Slow Cooked Tri-Tip Roast w/ Rich and Thick Parmesan Cauliflower Mash

This evening we had slow cooked tri-tip roast for dinner that was super simple to make. Last night I placed a 2-1/2 pound tri-tip roast in my crock-pot and cooked it overnight . Before hopping in the shower this morning, I took the roast out of the crock-pot and placed it on a platter to cool and then sliced it up and refrigerated it before leaving for work. It cooked for about 8 hours overnight. I can't say enough about how much I really like this cut of roast -- it's the second one I've made and it cooks up tender and juicy but stays together in nice neat slices when you cut it (instead of shredding like some roasts tend to do). It is fork tender and doesn't require a knife to cut the slices when you eat it. When I prepared it last night, I made a mirepoix to cook the roast on top of. A mirepoix is simply chopped carrot, celery and onion that is used in cooking as an "aromatic". It adds flavor and aroma to soups, stews, stocks and sauces. I diced 2 carrots, 2 stalks of celery and 1 small onion and added in 2 minced cloves of garlic and about 1/4 cup of chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley. I placed the mirepoix in the bottom of my crock-pot as a base to cook the roast on. I seasoned the tri-tip roast liberally with sea salt and cracked black pepper and rubbed it all over and then placed it on top of the bed of veggies. I then sprinkled a pinch of dried thyme on top and added a splash  (2 to 3 tablespoons) of red wine (merlot) on top and then covered it and cooked it on high for the first 2 hours, then turned it down to low to cook for the last 6 hours. I sliced only half of the roast this morning for our dinner this evening and left the remaining half intact to use to make something else later this week. When I got home this evening, I strained the juices from the veggie mixture and discarded the cooked mirepoix and heated the juices (slightly more than 1 cup) until boiling and reduced it by almost half and then whisked in a couple tablespoons of butter, a couple tablespoons of heavy cream, pinch of thyme small splash of red wine (about 1 tablespoon) and then whisked in a tiny pinch of xanthum gum . I seasoned it with salt and pepper to taste. I wanted to make a concentrated demi-glace sauce (glaze-type) since I am not a big fan of gravy. A demi-glace is super concentrated and flavorful, so you don't need your food to swim in gravy for moistness and flavor. This roast is tender on its own and the demi-glace sauce simply adds a burst of concentrated flavor and richness. I served the roast with fresh yellow summer squash lightly sauteed in butter and my Rich and Thick Parmesan Cauliflower Mash along with a leftover Easy Cheddar Black Pepper Biscuit. It was a delicious "comfort food" style meal perfect for "hump-day" (Wednesday).  I snapped a few photos below as well as the recipe for my cauliflower mash. Enjoy!

Rich and Thick Parmesan Cauliflower Mash

Ingredients:
1 medium head of fresh cauliflower, broken into 1-inch florets
1 cup (8 oz) of chicken broth or stock
2 ounces brick style cream cheese (1/4 of an 8-oz brick)
3 to 4 tablespoons heavy cream
3 to 4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Sea salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
In a medium saucepan, place cauliflower and chicken broth; bring to a boil and then cover pan; turn heat down to low and simmer until cauliflower is very soft and tender and chicken broth has completely cooked into the cauliflower (about 20 to 30 minutes). Make sure there is no liquid left at all in the bottom of the pan (remove the cover if necessary and cook until any remaining liquid is gone and the cauliflower is no longer wet looking).  Remove pan from heat and add cream cheese and heavy cream.  Using an immersion blender stick, blend or puree the cauliflower until the cheese and cream are fully incorporated and the mixture is smooth.  Add grated Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper, to taste.  Blend another minute.  Adjust seasoning and add additional cream, if necessary, to thin out a little bit.  The cauliflower mash should be thick and not runny at all. 

*Note:  To reduce the cooking time for the cauliflower, just cut it up into smaller pieces. If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a handheld potato masher, it just won't be quite as smooth.