Christmas Week Game Night with Pork Stew

At some point the week between Christmas and New Year's, our family tries to get together for a family game night.  Every year I hunt down a new game.  On those evenings, I just want to make something simple that I don't have to tend to a lot.  I usually serve one or two soups/stews.  I particularly like this pork stew recipe.  It is out of one of those little Betty Crocker paperback cookbooks at the grocery store checkout.  This book is called Savory Pork & Chicken from 1996.

The pork stew is terrific with pumpernickel bread to soak in the broth.  I do a simple dessert such as pumpkin pie or an ice cream sundae buffet - the grandkids really like that one!  You could even just serve some of those marvelous Christmas cookies you made!  Or you could crumble them up and serve them on top of the sundaes! 

The main thing with this evening is it's not about the food.  It's about spending time with family and/or friends surrounded by the love of each other and the season and just laughing and having plain ol' fun!.

This is the end of my holiday week of recipes.  I hope you have enjoyed all of the different types of foods and are able to try out a few.  Please let me know how they turned out and if your family liked them. 

Milwaukee Pork Stew

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds pork boneless sirloin or shoulder, cubed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 large onions, sliced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped (I use much more than this - we love garlic!)
1 pound mushrooms, either quartered or sliced (I added this to the recipe.)
1/4 cup fresh parsley (I never use this)
1 teaspoon caraway seed
1 bay leaf
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) ready to serve chicken broth (I use two cans)
1 can (12 ounces) beer
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Mix flour, salt, and pepper.  Coat pork cubes with flour mixture.  Heat oil in 4-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Cook pork in oil until lightly browned.  Stir in onions, garlic, and mushrooms.  Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally; Stir in remaining ingredients.  Heat to boiling; reduce hear.  Cover and cook over medium-low heat 1 1/4 hours, stirring occasionally, until pork is tender.  Remove bay leaf.