Beef Stew (in the Slow Cooker)

 I love the slow cooker aka crock pot.  I purchased the Hamilton Beach Stay or Go one with the sealable lid and probe thermometer.  Honestly never used the thermometer but this cooker is amazing.  Has a great easy to use display and came with a spoon that snaps onto the lid.  Anyway, after I bought it I used it a lot, then I kind of dropped off a bit, but now its back!  I already made pulled pork with beans and this incredible beef stew.  It always reminds me of my grandma- she used to make this (on the stove top) and the smells always take me back.  Even my mom cooked this in the slow cooker and threw it over some buttery egg noodles- no one can resist.  My fiance says he likes it better when I don't use the slow cooker- but his tone turned around when I broke out this recipe. 

Slow cooker recipes are great because you prep the night before and then just turn on in the morning before work and you have dinner already made.  Just boil some water for the egg noodles and you are set!

Ingredients

• 1 bag of wide egg noodles
• handful of parsley, chopped for garnish (optional)
• about 2 pounds of stew beef chunks- they are called different things in the store- most likely it has the word stew on it.
• 3 carrots, chopped into big pieces
• 3 ribs of celery, sliced into big pieces (use the leafy tops too!)
• 1 large onion, sliced or chopped
• 2-3 garlic cloves, smashed or chopped
• 2-3 bay leaves
• pinch of dried or fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dried)
• 1 tsp dried sage (or 1-2 fresh leaves, chopped)
• 3 beef bouillon cubes (Instead of this & water you could just use 3 cups of stock)
• 3 cups of water
• 1/2 cup of dry red wine
• 1-2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
• lots of freshly cracked pepper

1. Put everything except the noodles and parsley into the slow cooker. (As I said you can pile everything into the pot the night before and just pop into the fridge.  Pull it out in the morning and just turn on the crockpot.)
2. Cook on low for 8 hours (You could probably do as little as 6 hours, but I work for 8 hours so it works out perfect)
3. When you are ready to serve, boil the egg noodles and drain. (You could toss with butter if you want)
4. Top the noodles with the stew and garnish with parsley. Enjoy!