Blueberry pot roast?

Sometimes you come across a recipe and happen to have all (or most) of the ingredients in the fridge...so you say, what the heck?  And that's how we ended up eating blueberry roast last night!

Blueberry roast, mashed potatoes, ratatouille, and butternut squash

Blueberry Pot Roast

(adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Blueberry-Braised Brisket Sandwiches, July 2016, p. 111)

3 lb. chuck roast
1 Tbs. olive oil
2 slices of bacon, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup cider vinegar
2 cups fresh blueberries
1/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Season roast all over with salt and pepper.  In Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat.  Add meat and brown on all sides.  Remove meat from pan.  Add bacon and cook until browned.  Add onion and cook 3 minutes.  Add garlic and cook 2 minutes more being careful not to burn the garlic.  Add vinegar, blueberries, brown sugar and 1/2 tsp. salt.  Bring to boil and stir to dissolve sugar.  Reduce heat and simmer blueberry sauce for 10 minutes.  Return meat to pan.  Cover and roast in preheated oven 2 1/2 to 3 hours until tender.
Remove meat from pan.  Skim fat off remaining liquid.  Pour the liquid over meat if desired.

Fried Chicken...it's been a while

Many years ago I perfected grandmother's fried chicken... and then I quit making it because I began focusing on 'healthier' (and easier) meals.  This week I bought a whole chicken so I decided to give it another try.  Unfortunately my good ol' electric frying pan is long lost, but I did ok on my stovetop.

Fried chicken, asparagus, carrots, peas, mashed potatoes & gravy

Fried Chicken

3 cups buttermilk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces (or 10, I cut the breasts in half)
vegetable oil
salt & pepper
2 cups flour

Mix buttermilk, salt and pepper in large ziploc or in a large bowl.  Add chicken and marinate 8 hours or overnight.  Place a rack over a sheet pan and put marinated chicken on rack to let excess marinade drip onto pan.
In deep frying pan (or electric fryer), add enough oil to fill approximately 1" deep.  You must have enough oil on bottom of pan so chicken does not stick.  Heat oil to 350 degrees - a pinch of flour should sizzle when dropped in oil.
While chicken is on rack, liberally sprinkle each piece with salt and pepper on both sides.  Dredge each piece of chicken in flour to fully coat and set on waxed paper so all pieces are ready before first piece goes into pan.
Using tongs, gently place chicken into hot oil, start by placing dark meat in center of pan and then place white meat on outside edges.  Maintain hot oil temperature and cook undisturbed 7-10 minutes.  Turn chicken over, put a lid on the pan, and turn heat to medium.  Cook 10 minutes.  Uncover pan, turn heat back to medium-high and continue to cook 5 minutes until well browned.  (Test internal temperature of meat - it should be 165 degrees.  White meat will get done sooner than dark meat.  It is common to undercook the meat because the outside looks brown so I tend to cook a bit longer than I think.  If no meat thermometer is available, you can prick the meat deeply and check that escaping juices are clear.)
Place cooked chicken on paper towel lined dish to absorb some oil or place it on a clean rack to allow oil to drain.