The New England Pot Roast!

LOTS of cooking going on today at the Spoon Drop Inn! Dad had the day off work, which means instead of our usual big midday meal, we got to plan a nice dinner this evening... which means Mom picked a BCC recipe that took all afternoon to prepare! WARNING: You may want to plan to be out of the house while this dish is cooking all day long... at least it felt like it took all day. The mouth-watering, tummy-rumbling smell of slowly cooking roast and potatoes is enough to drive me crazy! Also, don't plan on having an engaging, animated family conversation during this meal, because, well, everyone will be far to busy ravenously stuffing their faces to be able to talk.

Waldorf Salad (from p. 372 of the BCC): First we had a little side dish salad - pretty basic, with apples, nuts, and celery... I have to admit, I prefer Mom's own recipe to this one, just because it has marshmallows and raisins in it, but the BCC won me over with this suggestion: "If desired, mound salad in lettuce cups and garnish with maraschino cherries." Of course we desire that! I always desire a cherry garnish! Who wouldn't??

New England Pot Roast (from p. 240 of the BCC): And here's a classic family favorite! Not sure what makes it inherently "New England" though... This dish includes pot roast, potatoes, carrots, and onions, which we get to drown in a delightful brown gravy. The recipe said we could add 5 ounces of horseradish to the roast, if we desired - which we didn't, so we didn't. The gravy recipe was a little hard to follow, the wording was a bit unclear, but we did our best to logically decipher, and I think we did well because the gravy was amazing. (Hint: Skim off the fat, reserve 1/4 cup of it, and put that amount back into the gravy mix.)

Dad loved it. I know, because he had seconds. And because he cracked Chandler jokes throughout the meal. (Joke: Most of the animals entered the ark in pairs - except for the worms, which entered in apples.) He also commented that it reminded him of Grandma Chandler's Sunday afternoon lunches... which is indeed a high compliment, and is synonymous with "delicious."

This morning, before the pot roast adventure, Mom and I created what I like to call "The Candy Bar Cake," a sticky, sweet, fabulous, and positively ridiculous BCC recipe that we will be bringing to share at the church luncheon tomorrow at Triad Christian Fellowship. I'll write all about it tomorrow afternoon, once I get to taste it and get some reactions from our church family. If you are at TCF tomorrow, make sure to get a piece, and let us know what you think!