Roasted Root Vegetables

I’m posting this just so I have it here as a reminder to roast vegetables more often.  There is no technique, just yummieness.  I find it remarkable how much I enjoy roasted root veggies actually.  This is in contrast to roasted lighter vegetables, like peppers, zucchini, and eggplant, that almost always disappoint me.

Possible Ingredients

• yellow/white/red potatoes (waxy like Yukon Gold), sweet potatoes (400 calories per pound)
• onion, wedges (1oo calories per large onion)
• parsnips
• carrot
• celeriac ?
• butternut squash

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Chop vegetables into 1 inch ish sized pieces and spread them uniformly on a lightly oiled baking sheet that ideally has a small lip to catch any oil that might run.
3. Liberally drizzle olive oil over the vegetables.  Salt and pepper generously.
4. Bake for about an hour.
5. Enjoy!

Pot roast

Went to Cascioppo for some smoked salmon and saw some of the most beautiful roasts I’ve ever seen in my life: grass-fed, nice marbling, bright red, dry.  All of a sudden, pot roast seemed like a great idea.  The nice roast also cooked to a perfect texture quicker than expected (only 3 hours, whereas supermarket beef will usually take longer).

Here’s a simple and effective one pot dish (well, almost, gravy is easier to make in a second saucepan).  I make this on the stove top, only because I don’t have an over-ready enameled cast iron dutch oven, and I probably won’t have one until after I move from Seattle because who wants to transport a 20-pound pot?

Calorie estimate: 4000

Ingredients

• 1/2 T olive oil
• 2.5 – 3 lb roast
• 1-2 cups red wine (Cabernet, Merlot, more tannic Pinot Noir, Syrah)
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 very large onion, cut into wedges
• 1 fennel bulb, cut into wedges
• 1 carrot, sliced into rounds
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 1 large parsnip, peeled and coarsely cubed
• 1.25 lbs red potatoes, quartered
• salt and pepper
• cornstarch or flour
• dash of nutmeg
• pinch of fennel seeds
• maybe 1 T butter

Preparation

1. Salt and pepper the roast.  One the stove top, in your gorgeous enameled dutch oven (or your roommate’s large non-stick soup pot), brown the roast on all sides over high heat in a splash of oil.  4-5 minutes per surface, including the sides.  For the sides, you may have to hold it there with tongs.
2. While browning, prep the vegetables.
3. After the browning, bring the heat down to low and add the wine and beef broth.  You want enough liquid to go up the side of the roast a little less than half way.
4. Add in the onion, fennel, carrots, and celery.  Cover and simmer for 1.5 hours.  Put the aromatics in now to infuse the meat and the broth, but the parsnips and potatoes should wait so they still have texture when everything is done.
5. Flip the roast.  You’ll probably notice there’s a lot more liquid now from the vegetables.  Add in the parsnips and potatoes, trying to get them into the liquid.  If you’ve got too much liquid (the roast is covered completely), leave the lid cracked.  Simmer gently for another 30 minutes to 1 hour.  Check to make sure the roast isn’t getting overcooked–there is such a thing as too tender.
6. When the meat and potatoes are just about done, drain off most of the excess liquid with a ladle and place it in a sauce pot.  Turn the heat off on the roast, cover lightly with vegetables, put the lid on, and let it rest.  A little of the liquid should remain in the pot so that the meat doesn’t start to dry out.
7. Boil down the liquid in the sauce pot until you have less than 2 cups left.  Adjust the seasoning if required.  A nice touch is a dash (1/4 t ish) of nutmeg and maybe a little more fennel flavor from some fennel seeds,  The subtle touch of nutmeg goes well with the fennel and parsnips.
8. If the roast is fatty, try to skim off the excess from the reduction.  If it is lean, as mine was, add up to 1 T of butter to give the sauce a little more body.
9. Thicken the gravy with corn starch (follow the directions on the corn starch box).  1 T of cornstarch left the gravy a little thin, but I like to err on the side of too thin instead of too starchy and slimy feeling.
10. Plate a bit of the roast with the veggies, pour the gravy on and enjoy.

Perhaps Escoffier might smile, at least a little, at this humble amateur.