Pot Roast and Potatoes

Pot Roast

I conquered pot roast last night and it turned out perfect! Do I dare say it? Maybe if I whisper it then it won't offend anyone. (Whisper) It was even better than Greg's mom's pot roast.

I have been afraid of pot roast for years, partially because it always seems so dry and partially because of gravy. In this life, I am afraid of heights, large spiders, and gravy. I DO NOT know how to make a good gravy, therefore, I avoid it altogether. I got this recipe off of allrecipes.com, but I changed it to my liking. So, here is the recipe with my alterations (and it was so succulent, it didn't even need gravy):

Mix together:
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1 package Lipton dry onion soup mix
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (plus a few extra dashes just because it's fun to say and it adds so much flavor)
1 onion, quartered

Place roast in an oven bag and pour contents over meat. Place bag in roasting pan. Allow to marinate up to 3 hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place meat in oven and reduce heat to 300 degrees. Cook for 3 hours.

*The original recipe called for 2 cups beef broth. However, it also called for carrots, celery, and potatoes to be added to the oven bag with the meat. If you are going to add the vegetables, I would increase the broth to the original amount. Without the vegetables, the 1 1/2 cups broth was still a ton. In the comments section on allrecipes.com, a few people mentioned that they added a can of Cream of Mushroom soup to the sauce in order to make a gravy (see above for my feelings on gravy).

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

I got this recipe from a friend a few years ago, and it is hands down my favorite potato recipe. I like that you leave the skins on and it is chunky rather than traditional, smooth mashed potatoes. It makes a TON of potatoes though, so you may want to cut this one in half. Although, you could use the left-overs for Shepherds Pie and it would be fabulous, I bet.

12 cups red potatoes, cleaned and cut into 2" chunks
10 large cloves of garlic (I quarter these so the garlic distribution goes further)
5 Tablespoons salt (I thought this was too much last night, so I might cut it down to 4 Tbsp in the future)
1 cup milk
2 cubes butter (This is a lot of butter - which is probably why the potatoes are so fabulous. You could easily cut this down, although you may have to add more milk so they aren't dry.)

Place potatoes, garlic, and salt in a large pot. Add water until there the water level is about 1 inch above the potatoes. Boil for 18 minutes. Drain off all the liquid. Add the butter and milk, and mash with a potato masher.

Crock pot cream cheese potatoes

5lbs potatoes, peeled, cooked, & mashed

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3 tsp onion or garlic salt
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4-1/2 tsp pepper
2 Tbs butter, melted

Combine & put in crockpot. Covver & cook on low for 5-6 hours.

Pork Chops and Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Another recipe I tried this week and have been craving ever since! This is super easy and packed with flavor (just trying out my food network hosting skills)! I took this recipe from Rachael Ray. I modified it slightly to my liking. Delicious!

4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Salt
4 boneless pork chops, 1-inch thick
Pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 Gala or Golden Delicious apples, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 lemon
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chicken stock
2 rounded tablespoons orange marmalade

Directions
In a medium pot add sweet potatoes and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until fork tender, 15 to 18 minutes.

Season chops with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, a turn of the pan, in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook pork 5 minutes on the first side until deeply golden, turn and cook 3 to 4 minutes more with a loose foil tent over the pan. (Foil tent helps to keep chops moist - I highly recommend this.) Remove cooked chops to a plate and cover to keep warm. Add another turn of the pan of olive oil, add the onions and apples. Season with salt, pepper and thyme and cook until just tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Douse with juice of a lemon and remove chops to a plate.

Drain cooked sweet potatoes and return pan to stove. Melt 2 tablespoons butter and combine with marmalade and 1 cup stock. Add potatoes and mash, season with salt and pepper.
Serve chop covered with apples and onions with sweet potatoes alongside.

I will start taking pictures of these creations!

Baked Potato Soup

1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup flour
3 1/2 cups milk
4 to 5 large baking potatoes, oven-baked and cut into bite-sized pieces
6 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
onion salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, melt butter. Stir in flour and heat until smooth. Whisk in milk, stirring constantly until thickened. Add potatoes. Simmer until soup is desired consistency. Soup will continue to thicken as it cools. Stir in bacon, cheese, and sour cream. Season to taste. Makes 4-5 servings.

Hint: a bag of Hormel Real Crumbled Bacon is convenient and delicious for recipes and omelets.