i made this stew last week and although it was delicious, i would do it completely different next time around. the recipe stated to add the beef and butternut squash in the pan and cook together for 1 hour. well, there is no way in the world you can get tender beef in an hour, unless you use a tenderloin. and there is no way your butternut squash won't be baby food after being cooked for an hour. i still find challenges in the kitchen and just mark them up to "lessons learned". of course once i realized the mistake, i thought, "how in the world did i not make these adjustments in the beginning". i hate when i am not 100% satisfied with a meal i have prepared. but, it happens sometimes. truth be told, i think i am much harder on myself than need be. i actually let this stew effect my weekend a bit. i worried that my clients were disappointed. come to find out, they actually liked it. try using butternut squash in the next stew you make - it is really good, and much better for you than a white potato. the orignal recipe can be found here. next time i make this, i will follow the instructions, except i will add only the beef to the pan and cook for 2 hours or so - then add the butternut squash and mushrooms ( i added those to this meal) and continue to cook for another 45 minutes. this will ensure very tender meat and perfectly done squash.