Sunday style Rump Roast and "Doubt"

It seems like almost every Sunday when I was a kid, we either had a roasted chicken or a beef roast for Sunday dinner. It was a meal you waited for all week long and to me, a beef roast still tops the list of my favorite meals to enjoy before we start the week. Not only is this hearty and delicious comfort food, it's relatively easy to make as well. Season, sear, and roast. I've come across a lot of different ways to make a roast like this over the years but none seem to top my family's classic method. For a little change up, I make beef stock and red wine reduction with caramelized onions to top off my roast rather than gravy. In a few short hours you'll be platting a delicious beef roast with your favorite sides and of course I have a fantastic movie to go with it.

Rump Beef roast (2 to 3 pounds)
1 large onion (sliced into one inch slices)
1 tablespoon of butter
3 tablespoons of olive oil
½ cup of low sodium beef stock
½ cup of dry red wine

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Let the roast stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Pat the roast dry with paper towels and season the roast heavily with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. For a variation of this recipe you can add some dried thyme and rosemary to the salt and pepper for additional flavor. About a quarter of a teaspoon of each if you desire to add this to your seasoning.

In a cast iron skillet, melt the tablespoon \of butter with 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Sauté your onion in the butter and oil for about 10 minutes until slightly browned and tender. Remove the onions for now and turn the the heat up to high. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Once the skillet is very hot, sear the rump roast on for about 1 minute or 2 on each side until the roast has a brown and crispy crust on the outside.

Take the roast out of the skillet. Add the onions back to the cast iron skillet and pour in the red wine and the beef stock to deglaze our pan. Cook the onions in the wine and beef stock for about 5 minutes, allowing some of the alcohol to burn off. Place the roast back into the skillet and place in the preheat oven and roast for about 30 to 35 minutes per pound. Check the roast every 20 minutes or so, spooning some of the juices over the top of the roast. If your sauce is reducing too much while roasting, add a little more beef stock to the pan.

Everyone has their preference to how they like their beef cooked. For rare it's usually about 25 to 30 minutes per pound where well done is about 35 to 40. For a perfect medium rare roast with a nice and juicy pink center, cook for 35 minutes per pound or until a meat thermometer is reading around 145 -150 degrees. The USDA recommends 160 for a medium cook roast but the roast will continue to cook once we take it from the oven.

Remove the roast from the oven and allow it to stand at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Allowing the roast to rest will help the juices get back into the roast instead of running out onto our cutting board. Once the roast has rested, carve the roast into thin slices and serve. Spoon the reduced onions and the red wine sauce over the sliced roast. I like to serve mine with mashed potatoes and roasted carrots. For this weeks movie, I choose the 2008 critically acclaimed drama "Doubt."

"Doubt" is a film with truly an all-star cast full of powerhouse actors who are all at the top of their game. Meryl Streep plays Sister Aloysius Beauvier, principal of St. Nicholas catholic school. Sister Aloysius is a fierce and stern woman who believes in the fear of God and runs the school with an iron hand and a watchful eye. The winds are changing in her school and the arrival of Father Flynn (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) brings a great deal of concern to her. More specifically, the attention he gives to a young student named Donald Miller.

When young and innocent Sister James (Amy Adams) comes to Aloysius with her own suspicions that Father Flynn may be acting inappropriately with the young boy, Sister Aloysius is know convinced that what she fears is true. Remorseful and guilt stricken over expressing her concerns, Sister James tries to find a reasonable explanation while Aloysius is set out to have Father Flynn removed from the school and priesthood altogether. Viola Davis also costars as Donald Miller's mother and gives a heartfelt and emotional performance in what little time she spends on the screen.

Streep, Adams, Hoffman, and Davis were all honored with Oscar nominations for their roles in "Doubt." It's truly a movie that you watch to to witness four of the best acting performances you'll see in any movie from anytime in the history of film making. The climatic argument between Father Flynn (Hoffman) and Sister Aloysius (Streep) is nothing short than perfect and one I get lost in every time I watch it. "Doubt" deals with a troubling subject but never crosses the line to make the audience feel uncomfortable. The fine performances by these actors will keep you in doubt...did he or didn't he? Here is a link to the trailer for "Doubt."