Weekend Cooking

My husband has told me on numerous occassions that there is nothing to eat in the house, meanwhile we have cabinets and a pantry full of food. Not to mention a fruit bowl on the table and plenty of things to eat in the fridge. But I finally understand what he is saying, because many times I open the fridge to find something prepared and there is nothing, just stuff that will take a lot of work. So this weekend I cooked and baked and roasted.

Last week I had Sauerbraten for dinner at one of our local favorite pubs, Connolly Station,  and thought it was heavenly so I looked up a recipe and found one by one of my favorite Food Network hosts, Alton Brown. I had a round bottom roast in the freezer so I took it out to defrost and on Thursday night I made the marinade, browned the meat and then set the meat into the marinade to sit for the next 3 days.

On Saturday I peeled a large butternut squash, chopped it up and roasted it. When it was soft, I added it to the blender with chicken stock and salt and pepper and made a roasted butternut squash soup.

On Sunday I got up and began my heavy cooking. I first made blueberry muffins, followed by tuna salad, egg salad, roasted asparagus and baked chicken cutlets. I also chopped up chicken breast into tenderloin size pieces and have them marinating in a hawaiian flavored marinade. I plan to grill these tonight. At about 4pm I took the Sauerbraten out of the fridge and put it in the crockpot to cook. I had it cook for 3 hours on high and it came out so tender and juicy. It really was a great recipe to follow. I posted the link to it above but here it is the way I made it.

Ingredients

• 2 cups water
• 1 cup cider vinegar
• 1 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, additional for seasoning meat
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 (3 1/2 to 4-pound) bottom round
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions

In a large saucepan over high heat combine the water, cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, onion, carrot, salt, pepper, bay leaves, cloves, juniper, and mustard seeds. Cover and bring this to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Pat the bottom round dry and rub with vegetable oil and salt on all sides. Heat a large saute pan over high heat; add the meat and brown on all sides, approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side.

When the marinade has cooled to a point where you can stick your finger in it and not be burned, place the meat in a non-reactive vessel and pour over the marinade. Place into the refrigerator for 3 days. If the meat is not completely submerged in the liquid, turn it over once a day.

After 3 days of marinating, place the roast and marinade into the slowcooker and turn it on high.

Add the sugar to the meat and marinade, cover and cook until tender, approximately 3-`4 hours.

Remove the meat from the vessel and keep warm. Strain the liquid to remove the solids. Return the liquid to the pan and place over medium-high heat. Whisk in the cornstarch and cook until thickened, stirring occasionally. Strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps. Slice the meat and serve with the sauce.