Like many, reading Julie & Julia left me with a sudden urgency to take on some of Child’s most renowned creations. Though I don’t remember ever having boeuf bourguignon specifically, I do remember dinners of its cousin, coq au vin, and slightly more generic renditions of beef burgundy. And again, like countless others, I recall the burnt orange floral motif covering my mom’s 1961 copy of The Art of French Cooking, and the way she constantly referred to its crumpled pages.
Though I don’t own the cookbook (le sigh), it’s quite easy to come by a lot of Julia’s recipes these days, and I have many sites to credit for schooling me.
One major issue I had to tackle was the tiny, little, detail that I don’t eat meat, so making a beef centered meal obviously required some revisions. I strayed far from tofu or TVP, wanting to create a dish as complex and organic as the original; a dish brimming with real food, if you will. One of my favorite vegetarian stews comes from Veganomicon, which does use TVP, but also uses lentils alongside kidney beans; the result is a strangely robust cholent. I borrowed part of their idea, and added walnuts (for fat and texture) and dates (for sweetness).
I studied up on the fat content of Julia’s original dish, and since I didn’t want my adaptation to skimp on flavor or richness, I tried to add as much fat as I could consciously allow.
At first, I found it curious that Julie and Julia praise this dish as one to serve company; I wouldn’t exactly call it aesthetically pleasing, but then again, the very scent of its slow-cooking will bring strangers to your door, wondering what it is and when they might have a taste. Plus, it reheats like an absolute charm. Obviously, I defeated my own objection.
If you are wary of this combination of ingredients, I encourage you to alter it (and then tell me, of course). Here, the dates melt into the sauce, leaving a most pleasant underpinning of intricate sweetness. The walnuts, softened considerably thanks to the soaking, add a slight and occasional chew.
While I tried to replicate the steps of the original as best as possible, make this your own. I’ve come to believe the key to this dish belongs to the method, order of operations, and initial quality of the ingredients. Other than that, have at it! The sauce will fully encompass the tastes of your choosing.
Boeuf Bourguignon, sans boeuf
(
BeefBean Stew in Red Wine, withBaconDates, Onions and Mushrooms)Derived from Julia Child
Vegetarianized by CinnamonQuillIn place of bacon lardons:
4 oz whole, pitted dates (about 3/4 cup)
1-2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 Tablespoon kosher salt
1 Tablespoon minced onion (dried or fresh)
1 teaspoon ground rosemary
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Hot waterSlice each date lengthwise into four pieces, then crosswise into four pieces. Combine spices + vinegar in bowl, add dates, and fill bowl with hot water. Let soak 1-2 hours.
In place of the beef:
1 cup walnuts, soaked in hot water for 2+ hours, then drained
2 cups cooked brown or French lentils (cook with bay leaves for extra flavor)
1 15 oz can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or make them from scratch, if you are awesome)Remaining ingredients:
Olive oil
Butter (I used clarified butter)
1 1/4 cups sliced carrots
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2-3 cups red wine
2-3 cups vegetable broth (I used 1 1/2 of these Rapunzel bouillon cubes)
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
2 whole cloves garlic
2 minced cloves garlic
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme (fresh would be great)
2 Tablespoons flour (I used 1 Tablespoon corn flour + 1 Tablespoon potato flour)
1 teaspoon ground rosemary
Fresh parsley and/or thyme for garnishFor the onions + mushrooms:
30ish small white onions (enough to fill up your skillet)
1 lb small white mushrooms, washed and thoroughly dried
Butter (I used clarified butter)
Olive Oil
Brown Sugar
Red Wine
Tamari or Bragg’s amino acids
Dark brown sugarPreheat oven to 325F.
Drain date pieces, reserving the liquid. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil + 1 tablespoon of butter in skillet; add drained date pieces and saute about 5 minutes, careful not to allow them to burn. Transfer to a dutch oven.
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil + 1 tablespoon butter in skillet, add kidney beans + lentils until they get slightly browned. Add corn + potato flour, and stir, until beans are well coated. Transfer bean mixture to dutch oven with date pieces.
Heat 1 tablespoon butter in skillet, add vegetables (carrots, onions) + walnuts. Add 1 tablespoon of brown sugar + 1/2 tablespoon tamari/Bragg’s and cook over medium, until onions have begun to caramelize, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer mixture to dutch oven.
