Low Calorie Red Wine Garlic Pot Roast

I am sure that all winelovers have read articles about red wine being healthy. Red wine has long been given the vote of approval by many doctors and dieticians as the alcohol of choice, not only being less in alcoholic value than many cocktails and spirits, but also because it contains less calories, and some believe it can be helpful in lowering high cholesterol. Today there was another report on the BBC's website about the combination of an active lifestyle with moderate intake of alcohol being the best all round choice to avoid heart attacks.

So continuing with the healthy red wine thought, I pulled out one of my favorite winter recipes for Garlic-Wine Pot Roast from the New Dieter's Cookbook: Eat Well, Feel Great, Lose Weight (Better Homes & Gardens). This recipe is great because it is super-easy, low in calories, tastes great on a cold, winter's day and also contains that magic ingredient, red wine.

Garlic-Wine Pot Roast
Preparation time 12 mins; cooking time 2 hours; low cholesterol; low sodium; 290 calories per person

Ingredients

• Non-stick spray coating
• 1 3-pound boneless beef round rump roast, trimmed of separable fat
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup dry wine (cabernet, chianti, bordeaux)
• 1 large onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 teaspoons instant beef bouillon granules
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 pound carrots, cut into 2-inch long pieces
• 1 pound cut green beans or 1 16-ounce package frozen cut green beans
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water

1. Spray a cold Dutch oven with nonstick spray coating, then preheat over medium heat. Brown roast on both sides in the Dutch oven. Drain any fat. Add the 3/4 cup water, wine, onion, garlic, bouillon granules, thyme, and pepper. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.

2. Add carrots to the Dutch oven and simmer for 40 minutes. Then, add beans and simmer for ten minutes or until beans and meat are tender. Transfer warm vegetables to a serving platter. Keep warm while making gravy.

3. For gravy, skim fat from pan juices. Stir together cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water. Stir mixture into pan juices. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Then, cook and stir for 2 minutes more. To serve, spoon gravy over meat and vegetables. Makes 10 servings.

Nutrition information per serving
290 calories, 34 g protein, 12 g carbohydrate, 11 g fat, 98 mg cholesterol, 138 mg sodium, 590 mg potassium.