Walnut Crusted Roast: Beef it’s What’s for Dinner

Heather says:

I have to get this off my chest. Yum, yum, get your fork away from my plate, yum.

My husband’s grandmother recently celebrated her 75th birthday (Happy Birthday Nana!). His mother is planning a nice dinner after they return to Minnesota and she is on the lookout for a company worthy meal with low effort. Listen to me, this is it. Sure, it sounds all fancy schmancy, but the techniques are not complicated. With a good thermometer and the ability to resist the temptation to open the oven, anyone can make a good roast. The mashed potatoes could easily be switched with instant, it’s the blue cheese that makes them special. The wilted spinach? Can you heat oil in a pan? Then you can handle this. The Worcestershire sauce? If you can boil water, you’ve got it in the bag.

The recipes and nutrition information for the roast are after the jump.

To create this meal, start with the roast. You will have lots of downtime as you wait for it to cook, plan to begin at least two hours before you’d like to eat, longer for any roasts of 3lbs. Longtime readers may remember that I usually cook beef roasts with an initial blast of heat to create a nice brown exterior. This recipe is an exception, the walnuts would burn and no one likes burnt walnuts. Resist the urge to turn up the heat of the oven. It will be worth the wait.

Here is the original recipe from BeefitsWhatsforDinner.com:

Walnut Crusted Roast with Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 1 beef eye round roast (2 to 3 pounds)
• 4 cups prepared mashed potatoes, warmed
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
• Walnut Crust:
• 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped green onion
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Heat oven to 325°F. Combine Walnut Crust ingredients; press evenly onto all surfaces of beef roast.
Place roast on rack in shallow roasting pan. Insert ovenproof meat thermometer so tip is centered in thickest part of beef. Do not add water or cover. Roast in 325°F oven 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 hours for medium rare doneness. (Do not overcook.)
Remove roast when meat thermometer registers 135°F. Transfer roast to carving board; tent loosely with aluminum foil. Let stand 15 to 20 minutes. (Temperature will continue to rise about 10°F to reach 145°F for medium rare.)
Meanwhile combine mashed potatoes and cheese in large bowl; keep warm.
Carve beef roast into thin slices; season with salt and pepper as desired. Serve with mashed potatoes.

And here’s how we prepare the roast in Heather’s house.

Although the ingredients for this meal were covered, I couldn’t fork over the extra money for an eye of the round roast when a bottom round roast was 3.5lbs for $9.16 (the top round was $5 a pound and they didn’t have any eye of round set out).  While I am familiar with many beef cuts, I wasn’t exactly sure of the difference between an eye-round roast, a bottom-round roast, and a top-round roast. The butcher happened to be loading the meat case, so I asked her to be sure it was an acceptable substitution and here’s the skinny.

All three roasts are lean cuts from the rear quarter of the cow.

They differ in their tenderness.

An eye of round roast is the most tender. It’s your go-to when cooking to make an impression and the budget is flexible.

A top round roast comes from the inside upper portion of the rear leg. It is a naturally tender roast, but not quite as tender as the eye of round If you prefer your roasts cooked over medium, this is the more budget friendly option. It is also sold under the name London Broil.

Bottom round roasts come from the outside muscle of the upper leg. It is a tougher cut of meat, pot roasting, braising, or marinating are advised for cooking to anything more than medium rare.

Everyone in my family prefers their roasts rare to medium rare, which allows us to take advantage of the more cost effective bottom round roast.

Let’s meet our roast.

While today’s beef cuts are much leaner than those of previous generations, it is still important to check over your roast for any excess fat that needs to be trimmed. Set the roast aside, while the crust is prepared. If you are cooking a roast past medium, it’s important to make sure the fat cap is on top. As the fat melts it will baste the roast. I had no plans on heading anywhere close to medium well. The roast was set fat side down, where any melted fat would be caught by the roasting pan.

Preheat the oven to 325F.

