Photo by Iuliia Nedrygailova
SERVES 6–8
Roast
3-pound eye of round roast
1–2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Gravy
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 ½ cups beef stock or pan drippings
Remove roast from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Pat dry with a paper towel. In a small bowl, combine oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and thyme. Rub the oil mixture generously all over roast and place in a roasting pan with wire rack.
Preheat oven to 500 F. Roast for 15 minutes to sear. Reduce oven temperature to 300 F and roast another 40–50 minutes to a temperature of 130 to 135 degrees for medium rare. At 40 minutes, check temperature with an instant-read meat thermometer. (Eye of round can get tough if overcooked.) Transfer to a cutting board and tent with foil for 15–20 minutes. The temperature will continue to rise as the roast rests.
To make the gravy, melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until combined with butter. Slowly whisk in beef stock or pan drippings until smooth, and let simmer until thickened, 5–7 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
To serve, thinly slice roast against the grain. Layer on top of mashed potatoes and generously top with gravy.
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Easy diner-style mashed potatoes
SERVES 4
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes or russets, peeled and quartered
1 clove garlic, smashed (optional)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup half-and-half or milk, warmed
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Additional unsalted butter (optional)
Chopped chives, for garnish
Place potatoes in a large saucepan of cold, salted water, covered by one inch. Add the garlic clove and bring to a boil over high heat. Then reduce to a simmer. Cook until potatoes are fork-tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander and return to the pan for 1–2 minutes. This removes the excess moisture from the potatoes. Discard the garlic clove.
Add the butter to the potatoes and mash using a potato masher. Slowly pour in warmed milk and continue mashing until reaching desired consistency. Taste and add salt and pepper and stir to combine thoroughly. Transfer to a serving bowl and add additional butter on top if desired. Garnish with chives.
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What’s cooking at SCLiving.coop/food/chefbelinda
Turn your kitchen into your favorite diner with these comfort food recipes— Blue plate specials conjure up memories of diner-style comfort food at its best. Easy, yummy and affordable—and at the heart of it all was a big helping of mashed potatoes cooked and seasoned to perfection.