Pot Roast with Gravy

With fall already here and in my case, a baby around the corner, I’m working on stocking up on some of my favorite easy fall comfort foods to get me through those first few weeks of sleepless nights. Nights are getting chilly and the smell of wood fires are starting to fill the crisp night air. What better way to feed your family, and your soul, than with a perfect pot roast paired with the perfect gravy? This is my go-to easy dish this time of year. It is nearly effortless thanks to the crock pot doing all the hard work and it is absolutely scrumptious!!  It doesn’t hurt that it will freeze and re-heat to perfection as well!

3-4 lb Chuck Roast (I used an arm roast I had on hand this time)
1.5 lb bag baby yellow potatoes
1/2 lb bag baby carrots
1 large white onion
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp dried minced garlic  (or 2 Tbsp of fresh minced)
1 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp chili powder
4 cups water
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
Olive oil
Kosher Salt
Black Pepper

In a dutch oven or skillet, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil. Liberally salt and pepper the entire roast; rub it in good! Place the roast in the skillet and sear both sides. Place the roast in your crock pot, top with all veggies. Mix the 4 cups of water with the cornstarch and seasonings (except the salt and pepper since you already used those on the meat). Cover and turn your crock pot on the “High” setting for 6 hours.  When the roast is done, separate the cooking liquid (about 3 cups) from the roast and veggies and begin the gravy!  Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk in flour a little at a time until incorporated. Allow the butter and flour to cook for a minute or two while you whisk constantly until you see the mixture start to brown a bit. Add in the cooking liquid and some salt (a big pinch) continue to whisk until incorporated. At this point you can go to medium-high heat whisking occasionally until the mixture reduces to about 2 cups. The gravy will thicken as it cools.  Serve this immediately with the pot roast and enjoy!

FREEZING?

If you are freezing your cooked pot roast, you should freeze the roast and veggies with a little of the cooking liquid in one container and freeze the gravy in a separate container.  I like to freeze the pot roast in a disposable foil casserole dish with foil lid so that I can just pop it in the oven at 325 for an 90 minutes to reheat!

Enjoy!  XOXO~

My "Mr. Claus" Wish List

1. Oakley King's Camo Sunglasses ~ Oakley.com ~ $155-$280 ~ Free 2-Day Shipping and Returns

2. 94Fifty Smart Sensor Basketball ~ 94Fifty.com ~ $174.95 ~ Price includes $75 OFF Sale

3. Portable Folding Hammock ~ SportsmansGuide.com ~ $49.99 ~ Free Shipping Code: SH1803

4. Apple TV ~ Walmart.com ~ $89 ~ Free Shipping

5. Ruger 10/22 Takedown with Backpack ~ Bass Pro Shops ~$349 ~Free Shipping

6. Craft A Brew At Home Beer Brewing Kit ~ CraftABrew.Com ~ $75

7. Screw Driver Key Chain Set ~ CountyComm ~ $5.95

8. ReadyCase Multi-function IPhone Case ~ Ready Case ~ $44.95 ~ 20% OFF Code READY20


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4. Let me just say that Apple TV is one of my favorite things ever. This is one of those gifts that pulls double-duty as a gift for yourself. Hook it up to your TV with an HDMI cable, log in to your home's wifi and you're ready to rock. You can play your ITunes music through it, buy and rent movies on Itunes, use Netflix or Hulu Plus, run a slide show of your pictures on the TV and a multitude of other things. All of this is great but my favorite feature is that you can get the "Remote" app on your Iphone or Ipad and run it from those devices. For me and my hubby, this is a lifesaver as our remotes like to play hide and seek more often than I'd like to admit!

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