Beef Stew with Fennel Gremolata

Gremolata, a garnish for meat dishes, is traditionally made with chopped parsley, garlic, and lemon rind. This variation substitutes fennel fronds for the parsley, sliced fennel bulb in place of the garlic, and orange rind in place of lemon. Serve over mashed potatoes.

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• Stew:
• Cooking spray
• 1 1/2  pounds  eye-of-round roast, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2  cups  thinly sliced fennel bulb (about 2 small bulbs)
• 1 1/2  cups  chopped red bell pepper
• 1  large onion, cut into 1/4-inch-thick wedges (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 2  cups  (1-inch) diagonally cut carrot (about 3/4 pound)
• 1  cup  water
• 2  tablespoons  tomato paste
• 1  teaspoon  fennel seeds
• 3/4  teaspoon  salt
• 3/4  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  coarsely ground black pepper
• 3  orange rind strips
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1  (10 1/2-ounce) can beef broth
• 2 1/2  cups  (1-inch) diagonally cut parsnip (about 3/4 pound)
• 
  Gremolata:
• 1/2  cup  finely chopped fennel bulb
• 2  tablespoons  finely chopped fennel fronds or fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2  teaspoons  grated orange rind

Preparation

To prepare stew, heat a large Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add beef; cook 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove from pan.

Add 2 cups fennel bulb, bell pepper, onion, and garlic to pan; reduce heat to medium, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add beef, carrot, and next 9 ingredients (carrot through broth). Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Add parsnip; cover and simmer 30 minutes or until beef is tender, stirring occasionally.

To prepare gremolata, combine 1/2 cup fennel bulb, fennel fronds, and grated orange rind in a small bowl.

Spoon 1 1/3 cups stew into each of 6 bowls; top each with 1 1/2 tablespoons gremolata.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

271 (29% from fat)

Fat:

8.8g (sat 3.2g,mono 3.6g,poly 0.5g)

Protein:

23.4g

Carbohydrate:

26g

Fiber:

7.5g

Cholesterol:

54mg

Iron:

3.2mg

Sodium:

652mg

Calcium:

97mg