes, carrots and peas, which in turn lead to beef stew and this pot pie. I love the way the fall-apart-tender-meat is seasoned and embraced by the sauce, I have yet to find a way to duplicate the flavor without  using the soup.

It may seam a bit ironic making pie crust from scratch, then stooping so low as to use a "semi-homemade" filling... let me assure you that the explosively flavored meat and veggies is more than deserving of the crust, it may well be too good for it, which is why I save half the filling (this recipe makes a copious amount) for another meal where nothing competes with the beef and veggies, well maybe some homemade spaetzles or gnocchi.

beef pot pie

(go here for recipe)