Wintery Romantic Dinner-Garlic & Herb Pot Roast w/ Creminis and Parsnip-Potato Mash {Whole30, Paleo, GF, DF}
This pot roast has winter written all over it. Even though the slow-cooker does a lot of the hard work here, this is definitely not the pot roast my grandma used to make. Infusion of garlic, rosemary, and thyme make this roast extra special. Thyme and garlic scented Creminis with rosemary-infused parsnips make this pot roast worthy of date-night.
Ingredients
Garlic and Herb Pot Roast
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 3 lbs chuck roast or other pot-roast cut*
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 1/4 cups beef broth, divided
- 2 stems fresh rosemary
- 1 bunch fresh thyme (about 10 or so individual stems)
Rosemary Infused Parsnip-Potato Mash
- 2 large parsnips, peeled and ends trimmed (3/4-1in dice)**
- 4 small-medium yukon gold potatoes (3/4-1in dice)**
- 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.
- 1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
- Salt palm-full to salt potato water to flavor those spuds!
Thyme & Garlic Infused Cremini Mushrooms
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms***
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley
Gravy
- Broth from pot roast
- 2 tbsp tapioca powder
Chopped fresh parsley and rosemary to garnish, if desired.
Instructions
Garlic and Herb Pot Roast
- Turn on stove to medium-high with coconut oil in large skillet. Rinse off beef and pat dry. Sprinkle both sides with sea salt and pepper. Sear beef for about 3 minutes until dark golden brown and nice crust. Flip beef over and sear for another 2-3 minutes to achieve same affect. Turn off hot pan.
- Place roast in Crockpot. Add chopped garlic to hot pan, with it off, and sear until fragrant. Add ¼ cup of beef broth to deglaze the pan and get all those yummy flavors [tip-red wine would also work great here if not doing Whole30]. If pan isn't still hot enough you may need to turn on heat to do this.
- Transfer garlic and juices to top of pot roast in Crockpot. Place rosemary and thyme on top of beef. Pour the remaining 2 cups of beef broth over the roast and give yourself some aromatherapy by smelling the beautiful herbs as you pour over the broth:). I cooked mine for 6hrs but 4 would probably work and even slower would be great too!
Rosemary-Infused Parsnip-Potato Mash
- Bring water to a boil. Salt water with a palm-full of salt. Boil parsnips and potatoes for 15-20 min until very tender. Drain well and place directly back in boiling pot. Turn stove on to medium and mash with a masher to release steam for a couple of minutes so the potatoes don't get too watery and stay warm. Turn off heat and add EVOO, rosemary, and salt and pepper to taste. Use electric beater or immersion blender to whip.
Thyme and Garlic Infused Cremini Mushrooms
- Heat sauté pan on medium heat. Add garlic and cook for one minute or until fragrant. Add mushrooms, thyme, salt and pepper. Sauté for 3-4 minutes until mushrooms are soft but not mushy. Stir in chopped parsley.
Gravy
- Remove pot roast from crockpot and place on platter. Cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Pour broth from crockpot into small saucepan. Bring to a boil.
- Carefully add ½ cup of boiling broth to a small bowl. Whisk in Tapioca flower to get out lumps (you want to get out as many lumps as possible before you pour back into your gravy (no worries if some remain). Pour contents of small bowl back into boiling pot and whisk continuously to prevent/remove any lumps.
- Continue to boil gravy, whisking frequently, for 5-10 min until gravy has thickened. If you want your gravy to be even thicker you can repeat previous step with 1/4 cup of broth and 1 tbsp of tapioca flour.
Bringing it all together
- To assemble...place parsnip mash on plate, then layer on some mushrooms, the beef and then and drizzle that lovely gravy over. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and chopped fresh rosemary, if desired. ENJOY!
Notes
*The beef I used for this recipe was from one of our cows that we butchered and I am unsure of the exact weight of the cut I used. My best guess was that it was about 3lbs. Anywhere from 2-4lbs should work for this recipe.
**This parsnip mash recipe made about 3 servings. There will be more leftover beef that there is parsnip mash. If you are feeding more people you could double this recipe and there should be enough beef for about 5 or 6 portions; however, you would need to double the mushrooms as well. You could also add more potatoes to substitute.
I also wanted to note that if you if you want a more "mashed-potatoes' taste and texture I would add more potatoes than called for.
***I sliced mine on the thicker side; however, if you want them a bit thinner be sure to keep an eye out when cooking so they don't get mushy.
Recipe adapted from:
PaleOMG
Small Plates & Sweet Treats