Boeuf à La Mode (“Dorothy, you aren’t in Kansas anymore.”)
I was all over this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe choice, Boeuf à La Mode.
“The French have tons of ways of taking inexpensive, often tough cuts of meat and turning them into dishes so tasty the mere mention of them make you smile,” Dorie explains.
Ohhhhh, I wish Dorie could have met my mother. She wrote the book. Inexpensive. Tough. Smile.
My brother and I cut our teeth on hearing the tale of our parents starting their marriage with a full tank of gas (which meant they owned a car) and 25 cents in their pocket. It was enough to get them to Eldora, Iowa, where my father had accepted his first teaching job.
My dad, whose parents lost everything during the Depression, won a scholarship to college but often, during those four years, didn’t have a full belly. That’s why he made sure, through sheer perseverance and determination, that his family never missed a meal. He brought home the bacon and my thrifty mom threw it in the skillet.
This week, mixing loyalty to my Dorista colleagues with tiny tugs at my heartstrings, I bought a 2-pound Eye of Round Beef roast, marinated it overnight with spices, veggies and wine, seared it on all sides and braised it in the oven for several hours.
Although I knew Mom would forgive me Dorie’s addition of wine and Cognac, items we never had in our house, the addition of anchovies gave me pause. With a guilty glance skyward, whispering, “forgive me for this,” I drained, rinsed and patted dry those salty little buggers before tossing them into the pot.
This week’s Boeuf à La Mode answered the call for comfort food very adequately. You can find the recipe here. To my mind, the French have nailed many beef specialities including daubes, cassoulets and, even, tartare. However, perhaps you will understand why I must save the bragging rights to the perfect pot roast for an Iowa housewife.
If you’re interested in how my FFWD colleagues rated this week’s recipe, go here.
Most definitely comfort food. But a few too many steps for my liking. I’ll make it again with some modifications next time (can you believe I – mostly – followed the recipe to a T this week?)
Mary, your parents’ story is so inspiring. Mom gets to keep the bragging rights, and the daughter treasures the lessons (and the nice French twists to the best). <3
People just seemed to have been thriftier back in the day. My mom always loved to tell us thrifty stories about how they stretched their food during the Depression. Nothing was ever thrown away, and a cheap piece of meat can be turned into several meals.
But in her family wine was often thrown into dishes, especially because my grandfather made his own from Concord grapes. As my mom explained those grapes are for jam, not for wine (pretty bad wine). and anchovies… well, my grandfather would eat those on a sandwich with eggs and peppers. Italians do have a little in common with the French.
I love your mom’s style, too.
Great post! I also grew up on pot roast and my mom’s was pretty darn good! No wine, and no anchovies! However, I loved Dories version…was it better than my moms…maybe not, but it was delicious! Your roast looks superb…and you’re right, a wonderful comforting dish! You had me lol with the comment “please forgive me” as you added the anchovies! Have a great weekend, Mary!
Mary, I remember that story from your Dad!!! My mother, on the other hand could cook a roast TO DEATH! It was always dry and tough! To this day I do not care for roast beef, but yours looks very tasty! Perhaps Mom needed a little wine!
Aw, cheers to Iowa housewives! Your pot roast looks scrumptious…as I’m sure your mom’s was, too. I was glad to have the anchovies left from the Salade Nicoise…now I think I need to make a Caesar salad 🙂
PS…I’ve been to Eldora. Had two sorority sisters who lived there!
Thanks for the wonderful read, LOL hereX2 and thereX2. Love that last picture!
This sounds so good Mary. I love how certain foods transport us instantly back in time. I do believe your mom would be quite proud of you. Old fashioned with a gourmet touch, that’s what it sounds like to me!
I know your mom would forgive you for the anchovies, since you were channeling her throughout the pot roast prep. I’m jealous of all of you who were filled with memories of mom as you made this week’s recipe. My mom never made pot roast and this was only the 2nd time I ever ate it. I have no idea why. Your beef looks meltingly tender. Did you add tomatoes to the pot? (Trying to figure out from the first photo.)