If you have a food processor, you could use it to chop and blend the walnuts, pepper, and green onions, but it goes quickly by hand and then has the added bonus of not needing to clean the food processor. Don’t process the mixture into a fine powder, the uneven chunks are part of the appeal, adding slightly different textures and flavors to the crust.

Press this mixture firmly into all sides of the roast and then place the meat thermometer into the thickest part of the roast. Take care to make sure the tip is not in a fat pocket. How do you know it’s not in a fat pocket? Well, it takes more pressure to push the thermometer into muscle than fat, if it suddenly moves easily, push a little further until you feel resistance. If your thermometer has a temperature alert set it for ten degrees lower than desired temperature. Now, put it in the oven, close the door and leave it alone.

When the alarm sounds, pull the roast out of the oven, cover it with foil and let it rest for 10 – 15 minutes. The internal temperature will continue to rise about ten degrees during this time and it’s busy redistributing its juices, so once again, leave it alone until it is time to carve. Slice thinly to serve.

Man cannot live on roast alone, which is why I believe we were given potatoes.

The quick and dirty version, mix up some instant mashed potatoes and stir in the blue cheese. Or, you can take advantage of the roast’s long cooking time and make real mashed potatoes. Personally, I believe Yukon Gold potatoes make some of the best mashed potatoes. It has to do with the starch content.

Tips for excellent mashed potatoes:

• 1 lb of potatoes will yield approximately 2 cups of mashed.
• Cut the potatoes into even pieces.
  This reduces texture inconsistencies from uneven cooking.
• Place the chunks into cold, salted water.
• Use a fork to feel if they are done boiling rather than relying only on a timer.
• Drain well, give them a good shake in the colander to be sure all the water is gone.
• Don’t use a food processor to mash the potatoes.
  Embrace some lumps. Too much manipulation yields gluey potatoes. A mixer is OK, but don’t go nuts.
• Heat the milk or cream but don’t boil it, and don’t add it until the potatoes are mashed to your desired consistency.
• Fold in additions such as today’s blue cheese.

Next up, is the wilted spinach. This dish is so quick you do not want to start it until the roast is quietly resting on the counter.

Wilted Spinach with Walnuts

Ingredients:

• 1 9oz bag of baby spinach
• 2 TBSP (approximately) olive oil
• a small handful of walnuts

In a skillet over medium heat, place the olive oil and walnuts. Stay close by and stir the walnuts occasionally, as their natural oils can burn easily.

Once the walnuts begin to smell toasted, add the spinach and use tongs to turn the spinach until they are wilted as you desire.

Season with salt/pepper and serve.

Lastly, the easy sauce adds a lot of oomph to the meal. I learned this trick when I worked for an upscale steakhouse.

Worcestershire Sauce

Ingredient:

• Worcestershire sauce
• pinch corn starch, optional

Technique:

In a small saucepan over low heat, add almost twice as much Worcestershire sauce as you think you’ll need. Estimate a couple of tablespoons per person. Turn the burner on low and stir once in a while. This concentrates the flavor by reducing the water content.  It is done when the Worcestershire sauce has cooked down to approximately half of its original volume. If you’d like the sauce slightly thicker, use a whisk to stir in a pinch of cornstarch (don’t go crazy). That’s it. All done. Enjoy.

How was it?

While dinner is dinner in our house, sometimes I know a meal is better suited to adult palates. On those rare occasions, the preschool set is fed early so the adults can enjoy a fabulous meal without whining. All four adults and the teenager thoroughly enjoyed the meal.

The roast was excellent, tender and flavorful, and it’s a recipe I am filing away for future use. Any leftovers would make excellent roast beef sandwiches or French dips.

The walnuts, blue cheese, and black pepper used in the other dishes all have distinct but complementary flavors. The Worcestershire sauce has a unique, salty, smoky element that gives a sharp flavor to counter the more subtle flavors. It’s an accent, not a gravy.  Treat it almost as you would horseradish or hot sauce. I am not responsible if you cover your plate in Worcestershire and hate it.

The nutritional rundown

This is straight from BeefitsWhatsforDinner.com

Enjoy, and I do mean enjoy, this recipe.