Irish "Lamb" Stew

So I got a request to "veganize" lamb stew. I'm not totally into the whole idea of "stew" to begin with. In my head, an Irish stew would be potatoes and onions in gravy. End of story. But because I adore my wife, I decided to give it a go. Here is what I did:

1 Package Vegan Lamb (Yes! They make this!!!) 

4 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 large onions, diced

2 large carrots, peeled and chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup (250 mL) vegan "beef" broth

1 tall boy can of Guinness 

1/4 cup (60 mL) tomato paste

1.5 tsp (7 mL) dried rosemary

1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt

2 tbsp (45 mL) all-purpose flour

After chopping and dicing all of the ingredients (except for the flour) I threw them into a crock pot, stirred them well to mix the tomato paste, broth and stout and set it to "stew" for 6 hours, stirring occasionally. I then turned it off and let it sit overnight. 

My god it was hard work!! Ha! 

Fast forward to this afternoon when I got home from work. I turned the crock pot back on.  I then used a spoon to extract about 3/4 cup of the broth into a small bowl. I then added in 2 tbsp of flour and stirred well until smoothe and added it into the pot and mixed well with the broth left behind. I then let it warm and simmer for another hour and a half. 

I'll be honest. My expectations were SO LOW for this. Seriously. Potatoes and chunks of "meat" in gravy. I'll pass thanks. Or so I thought!! 

The Guinness with the "beef" broth, rosemary and tomato paste make for a lovely hearty meal! I suggest you give it a try!