One of the benefits of growing up in Florida was the exposure to a variety of ethnic foods. I grew up eating a lot of Spanish and Cuban influenced foods – everything from paella to Cuban pork roast and my absolute favorite – Cuban sandwiches (which I refuse to order in North Carolina because of the consistent disappointment). And while my family has no blood relation to Spain or Cuba (though we are 10th generation Floridians)- this type of food is comfort food to us.

This weekend my Mom brought up a couple of her favorite cookbooks including a hardback and autographed copy of Clarita’s Cocina -Great Traditional Recipes from a Spanish Kitchen. We spent every night this weekend flipping through the pages of the book – studying her techniques and play on words.  Debbie joked and said she would like to cook her way through the book – and not blog about it. And while I must admit I have no desire to replicate or even resemble the journey Julie Powell took through Julia Child’s The Art of French Cooking, if I were to embark of such a journey I guess it would be would be a North Florida girls version and entitled The Cecelia/Clarita Project.  So in the spirit of Julie Powell, we decided we would make her traditional Boliche recipe and make it exactly like she did (well, excluding the monosodium glutamate). We learned a great deal along the way, so today’s recipe is a more modern version using the tricks we learned along the way.

Boliche Asado, Sencillo – Simple Boliche Roast

Ingredients:

• 1 large eye of round roast
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 large white onion, minced
• 1 large tomato, minced
• 1 green pepper, minced
• 1 celery rib, minced
• 1 cup red wine
• 1 heaping tablespoon flour
• 1 handful baby carrots
• 6 new potatoes, quartered
• 1 handful pimento stuffed olives
• olive oil

Assembly: A day ahead, marinate the meat with garlic, oregano, red wine vinegar, bay leaf, paprika, nutmeg, salt, pepper and a big splash of olive oil. The next day (I’d advise doing this in the morning – or a full day ahead cause it gets better with time) remove the meat from the marinade and pat dry. Hold on to the marinade. Using a large cast iron pot, sear the roast in olive oil until brown on all sides. Remove and add minced onion, tomato, green pepper and celery. Saute until translucent. Add meat (and juices on the plate) back into the pot and add wine and the remaining marinade. Put into a 300 degree oven for 3 hours.

After the three hours, remove the pot and let everything cool. Once cooled, remove the meat and strain the vegetables through a sieve until smooth. Slice the meat into one inch slices – keeping the meat intact. Put the same cooking pot back on the stove on medium high and add olive oil and flour. Stir until flour has browned (make a roux) and add strained vegetable liquid back in. Cook until thick. Add meat, carrots, potatoes and olives and simmer with the top on until vegetables are tender (about 30 minutes).