The Perfect Sunday Roast

How many of you spend your Sundays in the kitchen, making extravagant meals or meals that are bound to yield leftovers for the week? If that sounds like you, then you'll want to check out Sunday Roasts. I recently got a review copy of this cookbook, which is dedicated to the Sunday evening meal and full of ideas for roasts from simple to extravagant, and I couldn't wait for a free Sunday to try out a recipe from it.

The chapters in the book are divided by the type of meat and range from beef, pork, and lamb and veal to poultry, seafood, sides, and extras. At the end there's a helpful roast directory that classifies all the recipes by how much time they take, how economical they are, and which ones are perfect for special occasions.

While so many recipes got my attention (from Mini Wellingtons to Pork Loin with a Blue Cheese Stuffing and Roasted Pears), I decided my first recipe from the book would be a typical roast, The Perfect Sunday Roast. The main part of this dish is a 4-pound top sirloin roast, which is studded with garlic slivers and accompanied by roasted onions and mushrooms. It would make an amazing dinner for company, but it also provides incredible leftovers if you're just serving two.

The Perfect Sunday Roast (adapted from Sunday Roasts)

Ingredients

1 (4-pound) boneless top sirloin roast
5 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced thin
2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
Kosher salt and pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil plus 1/2 cup, plus more for pans
3 red onions
10 ounces mushrooms, cleaned and halved or quartered if large
1 1/2 cups beef broth
3/4 cup dry red wine
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Pat the roast dry with paper towels. using a sharp paring knife, make slits over the entire surface of the roast and insert the garlic slivers into the slits.

In a small bowl, mix together the thyme, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 3 tablespoons oil. Brush this mixture all over the roast.

Oil the bottom of a roasting pan, and stand the roast in the pan fat-side up. Roast for 15 minutes.

While meat is roasting, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Oil a large, rimmed baking sheet. Peel the onions, and cut them into wedges, keeping root ends intact.

Arrange the onions on one half of the baking sheet and the mushrooms on the other half. Drizzle remaining 1/2 cup olive oil over the mushrooms and onions. Season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat well.

After the meat has roasted for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees. Place pan with vegetables on the lower shelf.

Roast the meat until a thermometer inserted in center of roast registers 130 to 135 degrees, or about 50 to 60 minutes.

Roast the vegetables, stirring every 15 minutes, until slightly browned and charred around edges, 50 to 60 minutes.

When done, transfer roast to cutting board and let rest for 20 minutes.

Skim off and discard any fat in the roasting pan. Place the pan over medium-high heat, and add the broth and wine. Whisk the mixture, scraping up any brown bits on the pan and incorporating them. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and reduce by half. Then whisk in the butter. Season with salt and pepper.

Cut the roast crosswise, against the grain, into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

Serve with onions, mushrooms, and sauce.

I was so incredibly pleased with how well this meal came out. The meat was a bit pricey, and I kept worrying that I would overcook it and ruin it, but I simply followed the directions in the recipe, used my oven's probe thermometer, and it worked just perfectly.

I loved the roasted onions and mushrooms on the side. They were so simple to make and added their own flavors to pair with the garlicky meat. And I also made some garlic mashed potatoes, you know, just to make sure we had plenty of garlic that night.

What's your favorite Sunday meal?