I don’t know about you, but when you move, you find extra things you no longer need.  In this case, I have three bottles of red wine that have sat in my basement for a long time.  I don’t drink on a regular basis anymore and when I do, I don’t want to open a bottle of wine just for myself.  What better way to use them than by cooking.  I’ve got some sparkling wine too that I need to use.  This week, I am focusing on red wine.

This week’s recipe is from Good Food for Braised Beef with Red Wine & Cranberry.  This recipe would be great if you have some leftover cranberry sauce.  I don’t.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the stuff.  However, if I made it, I would be the only one eating it.  What I can do is get some fresh cranberries instead.  That lowers the sugar by quite a bit.  There also needs to be some added vegetables.  I might also add a grain to round out the dish.

Here are the original stats:

Here’s what I changed:

• I increased the servings from 4 to 10 to lower the calories
• I swapped the cranberry sauce for fresh cranberries to reduce the sugar
• I added red bell pepper to increase the vitamin C.
• I added sweet potato to increase the vitamin A.
• I added quinoa for some added grain.

Here are the final stats:

Here is the final recipe:

Instant Pot Braised Beef with Red Wine & Cranberry

Serves 11

• 2 pounds chuck roast
• 3 onions
• 1 bottle dry red wine
• 1 12 ounce bag fresh cranberries
• 4 red bell peppers, chopped
• 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed

1. Spray an Instant Pot liner with cooking spray and heat on sauté mode. Add the beef and fry on all sides until evenly browned. You may need to do this in two batches. Remove to a plate.
2. Add the onions and bell pepper and fry quickly for 5 minutes until tinged brown. Return the beef to the pan and add the wine, cranberries, and sweet potato. Bring to the boil, stirring to scrape up the juices. Sprinkle with pepper.
3. Close the lid and set to pressure cook.  Set on high for 25 minutes.  Allow for a natural release.
4. Open the lid and place on sauté mode.  Add quinoa.  Cook until the sauce reduces and the quinoa is cooked.
5. Serve