During winter, the body craves calories and heartiness, the kind of "stick to your bones" meals that are hot, fill one up, and provide plenty of nutrition.

That's why people tend to go for soups, casseroles, and stews when the weather turns chilly. This month's recipe is a Fearless Rick original, which he calls Boy Scout Stew.

If you were a Boy Scout, or, if you are familiar at all with Scouting traditions, you're probably aware that Boy Scouts - and even us older Man Scouts - tend towards the earthy, outdoors lifestyle, which includes hiking, survival skills, and camping. And, if you've ever been camping, you know that when it comes to putting on the feed bag, there's not much attention paid to exacting amounts and step-by-step recipes.

This stew is easy to make, and provides enough nutrients to feed four people easily. If you're a loner, this should satisfy your hunger for about two days as it can sit and be reheated multiple times. It's a snap to make, but, take note, when it comes to the cooking time, longer is better, preferably four to six hours and more for re-heating. The longer the beef shank is cooked the more tender it becomes.

It all starts with the absolute necessity of a good beef shank. Shank cuts are much cheaper than other cuts because they're not very tender. If you can procure a beef shank that's two to three pounds with bone in, you're on your way. There's nothing to do to prepare the shank. It goes right into the pot as is. The rest of the ingredients are shown, but here are the basic preparation instructions.

This can be cooked in any good-sized pot. Here at IdleGuy.com HQ, we have a three-quart crock pot or slow cooker which works for many recipes.

Take a beef shank. Put it in a pot with about two cups of water.

Add full cans of peas, beans (red, black, pinto, really any bean will do), carrots, diced tomatoes. Fill with water so that everything is covered. All of these canned goods can be purchased at any local grocer in 14-16 oz. sizes. Keep in mind, this recipe was originally designed for campers, so all of the ingredients can fit into a backpack, napsack, or whatever one uses to tote around vittles into the great unknown. If one has the right size pot, everything can fit into that, secure the lid, and off your go.

Peel and cut into fork-sized chunks three medium potatoes.

Slice up about 1/2 of a 3/4-lb. red onion. Don't dice it, cut it so you end up with lots of onion slices about one to two inches long. They will caramelize and blend into the mix nicely.

Throw the potatoes and onions into the pot. Give it all a good stir.

Wait.

Wait some more.

While you're waiting you can add up the cost of this meal. It should come to well under $20. Not bad if you're splitting it four ways.

After about two hours, pull the beef shank out and cut it into bite-sized chunks. You want to be able to eat this stew with just a fork. Once the shank is cut up, too it all back into the pot. If the shank came with bone in, throw the bone back into the mix as the marrow will add flavor and nutrients. At this time, chuck in a pouch of brown gravy mix. Don't throw the whole bag in, open it, and stir in the contents. Forget the instructions. Once it gets mixed in with everything else, it will help thicken the sauce.

Season to taste. Suggestions include ground black pepper (of course!), seasoned salt, Adobo, garlic powder, parsley, rosemary, maybe onion powder and a dash or two (or four or six) of Worcestershire Sauce and some cayenne pepper for a bit of heat. Adding a little red wine doesn't hurt.

This needs to cook a minimum of four hours total over low to medium heat, covered. It does not need to boil. For the best taste, six hours or more does the trick, so it's something ideally suited for a slow cooker, crock pot or over an open flame in the woods, which provides everybody plenty of time to have a few cocktails or beers, enjoy nature and build up a good appetite.

When the smell of all those good ingredients finally gets the better of you and your mates, slice up some good, hearty bread for soaking up the delicious sauce. IdleGuy.com recommends Walmart's "Everything Bread." It's a white bread baked in house, topped with garlic, onion, pretzel salt, sesame and poppy seeds and maybe a few more odd flavors. Walmart used to sell a fairly large loaf for a buck. Lately, it's around $1.47, and it's smaller, though still not a bad value.

Ladle it out plate to plate and enjoy!