Pot Roast with Vegetables

First off, a shout out to my Hubby in Beijing, China, us girls miss you! I hope you remember this dinner fondly!

I had been wanting to make a Beef Roast and this chica, and fellow pervert had a beautiful one featured on her blog created by our mutual dream Chef/Hottie, Tyler Florence.

It looked delicious and I wanted to try the method of cooking a roast on the stove top, which I had never done before. I had previously cooked them in either a crock pot or in the oven, braising a roast was new to me.

It was quick, delicious and the drippings made an insanely good gravy! And for once in my life, no tweakage, I pretty much made it as the recipe listed.

One thing I did do was roast the traditional vegetables that would accompany a roast separately in the oven. It was a brilliant idea if I so say so myself!

1 (3 to 4 pound) piece beef chuck roast, trimmed of excess fat
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 cup water
2 yellow onion, halved
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bunch baby carrots
2 celery stalks, sliced
1 cup button mushrooms, stems removed and sliced in half
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves

Directions
Season all sides of the beef with a fair amount of salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot that has a tight cover; heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over moderately high heat.

Brown the meat on all sides, taking the time to get a nice crust on the outside. Pour in the tomatoes and the water.

Scatter the vegetables and herbs around the pot roast, season with salt and pepper; and drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of oil.

Cover the pot and reduce the heat to low. Braise for about 3 hours, basting every 30 minutes with the pan juices, until the beef is fork tender.

Slice the pot roast and arrange on platter surrounded by the vegetables.

Serve with the pot juices. (I used a stick blender to make it smooth) and thickened it up a bit with flour.