Lunch: Beef and Sweet Potato Stew

You can substitute butternut squash for the sweet potatoes in this recipe if you'd like. This stew is excellent served over the Root Vegetable Cakes.

This recipe includes fertility superfoods such as:

Cinnamon

Health and fertility benefits of Beef and Sweet Potato Stew

Cinnamon is one of the best ingredients that someone with insulin sensitivity can eat. Half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day has been shown to be very effective at normalizing blood sugar levels. Cinnamon contains hydroxychalcone, which is thought to enhance the effects of insulin. It has also been suggested that Cinnamon prevents post-meal blood sugar spikes by slowing the gastric emptying rate - meaning that food digests slowly. (Reference: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11506060).

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
Cooking spray
1 1/2 pounds lean beef stew meat (chuck or round)
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, sliced 1/2 inch thick rounds
2 celery stalks, diced
2 1/2 cups fat-free, reduced sodium beef broth
1/2 cup prunes, diced
1 cup hot water
2 sweet potatoes (about 6 ounces each), peeled and diced into 1 inch chunks
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Instructions

Add olive oil and generous amount of cooking spray to a large soup pot over high heat. In batches, brown beef on all sides. Do not overcrowd the pan with beef or it will not brown.
Remove the beef from the pan and set aside. Add onions, carrots and celery to the pan and sauté for 4-5 minutes.
Add the beef broth and scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add beef and simmer for 1 hour.
While the beef is simmering, soak the prunes in hot water for 20 minutes. Drain the prunes, saving the water and set aside.
After the beef has simmered for 1 hour, add the drained prunes, sweet potatoes, 1/2 cup of the prune water, cinnamon, ground black pepper and salt (optional). Bring to a simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Stir in the chopped parsley and serve.
MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE: Ensure your ingredients are gluten free and this dish can be gluten-free.

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