Averie Cooks

-1 Beef Stew - To a large stockpot or Dutch oven, add the olive oil, beef, and cook over medium-high heat to sear and brown the beef. Stir and flip intermittently as the beef cooks to ensure even cooking. Cook for about 5 minutes. Beef does not need to be fully cooked through, just browned on the outside.
-1 Add the onions, garlic, and cook for 2 minutes; stir nearly constantly.
-1 Add the carrots, potatoes, tomato paste, beef broth, and stir or whisk to encourage the tomato paste to dissolve.
-1 After it has dissolved, add all the remaining ingredients (in the stew portion of the recipe), and simmer over medium-low heat, uncovered, for about 1 hour. Stir only very occasionally.
-1 If the stew is low on broth, add some now. Tips -  After the dumplings are added and while they cook, they will thicken the stew, so add more broth now if you think it needs it. I also recommend reduced sodium beef broth so that as it evaporates and concentrates while it cooks, and naturally become saltier, that your finished stew isn’t too salty.  You can always add more salt, but can’t take it out. Now is a good time to taste and check for seasoning balance and add more salt or pepper, if desired.
-1 Dumplings - To a medium bowl, add the Bisquick mix, cheese, milk (OR bake Grands Biscuits or similar according to package directions to save time OR make scratch dumpling dough).
-1 Drop the dumpling dough mixture by rounded tablespoons evenly over the top surface of the stew.
-1 Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes, or until dumplings are fully set. Use a toothpick or break one open to test for doneness. If you baked Grands biscuits separately, halve them and place on the top of each individual bowl of stew before serving. Remove bay leaves and thyme sprig before serving.