French Beef Stew

Rejoice! It's almost Fall and with cooler weather, I want to make soup and homemade breads. This hearty stew has a little kick to it that we really liked. Pictured with Whole Wheat Dinner Muffins.  Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

1 1/2 pounds cubed beef stew meat
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 (14.5 ounce) cans Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained 1 (14 ounce) can beef broth
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 carrots, chopped
2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1-2 tablespoons Dijon-style prepared mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Combine meat and flour in a large plastic food storage bag and toss to coat evenly. In a 6 quart saucepan brown meat in hot vegetable oil. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Add diced tomatoes, beef broth, carrots, potatoes and thyme. Bring to boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover; and simmer for 60-90 minutes, or until beef is tender. Blend in mustard and serve. Serves 8.