Regina's Roast

From Every Kitchen Tells Its Stories

Printable Recipe 

Prep time: 15 minutes
Roasting time: 45 minutes
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
2 lb top round, blade, flat iron or sirloin, 1” thick (½ lb / person)
4 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
Sauce: (makes 2½ cups)
½ cup ketchup or American chili sauce
¼ cup white or apple cider vinegar
¼ cup water
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp dry mustard
2 tbsp brown sugar
Garnish: 1 tbsp chopped parsley

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C.

2. Heat a skillet on high and sear meat on both sides (2-3 minutes per side). Transfer to a large oven-proof dish.

3. Sauté mushrooms in olive oil or butter (5 minutes).

4. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce, and pour over seared meat and mushrooms.

5. Bake for 45 minutes.

6. Sprinkle parsley as garnish
Lovely served with sweet potatoes (for a quick & easy way to "roast" a sweet potato -see step 1 here) and a side of Crispy Brussels Sprouts & Pancetta

Roasted Herb & Garlic Spatchcock Chicken

Adapted from Cook's Illustrated Summer Grilling issue

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 35-40 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
1 (3½-4 lb/1½ - 2kg) whole chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4-5 large cloves of garlic, peeled
Zest & juice of 1 lemon
Large pinch of red chili pepper flakes
2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1-2 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 500°F/260°C with rack in middle.

2. In a food processor or mini chopper, pulse the garlic, lemon zest & juice, herbs and red chili pepper flakes to form a paste. Set aside.

3. To “spatchcock” a chicken: lay the bird on the breast (back up) and cut out the spine from neck to tail, using kitchen shears. Lay the bird breast up and press down on the breast bone to break it and flatten the chicken more evenly. You might even want to cut out the top of the breast bone, leaving the skin and meat intact.

4. Rinse the chicken under cool water, pat dry and season the cavity side with salt and pepper. Turn the skin side up and gently slip your fingers under the skin from the neck and form a pocket as far as you can. Stuff with herb & garlic paste evenly under the skin. Repeat for the thigh starting from close to where the backbone used to be.

4. Drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom of a roasting pan. Add the sliced onions down the centre forming a bed for the chicken. Place the chicken, skin side up over top and use the remaining herb paste over the skin.
Note: I place the backbone in as well so that I can save all the roasted chicken bones in the freezer for future stock making.

5. Roast at 500°F/260°C for about 35 minutes & test with a meat thermometer. The chicken is ready when the thigh registers 170-180°F/76-80°C. Be forewarned… it will get very smoky, but well worth it.

Italian Sausage, Potato & Mushroom Roast

Italian Sausage, Potato & Mushroom Roast
Adapted from The Illustrated Quick Cook: Easy Entertaining, After-Work Recipes, Cheap Eats

Printable Recipe

Hands on time: 5 minutes
Roasting time: 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
1-2 tbsp olive oil
8 Italian sausages (I love sweet fennel ones made locally) – leave links whole but separate from one another
2 red onions, peeled and cut into wedges
1lb/500g small new potatoes (or fingerlings, or larger thin skinned potatoes , quartered)
8oz/225 g cremini mushrooms, (quarter large ones, leave smaller ones whole or halved)
Salt & freshly ground pepper
Red chili pepper flakes (optional – I like a little heat to balance the sweetness of the sausages)
1 heaping tsp fresh rosemary leaves, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat to 400°F/200°C. Drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom of a roasting pan large enough to hold everything in one layer.

2. Toss all the ingredients in the pan and roast until done, stirring occasionally. (about 30 minutes)

Serve with a salad and you won’t even break a sweat.

Slow Cooker Sunday Pot Roast

Slow Cooker Sunday Roast
From Slow Cooker Comfort Food

Printable Recipe

Hands-on time: 40 minutes
Total Cooking time: 6 hours
Serves 6

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 beef pot roast about 4lb/2kg, patted dry (I used inside round)
2 large onions, thinly sliced (the book said on the vertical, but I guess I didn’t read that part – oh well, still delicious)
2 large or (I used 6 small fresh from the market) carrots, peeled and diced
8oz/225g cremini mushrooms, quartered
2 stalks celery, diced
4 large cloves garlic, minced or finely chopped (they seem to melt in the slow cooking process anyway)
1 tsp each salt & cracked black peppercorns
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
¼ cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup beef stock
10 small new potatoes, skin on parboiled and quartered (the book also suggests steamed potatoes with parsley butter on the side as an option)
2 tbsp steak sauce (optional, and I didn’t bother, the gravy was so tasty without it)
¼ cup chopped parsley (which naturally, I forgot)

Directions:
1. In a large heavy bottomed skillet, heat some of the olive oil over medium high heat and sear the roast on all sides. This takes about 8-10 minutes. Transfer the roast to the slow cooker stoneware.

