Company Pot Roast

And we had company.  Perfect.  My parents just got back from a Bahamas cruise, and they have my niece for her school vacation.  So they came over and so did Grampie.  I love a good meat-and-potatoes meal.  And I love when my parents bring me presents.  They brought me a Bahamas apron (which they made me wear for the duration of the meal prep) and some Bahamian spices (curry and crushed red pepper) and a Bahamian coffee cup.  I got a pretty good haul, I would say. So this recipe is from Simple & Delicious.  I have a few other pot roast recipes, but this one sounded a little different and still yummy.

Company Pot Roast
1 boneless beef chuck roast (3-4 lbs)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup sherry or beef broth (of course I used broth...veggie broth though because it's what I always have in the freezer)
1/2 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce (I always have regular...but the gravy this made was quite salty, so if you have low sodium I would use it)
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp beef bouillon granules
1 cinnamon stick (3 inches)(?? but I did it...)
8 carrots, cut into 2 inch pieces
6 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
1 medium onion, sliced
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp water

Brown roast in oil on all sides in a Dutch oven; drain.  Combine the sherry or broth, soy sauce, sugar, bouillon, and cinnamon stick; pour over roast.

Cover and bake at 325 for 2 3/4 to 3 1/4 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender, adding the carrots, potatoes, and onion during the last 30 minutes of cooking (this 30 minutes has fooled me before...it always takes longer than that.  I put my veggies in for the last hour).

Remove meat and veggies to a serving platter; keep warm.  Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into pan.  Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.  Serve with roast and vegetables.

We had this with the French Onion Dinner Rolls I posted near the beginning of this month.  Also some corn and extra potatoes to stretch the meal a bit more since we had so many eaters.  My mom brought brownies and ice cream for dessert.  A very full meal.  Nathan asked if it was Thanksgiving.  The meat was tender and delicious.  I could taste a hint of the cinnamon, and it wasn't unpleasant.  My mom had never heard of adding a cinnamon stick either.  But it was yummy.  Grampie loved it too.  He will eat anything, but is especially blessed by meat and potatoes.  All leftovers went to him.  And he said "let's do this again soon."