As weather cools down, meals heat up
Two weekends ago I visited the farmers market in Santa Clara. My
goal was to check out the fresh produce and create a meal around it
for the next day. I had a couple ideas in mind
– a roast with vegetables, beef stew, or winter squash soup –
but I didn’t have a recipe set. I perused the vendors, some from
the San Benito area, Salinas or the Valley, and picked out some
fresh ingredients.
As weather cools down, meals heat up
Two weekends ago I visited the farmers market in Santa Clara. My goal was to check out the fresh produce and create a meal around it for the next day. I had a couple ideas in mind – a roast with vegetables, beef stew, or winter squash soup – but I didn’t have a recipe set. I perused the vendors, some from the San Benito area, Salinas or the Valley, and picked out some fresh ingredients.
I ended up with some russet, red and white potatoes, a colorful array of carrots, celery, leeks, mushrooms, onions and celery. I decided with such a bountiful find – and since I was only cooking for two – I could create two meals from the mix of vegetables. I decided to make a roast with vegetables the first night, and then turn the leftovers into a hearty beef stew for the next night with a few additional vegetables.
I cooked the roast in a Crock-Pot, on a bed of vegetables including potatoes, onions, and carrots, herbs and some beef broth. We enjoyed a warm roast with homemade gravy on top. The vegetables were cooked to perfection in the pot and the roast was well done, but falling apart.
To make the stew, I reserved the cooking liquid from the roast, shredded the leftover beef and added in some extra vegetables to change up the flavors. I cooked the fresh vegetables in the liquid in the Crock-Pot and then added in the shredded beef near the end of the cooking time just to heat it up. The liquid was thickened up with some flour to make a perfect stew.
Sunday roast with market vegetables
2 lb. beef roast (chuck roast or rib roast)
3 carrots, peeled
10 small red potatoes
10 small Dutch potatoes
1 onion, chopped
1-32 oz. box of beef broth
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 bay leaf
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig rosemary
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. flour
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Prepare the vegetables. Peel the carrots and slice into ¼-inch or smaller slices. Thinner carrots can be cut into thicker pieces. Cut potatoes into halves or quarters. Chop the onion into chunks.
In a medium saucepan over high heat, heat olive oil. Season the roast with salt and pepper. When the pan is hot, sear the beef roast on both sides.
While the roast is searing, layer the vegetables into the bottom quarter of the Crock-pot with thyme, rosemary and the bay leaves. Place the seared roast on top, and fill vegetables in the gaps between the sides of the Crock-pot and the roast. Additional herbs can be placed on top of the roast. Add in the beef broth so that it comes to the top of vegetables but does not cover the roast. As it cooks, the vegetables and meat will release more liquid into the Crock-pot. Cook on low for six to eight hours.
The roast is done when the vegetables are soft and the meat comes apart easily with a fork, as with shredded beef.
Some of the liquid from the roast can be used to make gravy. Melt two tablespoons of butter in a saucepan. Then whisk in two tablespoons of flour to make a roux. Allow to cook for about a minute. Slowly add in 1-2 c. of liquid, whisking the whole time. Add liquid until the gravy reaches the desired consistency.
Serve slices of roast and vegetables with gravy.
Leftover beef stew
1-1 ½ lb. shredded beef (from roast recipe above)
Leftover chopped veggies (carrots, onion)
2 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
2 leeks, cleaned and sliced
10 cremini or button mushrooms, cleaned and cut into quarters
2-3 stems of celery, washed and sliced into small pieces
1-32 oz. box of beef broth
2 tbsp. flour
Remove vegetables and herbs from the reserved cooking liquid from the roast and vegetable recipe (or start with 64 oz. of fresh beef broth along with herbs such as thyme, rosemary and bay leaves.) Add a box of beef broth to the liquid. Put 2 tbsp. of flour into a cup and add enough liquid to make a slurry. Mix back into the rest of the liquid. The flour will act as a thickening agent.
Add potatoes, leeks, mushrooms and celery to the liquid in a Crock-pot. Cook on low for about eight hours. Add in the shredded beef just before serving and heat through. If the broth is not thick enough, make another slurry with flour or cornstarch and some of the liquid to get it to the desired thickness.
Serve in large bowls with crusty french bread for dipping.
