Ground Beef with Mushrooms

Granted, this dish is not much to look at, but it is very tasty and very easy to do. Honestly, I don't know what to call it. I made it one day, many eons ago, and it started innocently enough as a possible pasta sauce.

In an attemp to cut the calories, I decided against using oil. So I freed the ground beef from the shrink wrap and dropped the whole thing in the hot pan. It sizzled as it was supposed to and, as the meat cooked and released some of its juices, I added the chopped onion, garlic, celery, a little wine, a bouillon cube, and finally some sliced mushrooms. By this time it smelled divine and I thought it would be a crime to smother it in tomato sauce. I tasted a bit and was won over.

Ever since, I have made this recipe often, every time I don't want to or have no time to do a more elaborate dish. You can serve it with potatoes, rice, or just some bread and butter. I decided to go low-carb today and served it with sliced tomato sprinkled with oregano and a green salad.

Ground Beef with Mushrooms

• 1 pound extra-lean ground beef
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 large cloves of garlic, thinly sliced (or less if you think I'm overdoing it)
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 to 5 ribs celery, sliced (1 1/2 cups thinly sliced)
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 1 beef bouillon cube
• 8 oz sliced fresh mushrooms

Heat a medium-sized pan and drop the ground beef in it. As the beef browns, it has a tendency to clump together. Break the clumps with a wooden spoon to allow the ground beef to cook evenly. As the meat looses its pink colour, add the chopped onion, the garlic and bay leaf. Reduce the heat to moderate and let the meat cook stirring every now and then. As the liquid disappears, add the wine and the bouillon, let cook until the bouillon cube melts and then add the mushrooms. Season with freshly ground pepper. I do not use salt because I find the bouillon provides enough. Let cook gently for about 5 minutes or so, just until the mushrooms wilt.
This recipe makes 3 servings.