Yes.
Lovely post, Mary. I didn’t know your dad was a teacher.
Weren’t the anchovies the biggest surprise? But I think they do make a difference in deepening the flavor.
I’d love to see your mom’s recipe, too.
My mother could take any cut of meat and turn it into something delicious. I think back
then they had the knack for cooking and learned how to do it with very little. Add some
veggies and stretch it to feed eight people. Your pot roast looks great and the addition of the
tomatoes was a good idea. We really enjoyed this, hubby can’t stop raving about it, that’s
a good thing, I think… Have a great weekend.
I laughed when I read about the anchovies. Glad you enjoyed this. I liked it, but would prefer to pour my bottle of wine down my gullet snd make some old fashioned gravy for the beef.
looks fab…just missed you finding a way to connect the dots from this recipe to the government shutdown. A stretch but you are so good at metaphors and whatnots.
your loyal fan from Roma, Donatella.
Fussy or gussy, this was one great pot roast. And yours looks splendid! I love this recipe and have made it many times, although I have found a few ways to cut back the number of pots and pans that I use.
Nice job!
Well, my mom’s pot roast usually required some heavy duty knives to work through. I adore my mom, but the kitchen is not where she shines. However, if you need someone to do some heavy duty organizing or to make the most unruly child behave – she is totally your woman! (Which in my mind, is the greater skill).
Now, on the other hand, my dad is definitely a depression era child who saves EVERY thing and can turn almost anything into something 🙂
Love your story and I love how our parent’s histories have had such an impact on our own lives.
Love the story about your folks and you gave me pause when you mentioned your Dad not always having a full belly during college. Yes, a lot has changed in a generation or so and I am always trying to remind me own kids of such background. We just visited my 87 year old Aunt in San Francisco and she lives in an gorgeous home in Pacific Heights but they got there by a lot of hard work and scrimping. She still cuts coupons and (hilariously) uses her extra money to go to the caviar fund 🙂 She could eat caviar for 3 meals a day if she chose- but she still remembers the old days/hardwork and chooses not to. I find her incredibly inspiring and followed her around with my Ipad taking notes of her stories. She was one of the original ladies in Jack Lalanne’s gym in Oakland- before he got famous or a tv show and is an old school fitness buff. But I digress. The potroast was a lovely recipe and next time I will gladly douse mine in vino to marinate, will continue to exclude the anchovies, but will add veggies. Lesson learned.
Tricia, I still clip coupons, re-use my ziplock bags, and use up all the motel/hotel soap I bring home before buying any at the store. I drive Melissa insane with some of my many thrifty habit. You can take the girl out of Iowa but you cannot take Iowa out of the girl……..
Lovely memories and a lovely pot roast! I love your photo with the shredded meat – it looks so appetizing.
How delicious looking! Your pot roast turned out fantastic.
Wow, to have lived through the depression – it certainly leaves a mark…. my grandmother still to this day will write on a piece of paper with pencil, then later, over it with a thicker pen, then again with a thicker marker, just to get the most use out of a single piece of paper from the same period of time… just makes you think about how hard times must have been and how much the current generation doesn’t understand how bad it can really get.
Lovely roast though, and I’m sure, even now, if your mother was around, she would approve of how hard you work and how amazing this roast is, even if you splurged a bottle of wine in it! 🙂
Brava!
Oh Mary, I just LOVE this post, so full of anecdotes and so well expressed! The french certainly know a thing or two about many dishes, but those from the depression or war times came up with amazing food despite the situation. Now, we get cranky if we can’t find kale year round. That pic of the meat looks yummy at 10am, I can only imagine how I will want it in a few hours…
Have a great day my friend!
It is funny how family that lived and survived the depression have made an impact on their families life. My grandma was one of the most thrifty around – extra people for a meal, throw a little ketchup and water in the pot of soup and it will work for all! She was pre-Spanx generation and reused her hosiery the way same way that we will spend $40 a pair for Spanx.
Great post, and love how your pot roast turned out!