Pepper Coated Roast Beef

Tried and True Thursday Pepper Coated Roast Beef Something about Roast Beef just makes it seem a special dinner, for Sunday or to share with guests...Thankfully, many cuts are relatively inexpensive and may be purchased for under $3/pound.  I'm not partial to one cut over another.  I pretty much like them all.  I require two things from a roast: that it be within my budget limits and that it serve us more than one meal. I remember watching an episode of Little Rascals an original Our Gang black and white film where Spanky's parents nearly broke up their marriage over Roast Beef...Well actually, it wasn't the roast beef on Sunday but the Hash on Monday.  Seems Father had a very real dislike of the hash Mother served on Mondays/Wash Days following Sunday dinner.  No such luck in our household!  My kids would beg me to make hash and skip the roast dinner! This particular recipe isn't a homey pot roast.  It's easy as can be, but the presentation is a little more elegant, nice enough for Sunday dinner or a dinner party for special guests.  The original recipe appeared in a 2004 issue of Woman's Day magazine.  It was the simplicity of ingredients that led me to try this recipe, but my family's raves has made it a menu staple.  It's a lovely roast for a celebratory dinner, would be nice for a holiday meal, as well. As I said, I'm not partial to one cut of roast over another.  The original recipe calls for Eye of Round, which I do sometimes find well priced, but more often I use a Round Shoulder or Rump Roast and they do just fine, too.  A sirloin could be used, but you'd want to have your butcher roll it, and I must say I prefer any of the three mentioned earlier over the sirloin for this particular recipe. When I make this roast I use whatever mustard I have on hand.  It's great with dijon, yellow or any whole grain mustard.  To crush the peppercorns place in a zippered plastic bag and use a rolling pin or meat mallet to coarsely crush them.  And if you want still more flavor add minced garlic and/or chopped fresh rosemary to the mustard.  Pepper Coated Roast Beef 4 pound beef roast (eye, round rump or shoulder round) 1/3 cup Dijon mustard 3 Tbsps coarsely ground peppercorns Heat oven to 425F.  Rub roast with mustard, press peppercorns into surface and place on rack in pan.  Bake 45-55 minutes for rare, 50-60 minutes for medium rare.  Remove from oven and tent with foil.  Let rest for ten minutes.  This is excellent served with a flavored herb butter, roasted red pepper butter, or my favorite, a creamy dijon sauce.  To make the dijon sauce:  Heat 2 tbsps dijon mustard in a small skillet.  Add 1/2 cup half and half to pan and heat through until slightly thickened. Remove from heat.   Add 1 tbsp butter and stir until well blended.