1. Heat a sauce pot medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbs olive oil to pan. Add onions, carrots, and potatoes; sauté 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.Add garlic; sauté for 45 seconds, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat.
2. Add 2 Tbs oil to sauté pan. Place 1/4 cup flour in a shallow dish. Sprinkle beef with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; dredge in flour. Add half of beef to pan; sauté 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove from pan. Repeat until all the meat is cooked.
3. Add wine to pan, and bring to a boil, scraping pan. Cook until reduced to 1/3 cup (about 5 minutes). Put the meat and the wine reduction in the sauce pot with the vegetables and return to the heat . Add canned tomatoes, broth, water, and all the herbs; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.. Simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour or until meat is very tender, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaf. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, basil, and parsley.

Serving suggestion : Serve the beef stew over Easy Polenta with generous amount or grated parmesan cheese. Also with Softest No Knead Bread