Stir 2 cups of red wine + 2 cups of vegetable broth + reserved date marinade into dutch oven. Make sure mixture is thoroughly covered with liquid; if not, add more wine/broth. Add tomato paste, minced garlic, whole garlic, thyme, bay leaves, and rosemary.
Place dutch oven, uncovered, in lower half of oven, and bake for one hour. After one hour, stir stew; if liquid is not covering mixture, add more wine/broth. Taste kidney beans; make sure they are not getting dried out from lack of liquid. Cover and return dutch oven to bake for another hour. (And, if you are anything like me, feel free to obsessively open and close the oven, stir mixture constantly, and exhibit positive anxiety over your pending bourguignon experience.)
Meanwhile, prepare onions + mushrooms according to the original instructions (Links to original cookbooks scans). I did this by taste, essentially, but for the onions, I added brown sugar/tamari as needed to obtain a bit of caramelization and proper ‘browning’. For the mushrooms, I used red wine in place of the broth.
Add mushrooms + onions to stew. Taste several times over, adjusting seasonings as needed. If stew seems dry, add more wine/broth and bring to a simmer. I chose to leave it a bit thick, but you may wish to thin it, depending on how you plan to serve it.
Garnish with parsley/thyme and serve alongside fingerling potatoes, noodles, or rice.
Click here for a printable PDF of the recipe only.
Have you pleasantly endured (or not…) any Julia Child fueled kitchen inspiration lately? Do tell.
What a lovely meal!!!
I haven’t made any Julia-fueled meals yet, but I finally saw the movie & loved it! I love how you played with the recipe, it sounds absolutely delicious =D.
I just finished reading the book and I haven’t seen the movie yet!
I think your experiment in this Julie fueled recipe is a real inspiration. I love food that has a sense of humor and I think this recipe is all about playing around, doing your own thing, having a sense of humor and fun, being passionate about food and yet, not taking it too seriously (like life, I guess)……
This is brilliant, thank you
This looks great!! I have only seen the movie, I haven’t read the book BUT I LOVED the movie!! I did experiment cooking mushrooms the way Julia says is best in my Chicken Chapel Hill recipe….ahhhmazing!!!
I’m in the process of reading the book- and I’ve been wanting to make this!
My dad bought me the Julia Childs cookbook after he and my mom saw the movie. I still have yet to see it or cook something from the book! In my defense, the book is packed in storage right now though
I love your blog!! Your photography is awesome. =) I need to make some of your recipes asap! Maybe while I’m home this coming week visiting my family. Have a great weekend! Thanks for following my blog =)
Your mother cooked? Mine did too “bake ____ for one hour (steak, fish, whatever) serve with fresh salad.” I’m totally impressed. There was apparently another whole world out there and one that probably didn’t include fish sticks. Well she did make stuffed grape leaves every once in a while so I’ll forgive her.
I’m so awed and humbled by the combinations you came up with for the lardons and the beef. I’ll bet the dates really brought that maple cured flavor for the lardons (sweet, meaty, salty) but honestly my first thought would have been mushrooms especially for the beef. It looks spectacular as usual. Julia is one of my favorite people to watch on TV especially the “Julia and Jacques” segments, they’re a hoot! The truth is though that you wouldn’t catch me spending all that time preparing dinner. Puff pastry, chocolate mousse, baked alaska, home made ice cream, no problem. I can’t even eat that stuff but I’d spend two days making it just because it’s fun. Well, that and I’m really into the “oohs and aahs” part. LOL
You go girl! So what’s next? Do you have a Halloween surprise hidden up your sleeve for us?
I would call this aesthetically pleasing:) I may be one of the few foodies out there that hasn’t seen Julie and Julia yet! Never had the chance to get a babysitter to go see it and if I did, my husband wouldn’t have been interested! I like your real food philosophy – and the (le sigh) – it is difficult to consciously put too much fat in recipes for me as well – even though I’d happily eat away at a restaurant- but just can’t do it at home!!!
