1/11/12 Chuck Roast with carrots, parsnips, fingerling potatoes, and onions

It was a crockpot kind of a day. On average I prepare a crockpot meal once a week. It is a great way to create some hearty fall/winter meals and doesn't take much time. I hear people say all of the time, "trying to make a home cooked meal takes too much time". I beg to differ. It only took me about 15 minutes to throw everything together. Once complete it took me another 5 to make the gravy.
There's not much spectacular about pot roast in the crock pot. The point of this blog isn't to show off a bunch of over the top meals, it is to show that an everyday family can make everyday wholesome foods with local products.
Everyone does their roast a little bit differently. I choose to sear my roast in a hot cast iron pan with a little bit of oil to brown on each side. I've never used parsnips as part of my mix before but since they are in season I thought I would throw them in. Another change for me was to use fingerling potatoes. They are a great local find and the best part is that I can throw them in whole because they are such small potatoes. After I fill the bottom of the crock pot with my veggie mix including: potatoes, carrots, onions, and parsnips I set my roast on top. I then sprinkle 1 packet of onion soup mix over all of the ingredients and then set the crockpot on low for 10 hours.
Wa Lah! A wonderful home cooked meal.
Where did I find the ingredients?
Chuck Roast - Silvana Meats, Silvana
Fingerling Potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and onions - Everett Coop, Everett (all local farms)
Sourdough Bread - Homemade by me