Sirloin-Tip Pot Roast

We have a tradition at my house:

Sunday night dinner with family.

And by family, I dinner with my husband, daughter and our six closest friends.

We don't organize or set an appointment for this weekly ritual. I don't send out invites. I'm making Sunday night dinner no matter what; come over whenever or if you can. We play Japanese Speed, watch HBO, and drink wine while feasting.

It's a standing arrangement.

It has been a very busy couple of weeks. But that doesn't mean dinner won't be expected; what it really means is that I have to do some planning beforehand.

And serve a meal that cooked itself.

Someday, there will also be laundry that folds itself, bathroom toilets that scrub themselves, and husbands who take out the garbage regularly.

And since I'm dreaming, I think I'd also like a pony.

In the meantime, I'll settle for a roast that cooks itself.

Did I mention this roast also marinated itself?

It did. It must have known I would be too busy to do it.

Such a considerate slab of meat. All manners and courtesies.

I bought this sirloin-tip roast from the butcher at Whole Foods, who also slathered it in the Whole Foods Steakhouse marinade for me. 

Law school is getting really hectic and I've been staying up all week until 3 a.m. to write a huge legal brief.

So, this roast was seared and placed in the crockpot at 2 am.

Then we ate it at 8 pm the following night.

And it literally fell apart, it was so tender and juicy. 

Sunday night dinner success. And to think, I get to do it all again next week.

Sirloin-Tip Pot Roast

You will need a large crockpot for this recipe and about 8-12 hours of cooktime.

1 2-3 lb. Sirloin-tip roast, or other lean roast, marinated in whatever you like, or whatever you have time for.

1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

16 oz. Baby Portobello mushrooms, washed and trimmed

1 carrot, sliced

3-4 shallot cloves, smashed

1 sprig fresh thyme

about 1 cup of water, less if your crockpot is not that deep

1 beef bouillion cube

Salt & Pepper

Heat a pan-sprayed large saute pan on medium-high heat, until almost smoking. Sear the roast on every side for 2-3 minutes each. In the crockpot, add the mushrooms, bouillon cube, carrots, shallot and thyme; place the seared roast over the vegetables. Add the water, to fill over the vegetables, but not the roast. Pour the Worcestershire over the roast and season with salt and pepper. Slowcook on low for at least 8 hours, or until the roast falls apart when pierced with a fork. 

Chocolate Creme Pie: Winter Never Came

Let's face it: winter's not coming.

It's just not.

I know what winter said, that deceitful season. "Snow and ice and  hot cocoa," it promised. Lies. All lies. We had one week of winter, and then it left the Midwest and found someplace better.

Someplace more refined, like New York. 

At least, I bet they had winter in New York. I never checked.

We didn't want to talk to winter, anyway. Did we? I mean, the other seasons are just as good. Aren't they?

(*sniffle*)

It's time to be practical, put up the boots and scarves, and make ourselves a feel-better pie. 

This was my second attempt at a chocolate creme pie. The first filling was just as good as the first, but the meringue was a failure. Flat and lifeless. (like winter)

AND, since I'm being honest, my mother is the one who had to come over and teach me how to properly whip a meringue. Because I guess my grandmother's 1982 version of Better Homes & Garden cookbook just assumes that you'll know in what order to add the ingredients. 

Guess what. It does matter what order the ingredients are put in.

A lot.

So at least we can get passed being stood-up by winter and welcome that awful, allergy-inducing, cold-in-the-morning-hot-by-the-afternoon Spring. Beggars and choosers.

 

Chocolate Creme Pie

Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook, 1982

1 pie shell, baked and ready

For the filling:

1 1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup flour

3 squares (1 oz each) unsweetened chocolate

1/4 tsp salt

3 cups milk

4 eggs, separated (keep whites at room temp for meringue)

3 tbsp butter

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, flour and salt; gradually stir in milk and add chopped chocolate and make sure the chocolate melts thoroughly. It will take awhile, at least 15 minutes for the milk mixture to bubble, but make sure to stir constantly. Reduce heat and continue to stir for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Beat egg yolks slightly in a bowl, add 1 cup of the hot chocolate mixture to the eggs and mix well. Add the egg mixture back to the chocolate mix and heat until it gently bubbles again. Remove from heat, add butter and vanilla; stir in completely. Pour mix into baked pie shell and top with meringue before baking.

Make the meringue:

The 4 egg whites left over from the chocolate filling, still at room temperature

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

6 tbsp sugar

In a high-sided bowl, add the whites and using hand-mixer, mix on high for 2-3 minutes. Add vanilla and cream of tartar, blend again for another 2-3 minutes. Taking 1/3 tbsp of sugar at a time, sprinkle the sugar over the meringue, mixing well for 3-4 minutes between each sprinkling. Mix until stiff peaks form.

Spread the meringue over the chocolate pie. Bake the pie on a baking sheet for 12-15 minutes, until golden but not burnt. Allow to cool completely before serving or chill.