SUNDAY DINNER FOR LESS

Growing up in Indiana, we enjoyed three meals a day as do most people. They were referred to as breakfast, dinner and supper. I'm not really sure if this is a Hoosier thing or a family thing. Dinner was the largest meal of the day. My father worked 2^nd shift and was always sent off with a nice home-cooked meal in his belly. This meal was provided during the week by my grandmother as my mother worked a nine-to-fiver. Supper was a light meal like salad, a sandwich or sometimes a bowl of cereal. When I moved to Florida, I began to partake of breakfast, lunch and dinner. I've adapted well but Daddy still refers to lunch as dinner and dinner as supper.

Whenever I think of a nice, home-cooked meal, I think of pot roast. It's my favorite comfort food. I have many different recipes for pot roast but the one I love the most is the traditional. The one my mother made. The one my grandmother made. It's delicious and invokes memories of my childhood and a simpler time.

Pot roast is also economical. It's best made from an inexpensive cut of meat like chuck roast and slow cooked all day long. Unlike my grandmother who could be found all day long in the kitchen, I work out of the home during the week and have a lot to catch up on over the weekend. I find the crockpot works quite well to make my favorite beef creation. Pair it with potatoes in any fashion, a salad and parkerhouse rolls; your family will applaud your efforts and possibly even give you a standing ovation. It's that good.

I've always taken pot roast and its easy preparation for granted. Lately I've encountered many friends who've never made one and don't have a clue where to start. And so in the spirit of Money in the Bank I've decided to post the recipe for my family's traditional pot roast.

Smart Mouth Family Pot Roast

Boneless chuck roast (enough to feed your family and some extra for leftovers)

2 Onions, (peeled and quartered)

2-3 Carrots (peeled and cut in 2 inch segments)

2-3 stalks Celery (washed and cut in 2 inch segments)

2 cloves Garlic (smashed)

½ cup Red wine (your choice and can be substituted with beef stock or broth)

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

½ - 1 tsp Thyme (more if you're using fresh and I use poultry seasoning when I'm out of thyme)

Small bunch Fresh Italian parsley chopped (1/2 goes into the pot and ½ reserved for garnish)

Season the chuck roast liberally with salt and pepper. (I use a seasoned salt mixture that Pualani sends me from Hawaii. I have no idea what's in it but it's great. My mother always used just regular salt and pepper. ) Add the thyme.

Layer the vegetables and then add the roast to the crock pot. Pour wine over all and let it go for about 8 hours. I usually turn the meat over at some point and sometimes will put the veggies on top if the meat isn't moving along as quickly as I want.

Remove from crock when meat is tender. You can make gravy from the juices if you're serving mashed potatoes. I usually pull the meat apart with two forks and remove all the icky, fatty parts (That's a culinary term). I made red potatoes with parsley, butter and garlic on the day I took these pictures. I added a salad and some brown and serve Mrs. Schubert's parkerhouse rolls. Heaven!

Do you have a pot roast recipe you'd like to share with a Smart Mouth Broad?

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