2. Using the same skillet, add a little more olive oil and add onions, carrots, celery and cook, stirring frequently until the vegetables are soft (about 8 minutes). Add the garlic, salt, peppercorns, and thyme, toss and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Stir in the flour and tomato paste, stir and cook for another minute or so. Add the wine and bring to a boil (the mixture will be very thick). Cook for 2 minutes or so, scraping any brown bits at the bottom of the pan. Add the stock and return to a boil.

3. Transfer the vegetables and sauce to the slow cooker.

4. In the meantime, I parboiled small new potatoes in their skins for about 5 minutes, drained them and cut them into quarters and added them to the slow cooker as well. Another option is to boil potatoes about 15 minutes or so before you are ready to serve the roast and then season them with salt, pepper and parsley butter.
5. Back to the skillet, add a little more olive oil and sauté the mushrooms until golden (3-5 minutes). Add the mushrooms to the slow cooker and toss with all the other vegetables and gravy, keeping them around the roast.

6. Cover with lid and cook on LOW for 6 hours or until done. The book says 8-10 hours on low or 4-5 hours on HIGH. But after 5 hours, my meat thermometer read that it was already very well done.

7. Carve the roast just before serving.

Serve the sliced roast with vegetables on the side or spoon the vegetables and gravy over top of the slices. Sprinkle with parsley before serving - if you remember.

Easy Tasty Roast Beef with Garlic Mustard Rub

Roast Beef with Garlic Mustard Rub

Adapted from Bonnie Stern Friday Night Dinners
Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 60 minutes (or however long it takes to reach 145°F/62°C – for medium)
Resting time: 15 – 20 minutes

Serves 2-4 (depending on your appetite and what you’re serving it with)

Ingredients:
1.7lb/.75kg sirloin tip roast
¼ cup Dijon mustard
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped (1 tsp dried)
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (1 tsp dried)
½ tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
1-2 cloves of garlic, cut into slivers

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450°F/220°C. I like to line my roasting pan with tin foil for easy cleanup.

2. In a small bowl, or a measuring cup, combine the mustard, olive oil, minced garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt & pepper.

3. Stud the meat with slivers of garlic on all sides. Slather the mustard rub all over the meat and place in the center of the roasting pan.

4. Roast at 450°F/220°C for 20 minutes to sear the meat. It isn’t necessary to turn it. Then reduce the heat to 375°F/190°C and roast using a meat thermometer. I like my meat medium rare (very pink, but not red in the center) so I set it for 145°F/62°C and for a small roast, it takes about 30-40 minutes longer.

5. Once the meat temperature reaches your “doneness”, remove to a cutting board (preferably one with a moat – juices will flow), cover with foil and let the roast rest for 15-20 minutes before slicing. It will still be warm, don’t worry.

Bonnie Stern makes a lovely gravy, but I like to serve it “straight” with a salad or some roasted vegetables.

Short Ribs with Red Wine & (Port)

Short Ribs with Red Wine (& Port)
From Bonnie Stern Friday Night Dinners

Hands on time: 20 minutes
Braising in the oven time: 2½ -3 hours

The original recipe serves 8 so I cut it down to serve 4 and the ingredients reflect that.

Ingredients:
2.2lb/1 kg short ribs (I like them cut across the bones, about 1” thick, Bonnie likes them cut length-wise or in large chunks)
Salt & pepper to taste
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 carrot, diced
½ cup Port or dry red wine
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup beef stock, chicken broth or water
1/4 cup demi glace (optional, so I left it out…maybe next time)
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:
1. Pat short ribs dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. I actually leave the salt out at this point in the recipe.

2. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven at medium high heat. Add the short ribs in batches and sear on all sides. Remove meat from the pan. This process will take 5-6 minutes per batch. (about 10-15 minutes in total)

3. To speed up the chopping time, I just drop the garlic down the feeding tube of my food processor and then add quartered onions and carrots cut into 2-3” pieces to the bowl and pulse until they are chopped.

4. Add the onions, garlic, carrots to the Dutch oven and a little more oil only if you need it. Sauté until the onions are slightly browned and tender, about 10 minutes. Add port or ½ cup of red wine and thyme sprigs and cook for about 5 minutes or until the liquid is reduced to less than ¼ cup. Add the rest of the wine and bring it to a boil, cooking for another 5 minutes. Add the broth (and demi glace if you are using it).

5. Return the ribs to the pan (I actually stood them with the bone side up so they would all fit in the delicious sauce). The liquid should come half-way up the meat. Cover the ribs with parchment paper and then with a tight lid or heavy foil.

6. Cook them in a preheated oven at 350°F/180°C for 2 ½ to 3 hours or longer. The ribs will be “meltingly” (Bonnie’s word).

7. Remove the meat from the pan. Strain the juices and remove fat. If the juices are not reduced enough, boil on top of the stove. Return the ribs to the pan and reheat thoroughly.

Serve with sprinkled parsley. Bonnie suggests serving with smashed potatoes and I can’t think of a better option to sop up all that delicious gravy. Unless you go with buttery, garlicy pasta with more parsley.