Thick and Hearty Beef Stew

There is nothing in this world like a rich, beefy stew on a cold winters day!  It's one of those comfort foods that you just can't get away from. It's kind of like your grandmother ingrained it in your mother that stew was the only food that would warm you up, like your favorite quilt.  At any rate, I wanted to share with you my version of beef stew...with a twist.  I tried our Cherry Cider in it and it was simply amazing - just a touch of sweetness to enhance the beef flavor.  It's kinda the same idea when you add brown sugar to hamburger to caramelize and awaken the flavor.  I am so pleased with the result, that it will be a mainstay in my recipe- I  hope you like it too!
Beef Stew
2 Tbl. canola oil
2 lbs. stew beef, cut into 1 1/2 chunks
4 cloves of fresh garlic, 3 left whole and 1 minced
1 medium onion, cut into slivers
8 pearl onions, peeled and left whole
3 Tbl. flour
1 Tbl. Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 Bay leaf
1 1/2 tsp. Thyme
3 rounded tsp. of Better than Bouillon Beef Base
3 cups warm water
1 cup Cherry Cider
1 cup celery, cut into chunky slices
1 1/2 cups carrots, cut into 1/2 - 3/4 inch chunks 
2 cups potatoes, 3/4 inch chunks
8 large sized white button or crimini type mushrooms, sliced in half
Saute the beef chunks in oil in a dutch oven pot on the stove until browned on the outside.  Remove from pot and set aside.  Add the sliced onions, whole pearl onions, whole garlic, and sliced mushrooms and brown in the meat drippings until caramelized brown.  Add the crushed clove of garlic and stir for 1 minute more.  I like to add some of the cider at this point and stir into the saute process with the onion mix.  It helps with the carmelization step, plus it smells heavenly!  Add the browned beef chunks back into the pot and toss with the Worcestershire sauce.  Salt and pepper to your liking- I prefer the fresh ground because it just tastes better.  Scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen up the cooked-on meat and onion scrapings- they add a lot of richness to the stew. Toss in the flour with all this goodness, until well coated; take off the burner.  Make your beef base with the 3 cups of warm water and stir into the pot.  Season with the Thyme and add the Bay leaf.  Pour in the rest of your cup of cider, and add the chunked celery and carrots.  Don't add the potatoes until the last hour of baking.  Stir and cover with dutch oven lid and place into a 350 degree oven and bake for 3-4 hours. 
During the last hour, carefully open the dutch oven lid and check the gravy amount. You might have to add a bit more water if it is absorbed out, but be careful because you want your stew to be thick. (You could add some more cider, but you need to taste it to see if the sweetness is to your liking).  Carefully stir in the additional liquid if needed, so as not to break up too much of the stew beef or carrots.  Also add the potatoes at this point and return the pot back into the oven for the last hour.  Remove the bay leaf and serve this gorgeous stew in some fun bowls with a crusty slice of french bread.  Then sit down, put your feet up and enjoy this heart-warming bit of heaven.                     Guaranteed to satisfy!