Slow Cooker Beef Stew

"It's been a long time since I got the original version of this recipe from a high school friend, and I've been tweaking it over the years. Sometimes I'll bake the stew in the oven, but it works just as well in a slow cooker." -CL Reader

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1 3/4 cups)

Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons  uncooked granulated tapioca
• 1  tablespoon  sugar
• 1  tablespoon  garlic powder
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 3  (5.5-ounce) cans tomato juice
• 4  cups  chopped onion
• 3  cups  chopped celery
• 2 1/2  cups  (1/4-inch-thick) slices carrots
• 2  (8-ounce) packages presliced mushrooms
• 2  pounds  beef stew meat

Preparation

Place tapioca, sugar, garlic powder, salt, and tomato juice in a blender, and process until smooth.

Combine the onion, celery, carrots, mushrooms, and beef in an electric slow cooker, and add juice mixture. Cover and cook on high for 5 hours or until beef is tender.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

345 (29% from fat)

Fat:

11.1g (sat 4g,mono 4.7g,poly 0.7g)

Protein:

34.1g

Carbohydrate:

28.8g

Fiber:

5.9g

Cholesterol:

95mg

Iron:

5.3mg

Sodium:

811mg

Calcium:

81mg