You’re not going to believe this but I have not seen Julie and Julia yet. I know. I may be the mast food blogger on Earth to see it, but I will. Your dish dos look lovely and is pushing me one step closer. =)
I have to say that this looks yummy. I love the way you adapted the recipe.
The bean date and mushroom combo sounds really good. I would not have thought to use the dates.
This looks like heaven! You have such a beautiful blog and I’m so excited to start following
I’m so excited as I just purchased Baking With Julia. Can’t wait to start on some serious baking here!
You did such a great job with all the substitution! thanks for sharing:)
This is awesome, vegetarianizing something so centered around beef takes guts! I’ve never tried any Julia Child cooking; I read Julie and Julia a long time ago and it probably turned me off of Julia because of all those weird ingredients like bone marrow and all the egg stuff (I’m not an egg fan).
But this is really cool and I love that you didn’t go the tofu and tvp route.
Nice job; I look forward to reading about more of your creations!
Props to you for such creativity! Seriously, though, I could just eat the pearl onions from this dish alone and call it a perfect vegetarian meal. It’s to die for! Oh, the wonders of butter…
This looks beautiful! I love your substitutions as well. Such flavors…dates, walnuts, those onions?! YUM!
Love, absolutely love your vegetarianized boeuf bourguignon. I’m always faced with the same dilemma when it comes to making dinner for my hubby. I try to make a meat-less equivalent for the vegetarians in my house. I’ll definitely be serving this meal for them soon.
What is tamari? Is it some kind of sugar substitute?
Tamari is essentially soy sauce, but *generally* (always have to check) gluten/wheat-free, with a slightly different flavor than regular soy sauce, due to a different fermentation process. I use this one: http://www.amazon.com/Tamari-Sauce-Wheat-Free-Organic/dp/B0001FI4BQ/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1255789989&sr=8-3
But, I also tend to use soy sauce and tamari interchangeably, depending on what I have on-hand
I’d love to hear about your version of bourguignon when you make it!
Looks delicious! After I saw the movie “Julie and Julia” I went out and bought all the ingredients for Boeuf Bourguignon. I made it with meat, and followed Julia’s recipe exactly. It was divine
Love your idea. I too came up with an alternate version, only I was trying to reduce the fat content. I do plan to try Julia’s version once I’ve reached my weightloss goal. Until then, I’ll stick with my “Spoof Bourguignon.” Bon appetite!
I was browsing your blog and this is really amazing! Since I eat meat, it’s probably a lot easier for me to do receipes, but your creativity is great! I’m going to have to try this recipe! : ]
Wow, this recipe of yours is brilliant! I love everything about this post, including the beautiful photographs. Actually, I love everything about your blog! Thank you for the inspiration. I’ll dig out my Julia Child cookbook and do some adaptation experimenting as well. That’s after I try your version here. It looks way too good to pass up on!
Melissa
I love this! I don’t eat meat either, so I appreciate the creativity! Nice job!
[...] Boeuf Bourguignon sans Boeuf, from The Cinnamon Quill [...]
After watching that movie, I too thought about how I might veganize that recipe… Of course, I never actually did it, so I’m really excited that you would share your methods! It truly looks incredible.
Have I mentioned that I totally love you? I CANNOT WAIT TO make this!! I have been so in love with that movie (how many movies understand food bloggers and their desires?) lol.. I can’t wait to make this! You took so much time creating each part of this recipe!! I absolutely can’t wait to try it! Thank you for taking the time to make a vegan version!! thank you thank you thank you!!!
Your version looks absolutely wonderful! Beautiful pictures! I’ve not read the book nor have I seen the movie but can’t wait for it to come out on DVD!
i didn’t really follow the instructions, as it was very elaborate, but i was very inspired by your take on this recipe. the flavors were amazing, the stew turned out rich and very comforting. thanks for a lovely idea!
[...] eaten boeuf bourguignon, but it sounds cozy and we love stew and Julie & Julia, and so on. The Cinnamon Quill came up with an amazing adaptation for boeuf bourguignon, sans boeuf, which I was about to make [...]
Thanks so much for posting this, doing all this work! I was possessed to make the beef version after Jule and Julia, and years of thinking about making it, and can’t stop thinking about it, it was sooooo good… but I wanted a vegetarian recipe, because I aspire to be a better person : )
Thanks again.
-Alan