A "Pioneer" Evening

I found myself yesterday with a large cut of meat in my hands and no idea what to do with it. I had purchased a small chuck roast with the intention of figuring out how to cook it at some point, but it was now crunch time, and I still had no recipe. On top of that, it was starting to get into the afternoon, and a chuck roast takes several hours to cook properly, so I was really running out of time. So to the internet I went. I ended up on the page for Ree Drummond, otherwise knows as "The Pioneer Woman" and a page I have pulled recipes from in the past. Today I was led there by a search for a chuck roast recipe. As it is with the meals I have cooked from there in the past, this was a success.

Pot roast in the pot

As I normally do as well, I played with the recipe a little bit. I prepped the roast, onion and carrot pretty much how it was instructed, however I didn't have the fresh herbs that were called for, so I used dried instead. It ended up being fine - the flavors came through pretty well, but the cooking liquid was less clear. I also added a couple of extra items that I like in my own pot roasts - bay leaf and a cinnamon stick. The bay leaf is pretty standard, but the cinnamon adds an extra dimension that I really enjoy. Cinnamon doesn't usually get to be a part of a nice savory dish like this, and I think it adds a certain flavor that goes well with the rest of the ingredients. I also cut my pot roast in half to try to reduce the cooking time - seared both pieces in a coated cast iron dutch oven on all sides, and then into the crockpot with vegetable stock as a cooking liquid. I cooked on high for two hours and then on low for a final hour before removing the meal to a serving plate. This meal was fantastic. The carrots were cooked perfectly, the onions were mellow and sweet, and the roast melted apart in my mouth. All of the flavors complimented each other very well, and I was very glad I had added the cinnamon to the crockpot, as it gave a fuller dimension to the flavors in the dish. 

Plated pot roast with onion and carrots

The other thing that came out of this evening was an EASY recipe for buttermilk biscuits that came out fantastic. Also from the same website, this recipe gave me a quick tip on how to make buttermilk without actually having to run out and buy some every time a recipe calls for it. I definitely suggest trying these biscuits (using self-rising flour) but to save you a bit of reading I will tell you the trick to making buttermilk on demand: add vinegar. I was floored that it was that simple. Add one Tablespoon of plain white vinegar per cup of milk in the recipe and let it sit for about 10 minutes and you have buttermilk. It blew me away. The only thing was - for me - the bottoms came out a little too firm. They weren't burned, but I think I need to drop the temperature in my oven the next time I make them by a little bit - my oven really tends to run hot. I also made the 1/3 batch of the biscuits - and I am glad that I did. I ended up with way more than I even thought I might with even a third of the recipe, and we will have biscuits for a few days. 

"Pioneer" plate for dinner

Overall this meal was a resounding success. Fantastic meat, great veggies, nice fluffy biscuits, and not a whole lot of labor involved. I absolutely suggest you try these recipes and make a nice dinner for yourself.