Anyway, now that I'm unemployed I have no excuse not to waste hours cooking and posting pictures.
We'll start with this lovely dinner I had of pot roast, parsnip-potato mash, and bacon roasted brussel sprouts.
Since I'm free to watch television more often now, I settled into some Food Network the other day and watched 5 Ingredient Fix with Claire Robinson. Then I went to the grocery store for her Sunday Pot Roast and Parsnip-Potato Mash. Added a green element with some brussel sprouts.
Sunday Pot Roast with Mushroom Gravy
1 (4 to 5-pound) boneless beef bottom round roast
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
2 medium yellow onions, halved and sliced
4 cups low-sodium beef broth
Preheat your oven to 325. You'll want to heat the olive oil and sear all sides of the meat. Then set the meat aside, and cooked the mushrooms for about 5 minutes. Add the onions and beef broth, and then return the meat to the pot, nestling it down into the vegetables. Include any juices that may have collected while the meat sat. Then cover, and put in the oven for 2 1/2 hours, then flip the meat and do another 30 minutes uncovered to reduce the liquid. To thicken the gravy, run some of the mushrooms and onions through a food processor or mini chopper, and add them back in.
Searing my roast, Claire suggests 4 minutes each side
Mushrooms and onions in the beef broth...I dice my onions small because I have texture issues and don't want to bite into a huge chunk later
Parsnip-Potato Mash
2 1/2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 pounds parsnips (about 8 small), peeled and chopped
Kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
3/4 cup half-and-half
Freshly ground black pepper
Put the potatoes and parsnips in a pot with cold water and salt generously. Bring to a boil and then simmer 20 - 25 minutes, until fork tender. Heat the butter and half-and-half in a small saucepan until the butter is melted. Drain the potatoes and parsnips, and give them a quick mash. Add the hot butter mixture and mix them up, also adding salt and pepper to taste.
This was my first time working with parsnips
Cooking the potatoes and parsnips until they're "fork tender"
Potatoes and parsnips mixed with the butter and half and half
Bacon Roasted Brussel Sprouts
You'll need:
Brussel Sprouts
Bacon and its grease
Salt and pepper
Other options include lemon juice, olive oil (instead of bacon grease, or along with the bacon grease if you don't have enough), garlic powder, etc. You can even use little chunks of ham instead of bacon, I've had it both ways. You can mix the ingredients together on a pan, or in a big ziploc bag (and then of course pour them out on a pan). Then just roast in the oven at 400 for 30 to 45 minutes, shaking the pan or stirring it around every 5 to 10 minutes to get even cooking. You want them to end up somewhat blackened on the outside.
Brussel sprouts ready for the oven
Brussel sprouts out of the oven
Worth it, don't you think?
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