Country French Beef Stew

From my old CrockPot Blog-
Country French Beef Stew

6 slices bacon; cut into 1/2 in pieces
1 (3 lbs) boneless beef chuck roast, trimmed; cut into 1 inch pieces
1 large onion; cut into 1/2 in wedges
3 cups ready to serve baby carrots
1 cup red Zinfandel wine OR nonalcoholic red wine
3/4 cup beef broth
3 Tbsp all purpose flour
1 tsp dried basil leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes undrained
1 pkg (8 oz) sliced fresh mushrooms; (3 cups)
1/2 cup julienne-cut sun-dried tomatoes; (not oil-packed)
Hot cooked noodles;
if desired Chopped fresh parsley OR basil leaves; if desired 1.

Spray 5 to 6 quart slow cooker with coking spray. In a 12-inch skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp. Place the bacon in cooker. Discard all but 1 TBSP bacon fat in skillet, Cook beef in bacon fat in batches, 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown. Stir onion into beef. Cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Spoon mixture into cooker. 2. Stir carrots, wine, broth, flour, basil, thyme, salt, pepper and canned diced tomatoes into mixture in cooker. 3. Cover; cook on LOW heat setting 7 to 8 hours. 4. Stir in mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes. Cover; cook on LOW heat setting 20 to 30 minutes longer or until sun-dried tomatoes are tender. Serve mixture over noodles; sprinkle with parsley.