I did it! I concocted a stuffing recipe to accompany beef. I’m not saying it was the best dish I’ve ever come up with but quite good and certainly worth making again with a few, flavor tweaks. (If you didn’t read last week’s post – May 14, you might want to in order for this one to make sense.)
I started by making a pot roast – a 2-pound, boneless, cross rib roast. I rarely serve a roast, let alone one from a pot, but I don’t know why because it is easy and delicious, and it makes the house smell like “home.” My mom probably made a pot roast every single week of my childhood. I can picture it in my mind – the meat, so tender, it almost falls apart upon slicing, served with boiled potatoes, gravy made from the braising liquid and buttery, boiled carrots or green beans.
If you’ve never cooked a roast in this way, try it. You can use cheaper cuts of meat, such as chuck, round or cross rib, so it’s easy on the budget, plus the leftovers make wonderful sandwiches. Here’s how simple it is:
Pot Roast
Season the roast with garlic and onion powders, your favorite meat seasoning (I love Hy’s) and/or salt and pepper.
Spray a Dutch oven with Pam, or add a tablespoon of oil, and bring to medium heat on the stovetop. Quickly brown (sear) the roast on all sides; add 2 cups of water and half an onion, chopped. Cover and bring just to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2 – 3 hours, occasionally turning the meat. Remove from cooking liquid, slice and serve … um, that’s it.
Now, to the stuffing!
I decided to try the stovetop method since I’ve never used it before, and it really is so much faster than oven baking. My strategy was to use flavors that are compatible with beef rather than poultry.
I thought I’d succeeded but discovered “not exactly” when my husband Michael asked for cranberry jelly to go with dinner. Dang! With regret, I offered up the jelly but then quickly mixed a teaspoon of Dijon mustard into the rest of the stuffing we hadn’t eaten, and amazingly it curbed the “poultry” part of Mrs. Cubbison’s herb concoction. So, here you have it:
Booke Stuffing for Beef
1- 2 T butter or margarine
4 cloves of garlic, minced
½ medium onion, chopped
2 medium-sized carrots, chopped
1 medium-sized parsnip, chopped
4 mushrooms, chopped
¼ t fresh rosemary, minced
1 t fresh parsley, chopped
1 t fresh chives, chopped
¼ cup white wine
½ cup cooking liquid from pot roast (or beef broth)
½ – 1 t Dijon mustard or Trader Joe’s Aioli Garlic Mustard Sauce (to taste)
½ bag of Mrs. Cubbison’s Herb Dressing mix
Melt butter in a large saucepan on the stove at medium heat. Add garlic and the rest of the vegetables and sauté until tender. Add herbs, wine, cooking liquid or broth and mustard. Stir and cook on medium low for 5 minutes.
Add stuffing and mix gently but thoroughly. Turn heat off, cover and let stand for 5 minutes.
If you want moister stuffing, add a little more cooking liquid or broth. Add salt and pepper to taste, if desired.
I served the roast and stuffing with sautéed Brussels sprout – my husband’s all time favorite veggie. Just to be clear, beyond the cranberry jelly request, Michael said he loved the stuffing and that he enjoyed the dinner very much, so I am going to count it as a success.
Then again, my husband loves everything I make probably because he loves me, so maybe not such a good success barometer.
Hey, I have an idea: You try it and let me know what you think. And please share your improvements. Let’s make this a collaborative affair!
Eat well. Be happy.
Plynn
Plynn Gutman 