Spectacular Eats

Here in Ohio, we have seen some snow this winter. A lot of snow. Mountains of snow. So much snow that I am sick of it. And I don’t get there too often. I actually love winter and snow. Maybe it’s because I can wear lots of layers to hide those extra 10 pounds. Or maybe it’s all the fun of the cooking that is possible when you’re trapped inside for days on end.

There’s nothing better than coming home to roast beef and vegetables. One of my favorite cold weather dishes.   It is true comfort food.

This recipe is one of my long-time favorite ways to cook a roast.  It is so incredibly versatile and oh so simple.  Cook the roast and then slice it and serve.  Or you can shred it for burritos.  Or you can shred it and put it on buns to make roast beef sandwiches.  Or top off salads with little slices of roast beef like we did the second night.

My favorite roast for this recipe is Eye of Round.  It is very lean, requiring a long cook time – perfect for this recipe.

The roast goes in for an hour with nothing added – totally naked.

It gets all nice and browned up.  Add the water and seasonings (see recipe below) and top it off with a lid.

After baking for a few hours, it comes out perfectly done, all browned and crusty.  The water has now turned amber and can be made into a gravy if your waist will allow it.   We did have gravy.  How many days of winter clothes are there left???

Roast Beef

1 eye of round roast

salt

pepper

garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Place the roast into a roaster or pan.  Be sure to choose something that will allow you to cover it later (preferably with a lid but foil will work).  Your pan should not be too much larger than your roast.  Bake for 1 hour, UNcovered.

Remove roast from oven.  Add about 1″ of water to the bottom of the pan.  Generously season the roast with the salt, pepper and garlic powder.  COVER the pan.

Turn the oven down to 300 degrees.  Place the covered pan back in and cook for 2 additional hours.  Depending on how large your roast is, you may want to keep an eye on it.  A small roast may not need two hours and a large one may need more.

Remove the roast and allow it to cool.  If you have time to do this ahead, you can place the roast (in the pan) in the fridge.  When you’re ready to get dinner together, skip the fat off the broth.  Shred or slice the roast.  Make gravy using the broth because it’s just too darned good.