Roast Beef with Mushroom Gravy and Strawberry Sorbet for dessert!

Roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy has got to be one of my favorite foods ever.  Especially the mashed potatoes part. hee!  The roast itself is a recipe I learned at home...I believe it was Dad's recipe, but it may have been Mom's...whoever made it up, it's been in our family for as long as I can remember.  Like I said, mashed potatoes and gravy are like food of the Gods for me, I'd happily live eating just those two things for the rest of my life.  But.  BUT.  They must be done right. ;)  I served the roast and mashed potatoes with a simple side of steamed peas, and then I finished the meal with a sorbet that I made yesterday....light, sweet, and just the thing after a heavy meal...I forsee lots of strawberry sorbet in my summery future. :)

beef roast with mushroom gravy

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Ingredients:

3-4 pound beef roast

a splash of red wine vinegar

lots of freshly cracked black pepper

1 envelope Knorr Onion Soup mix

sliced mushrooms to taste (I used about a cup and a half roughly)

Preparation:

Place roast in an oven proof dish (with a cover).

Splash with a little bit of vinegar, and then season with pepper and onion soup mix.

Cover and bake at 300ºF (150ºC) for 5 hours.

After about 4 hours, add the mushrooms and return to oven.

Remove roast to a serving platter and cover with foil, reserving drippings.

Make a slurry with about 2/3 cup water and 2-3 tablespoons flour-whisking to be sure there are no lumps.

Heat meat drippings to boiling and gradually whisk in flour/water slurry.

Adjust seasonings.

About an hour before the meat is done cooking, you'll want to start your mashed potatoes.

Ingredients:

2-3 pounds potatoes, peeled

water and salt

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons sour cream or greek yogurt, or quark cheese

milk to taste

Preparation:

Peel and wash potatoes well.

Bring potatoes to a boil in salted water.

Cover and cook until done (depending on the size of your potatoes, this should take 30-45 minutes).

Drain, and add remaining ingredients.

Mash well, cover and reserve.

For the Strawberry Sorbet, you'll need the following

strawberry sorbet copia

Ingredients:

fruit of 2 lemons, (seeds and peel removed)

7-10 strawberries

3/4 cup sugar

4-5 cups ice

Preparation:

You'll need a pretty powerful blender to achieve a smooth consistency.

First add fruit and sugar, and pulse to puree.

Add ice and pulse at first to break up larger chunks, then puree at full speed until smooth.

Store in freezer (allow to sit at room temperature 15 minutes before serving, to soften).