There is something wonderful about the smell of a roast cooking for hours on a cool autumn day. The spices and juices from the meat fill the house with a lovely inspiring smell. This wafting scent will lure even your pickiest child to the dinner table, to taste of the labors of your hard working oven. I was excited to see that this recipe from All Recipes called to use a Dutch oven because I had not used one before. I used mine for the first time a few days ago, and I was extremely impressed with how well it worked. A worthy investment if you don’t have one.

POT ROAST WITH VEGETABLES

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 pounds boneless chuck roast
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• vegetables (I always like to add one or two different vegetables to cook with the meat; carrots, potatoes, yams, or sweet potatoes, they all cook nicely with the meat and the spices give them such great flavor.)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Heat a heavy Dutch oven on top of the stove over medium high heat. Add oil, and sear meat in the center of the pan for 4 minutes. Turn meat over with tongs; sear all sides for 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
• Remove meat from pan. Arrange onion, garlic, and 1 bay leaf in the bottom of the pan, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Return meat to pan, place remaining bay leaf on top of meat, add optional vegetables, and cover.
• Cook in the oven for 30 minutes at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Reduce the heat to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C), and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Remove roast to a platter to rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Slice, and top with onions and gravy.