Meatball Stew in Whole Wheat Rosemary Garlic Bread Bowls

So, everyone knows we're cranky at my house this week. Poor David is working outside in the cold for 12 hours a day this week, so not only does he  need comfort food, he needs hot, filling, substantial comfort food. And what better than stew? Stew in a bread bowl! David accidentally broke our crock pot this week too, so this is all stove top. Which is fun, since I've never done that before. I've never made bread bowls either, so it was an adventure.

 Stew:

4 cups aromatic liquid*
3 bay leafs
1 tbsp. Cayenne Pepper
1 dozen meatballs**
salt, pepper, to taste
3 carrots, chopped
3 potatoes, cubed
2 onions, chopped
1 head of garlic, chopped
1/3 cup flour
1/2 cup H2O

1 cup frozen peas

*Beef Broth is probably best, but I didn't have it, so I did 2 cups chicken broth and 2 cups Dr. Pepper. You could use any dark soda, and even probably beer (and call it Irish!). Just depends on what you're looking for in terms of flavor.


**You can use frozen meatballs here, but homemade meatballs are super easy to make. 1 lb. lean ground beef, 1 egg, 1/2 cup oats, spices (I use sage, oregano, salt, and pepper- plus some Parmesan if I have it.) Shape, and bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes.

Place your aromatic liquid, meatballs, and spices in a dutch oven over medium heat, and allow to simmer covered for at least 30 minutes. Add all except the last 3 ingredients. Cover, and let simmer again for 2 hours (or so! The longer the better.) Stir together your flour and water, and add to the stew to thicken. In the last ten minutes of cooking, add the peas.


Bread:

4 cups AP flour
3 cups Whole Wheat Flour
5 tsp. yeast
1 Tbsp. Sugar
2 tsp. salt

2 1/2 cups warm water
2 Tbsp. EVOO + 2 Tbsp.

2 Tbsp dried rosemary
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
Coarse Salt


Dissolve your yeast in the warm (NOT hot!) water for 10 minutes. Add the sugar, 2 Tbsp EVOO, 2 tsp. salt, spices, and 4 cups of flour. Stir until combined, slowly adding the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time. (This is a lot of flour. It looks ridiculous to me, but it worked.) Knead in the bowl for a good ten minutes until completely combined, smooth, and elastic. Oil your dough ball, cover the bowl with a damp cloth, and let rise for about 45 minutes. It should double in size. After that, pull apart the dough into 6 even sections (I did 8, which would have been good for soup, but was way too small for stew.) and roll into balls. Place them on a greased cookie sheet, cover again, and let rise another 30 minutes. Then top with remaining oil and coarse salt, and bake in a 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes, turning half way through. Let cool, scoop out the middle, fill with soup/stew, and enjoy!

This camera is awful. Somehow the bread looks anemic. But David loved it, and that's what matters to me. I hope everyone has a happy holiday!