Mochanoff (Beef Stroganoff with Coffee/Cocoa Sauce) GF

I was wandering around online and found a delicious looking recipe for a Beef/Coffee Stew.  I also had a large portion of fresh mushrooms that needed to get used.  We are experiencing a bit of cold spell* but Soup/Stew was vetoed...so I decided to sneak the coffee into some Stroganoff instead.


*Ok, it's not THAT cold but 60's at night and 70's during the day IS cold compared to 100+ weather...I like it!

Here is my basic recipe:  Beef Stroganoff.   I doubled all the ingredients because of the amount of mushrooms I had, except the meat.  My skillet was practically overflowing with mushrooms, so I cooked the meat separately in the wok, using this recipe:  Deep Fried Beef.
I substituted the Sugar/COT with a 2:1 cane sugar/cocoa powder mix when I remembered that coffee and cream of tartar taste absolutely horrid together.  I mixed the dry ingredients together (gelatin, cocoa, cane sugar, salt) then sprinkled it slowly, while stirring, over the already sautéed mushrooms.  It looked like fudge with mushrooms. ;)
I added coffee to thin the sauce, about a cup or so, then the sour cream, then the meat.  The noodle were done right when I was finishing the sauce,  so I added a little extra salt and served everyone a small portion (just in case) over penne rice noodles.  It was a well received.

Something was missing for me though, I couldn't put my finger on it.  Then I remembered, I usually add vinegar....

I added a few dashes of Balsamic Vinegar to my bowl and mixed in.  Oh yeah....it all just came together.  Sweet, savory, salty, sour in balance.....and extremely filling.  Everyone used the balsamic for the second pass and agreed, it was even better.

I can totally see this as a topping for mashed potatoes or use goat meat for a shepherd's pie filling.

If I was going to use a crockpot/slow cooker for this recipe, I would add a layer of coconut oil on the bottom and wipe it up the sides a little to prevent sticking.  I would then add the rest in this order:

Beef

Mushrooms

Onions and/or Red pepper flakes (if using)

Dry ingredients mixed with Coffee (as a paste)

Vinegar

I would cover and cook it low and slow for 8 hours or so, then turn it off and add the sour cream and correct for seasoning right before serving.

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