Italian Pot Roast

I liked the simplicity and ease of this recipe and nothing beats a tender and flavorful roast and veggies simmering all day in a crock pot. I'll definitely make this again!

I browned the roast on all sides before adding it to the crock pot. I also tossed the cut carrots, potatoes and mushrooms (separately) in the pan just to add some of the beefy flavor to the outsides. The meat, veggies, tomato paste, rosemary and fresh garlic all went in the crock pot and all those flavors simmering made the house smell wonderful!

The sauce is a mixture of flour, balsamic vinegar and tomato paste. That's it! You salt and pepper the meat and veggies, but the tomato mixture is all that flavors the meat and it turns out delicious!

Here are the potatoes I tossed in the beef pan. No reason to do this really. It's just as tasty putting the raw meat and veggies in the crock pot and letting the crock pot do all the work.

No liquid is added to this, so I figured the mushrooms and carrots and meat would render enough liquid to cook all the ingredients and make a nice sauce. They did, and you have just the right amount of gravy to spoon over the meat and veggies before serving.

 I didn't get the best shot of the pot roast fresh from the crock pot, but believe me, it was really tasty!

ITALIAN POT ROAST WITH POTATOES and CARROTS
Rachaelraymag.com

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. flour
2 1/2 lbs. beef chuck roast, tied
Salt and pepper
1 lb. carrots, cut on an angle into thick pieces
1 lb. small red-skinned potatoes
8 oz. small mushrooms
6 cloves garlic, halved
1 sprig rosemary

DIRECTIONS:
In a 5- to 6-qt. slow cooker, stir together the tomato paste, vinegar and flour until blended. Season the beef generously on all sides with salt and pepper, then add to the slow cooker and turn to coat. Scatter the carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, garlic and rosemary around the meat; season generously with salt and pepper. Cook on low heat until the meat is tender, about 8 hours.

Discard the rosemary. Transfer the meat to a cutting board and thinly slice. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a platter. If desired, transfer the cooking juices to a saucepan and reduce slightly to make a sauce.