Italian Beef Tortellini Stew

Two hundred and ninety-eight days dry. Three hundred approaches. I mentioned it to Gary on Thursday and he said, "Don't count toward round numbers. Just count toward tomorrow." I said, "I'm going to count toward tomorrow and also note that three hundred is coming." He said, "Fine. But three hundred is just three hundred. The recovery isn't in the number." I said, "I know that. The number is just proof that I'm doing the thing. The thing is the thing." He said, "Then keep doing the thing."

The thing this week included a difficult farrier day. The horse at the Yellowstone County ranch — a big warmblood gelding who is not my friend — was bad on Tuesday. He threw me against the stall wall twice and cow-kicked a third time, and by the time I got him done my shoulder was bruised and my temper was tested in ways that recovery has helped with and also made harder, because before I could have taken a drink after a day like that and it would have handled itself, and now I have to actually handle it. I went home and fed the horses and made dinner and called Gary and went to bed. That's handling it. Not glamorous. But functional.

Sarah came Thursday evening and we had dinner in Billings and the dinner was good. The hand signal worked once, and she waited, and I came back, and the conversation continued. We're figuring it out. We're figuring something out.

November in Montana. The ranch is gray and the wind has an opinion and I made beef barley soup Tuesday because sometimes you just need something thick and warm that takes all afternoon to make.

After Tuesday — the shoulder, the wall, the cow-kick, all of it — I needed something that would take time and attention and give me something back for it. Beef barley is what I said out loud, but what I had in the pantry leaned Italian, and this stew came together the way those kinds of meals do: slow, deliberate, filling the house with something that made coming home feel worth it. You don’t rush it, and it doesn’t rush you, and by the time it’s done you’ve handled the day without doing anything you’d regret.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes | Total Time: 2 hours 50 minutes | Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium carrots, sliced into rounds
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
6 cups beef broth
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
2 cups fresh or refrigerated cheese tortellini
2 cups fresh baby spinach
Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Instructions

Brown the beef. Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high heat. Season beef cubes with salt and pepper, then add in batches and brown on all sides, about 4–5 minutes per batch. Transfer browned beef to a plate and set aside.
Sauté the aromatics. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion and celery to the same pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
Build the base. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, letting it caramelize slightly. Add the diced tomatoes, beef broth, Italian seasoning, thyme, and smoked paprika. Stir to combine.
Return the beef and simmer. Add the browned beef back to the pot along with the carrots. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 2 hours, or until the beef is tender and the broth has deepened in flavor.
Add the tortellini. Uncover the pot, increase heat to medium, and stir in the tortellini. Cook according to package directions, typically 5–7 minutes, until the tortellini are tender and cooked through.
Finish with spinach. Stir in the fresh baby spinach and cook just until wilted, 1–2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed.
Serve. Ladle into bowls and top with grated Parmesan. Best with a thick slice of bread on the side.

Nutrition (per serving)

Italian Beef Tortellini Stew — Something Thick and Warm That Takes All Afternoon