Sunday Pot Roast Dinner

I don't know what is more comforting than a Sunday pot roast dinner surrounded by friends and family.  This dinner was everything I had hoped it would be and more.

I was so anxious for my entertaining debut.  The first dinner that MM and I would host at our house.  I barely slept the night before.  Thinking of all of the things I still needed to do, what I was missing, where would everyone sit, would there be enough plates and silverware for appetizers, dinner and dessert, what time would people start arriving, all of this kept me awake.  Finally I got up at 3:00 AM made some toast and warm milk, wrote a list of things I needed to complete or get and then went back to bed.  At 5:30 AM I woke up to go for a run.  I had to expend some energy, and I had a training plan to follow of course!

With one more trip to the store I was ready to head home and begin the process.  I got this recipe from one of my favorite blogs, The Pioneer Woman www.thepioneerwoman.com.  I love this site!

That is a whole lot of meat!  8.5 pounds of chuck roast.  

Season both sides with a generous amount of salt and pepper.  

Peel 3 large onions and cut in half.

Scrub 8-10 carrots.  I didn't peel the carrots.  They look more rustic!  Trim the ends off and  slice into 2" pieces.

Add 2-3 tablespoons olive oil to a large dutch onion and heat over medium  high heat.  Add the halved onions until browned on both sides.

Remove onions to a plate.  Add sliced carrots to the same pan and brown on all sides.  Add more olive oil if needed before adding the meat.  Brown the meat on all sides.  I had two pans going for the amount that I was making.  I browned the meat in batches.  

Everyone in the jacuzzi!  Beautiful!

Sunday Pot Roast Dinner

Serves 12-14

Ingredients:

8.5 pounds Chuck Roast (preferrably whole, but I had four pieces of meat)

1/4 cup olive oil

3 large yellow onions

8-10 whole carrots

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups dry red wine

4-6 cups beef stock

6 sprigs fresh thyme

6 sprigs fresh rosemary

Salt and pepper each side of the chuck roast generously.

With this amount of food I had to use two dutch ovens.  Luckily my oven is large enough for both to fit!  

Heat each Dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to each.  

Peel the onions and cut in half.  Scrub the carrots.  I left the peel on.  Cut the ends off the carrots and slice into 2-3" pieces..  Add the halved onions to the hot oil and brown on each side.  Remove the onions to the plate.  Add carrots to the hot oil until browned.

Add more oil to the pans if needed.  Sear each piece of meat on all sides until browned.  Remove the meat to a plate.  

With the burners still on high, add 1 cup of red wine to each pan to deglaze it.  Scrap the bottom of the pans with a whisk to get up all the browned bits off the bottom.

Once the pans are deglazed place the pieces of meat in the pans and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway.  Split the vegetables evenly between both pans.  Add the sprigs of rosemary and thyme to each pan.  

Place a lid on each pan and roast in a 275F oven for 4 hours.

Once the roasts are done, remove pans from oven.  Transfer meat to a rimmed baking sheet and tent with foil so all the juicy goodness can settle in the meat before you shred it.  After about 10 minutes place each piece on a cutting board and using two forks shred the meat to your desired degree of chunkiness.

Serve with Mashed Potatoes and The Easiest Biscuits Ever for the most comforting meal ever!