Beef Stew Attempt #2

Okay, so I have been working to perfect beef stew. I made a batch a few weeks ago but it was a little too tomato-y for my taste. So this time I tried a different recipe. Nate loved it, he gave it a 10 out of 10. For me it was missing a little something. I wanted the stew part to be richer. However, I loved the way the beef turned out. It was so flavorful and so tender. I am going to keep the beef portion of the recipe, but continue to try to work out the sauce portion. I found this recipe at Anna Can Cook. I just changed a few things.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 Tbsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper
2 bay leaves
1 lb. stew meat
1 onion, chopped
4 large potatoes, peeled and diced
3 carrots, sliced
1 stalk celery, diced
3 (14.5 oz.) cans of beef broth
3 Tbsp. cold water

Preparation:
In a large ziploc bag, thoroughly mix the flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Set aside 3 Tbsp. of flour mixture for later use. Add stew meat and shake until well coated. Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. In small batches brown the coated beef, about 1 minutes per side. Once beef is finished, remove and set aside.

Turn heat down to medium and add onion to pot. Cook onions until tender, about 5 minutes.

Return beef to pot with the onions and pour in the beef broth. Stir to combine and bring mixture to a boil. Add bay leaf. Turn heat down to low, cover pot and let simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Bring stew back to a boil and add potatoes, carrots, and celery. Mix the 3 Tbsp. of reserved flour mixture with 3 Tbsp. of cold water. Whisk thoroughly and then slowly add to stew, stirring continually to thicken stew.

Turn heat back down to low, cover with lid and cook an additional 40 minutes, or until vegetable are tender.