Prime Rib for Thanksgiving

 

Sure beats Turkey in my book

A beautiful thing!

Seasoned with the spices Black Hogg provides

The trussing is a work of art!

We don't particularly like Turkey, so we decided to do a Prime Rib for Thanksgiving.

We purchased a Prime Rib from Black Hogg. It was perfect. I was amazed how beautifully it was tied up. It was a fabulous piece of meat. We loved it! We also made Puréed Potatoes With Lemon. It was a new variation on Mashed Potatoes. We liked it and will make it again.

Prime Rib Roast

Black Hogg

 

preheat convection oven: 425°

preheat standard oven: 450°

 

For this roast, you need to let it sit out at room temp for 2 hours and cooking time will be around 1-2 hours (depending on size of roast).  Then you need to rest for 30 minutes after cooking.  So please plan accordingly.

 

1.     Remove ribeye roast from packaging and blot dry using a paper towel.

2.     Season entire roast liberally with rib seasoning, and let rest at room temp for 2 hours.  You need the center of the meat to come to room temperature for best results.  Preheat oven towards the end of these 2 hours.

3.     Place roast onto a rack set inside a roasting pan.  For whole 5 lb roast, cook at 425°/450° for 30 minutes.  For half 2.5 lb roast, cook at 425°/450° for 20 minutes.

4.     Next, lower oven temp (convection 300°, standard 325°), and continue roasting.

5.      Continue cooking whole 5 lb roast for approximately 50-60 minutes, half 2.5 lb roast for approximately 20-30 minutes.  

6.     You want an internal temperature of 120° for rare prime rib, 130° for medium rare.  Remove from oven when you reach this temp.  

7.     Tent the roast with foil and let rest for 30 minutes.

8.     Warm up the au jus and serve with roast along with the creamy horseradish. 

Puréed Potatoes With Lemon

New York Times

 

Lemon isn’t a classic seasoning for mashed potatoes, but butter makes an excellent go-between. This variation on French pommes purée is just the kind of dish that Ina Garten, who shared this recipe from her book “Modern Comfort Food” with The Times, likes to perfect for home cooks. Cooking the potatoes in less water than usual and gradually mashing in bits of chilled butter are the details that make the recipe special.

 

Ingredients

 

2-½  pounds large Yukon Gold potatoes

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup cold unsalted butter (2 sticks)

1       cup whole milk

1       tablespoon grated lemon zest (from 2 lemons)

 

Preparation

 

1.     Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1 1/2- to 2-inch chunks. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and add enough water to cover by 1 inch. Add 2 tablespoons salt, cover and bring to a boil over high.

2.    Uncover, lower the heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are very tender when pierced with a small paring knife, about 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.

3.    Meanwhile, cut the butter in 1/2-inch dice and put it back in the refrigerator.

4.    After the potatoes are drained, pour the milk into a small saucepan and heat over low just until it simmers. Turn off the heat.

5.     Place a food mill fitted with the finest blade on top of the large saucepan. Process the potatoes into the pan. (Alternately, use a ricer or potato masher, making sure the potatoes are very smooth before proceeding.)

6.    With the heat on low, vigorously whisk the cold butter into the potatoes several bits at a time, waiting for each addition to be incorporated before adding more butter.

7.     Once all the butter has been integrated, slowly whisk in enough of the hot milk to make the potatoes the desired consistency, creamy but still thick. Add 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Whisk in the lemon zest, reserving some for garnish, if desired. Season to taste, and serve hot. Sprinkle with reserved lemon zest just before serving.

 

Goan Shrimp

We have made Goan Shrimp many, many times. It is a definite favorite of ours. If you haven't tried this recipe you should. It is great! You can find the recipe on our blog of: August 9, 2008. Click the date to get the recipe.

Black Pepper Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry

We made Black Pepper Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry an Asian influenced stir-fry. It was great. We recommend it. If we can't go out for Chinese food, we will make it ourselves.

Black Pepper Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry

New York Times

 

Coarsely crushed black peppercorns star in this quick weeknight dish, which is built primarily from pantry staples. Don’t be shy about adding the entire tablespoon of pepper, as it balances out the richness of the beef and adds a lightly spicy bite to the dish. A quick rub of garlic, brown sugar, salt, pepper and cornstarch seasons the beef; the cornstarch helps tenderize the beef and later imparts a silky texture to the sauce. Feel free to marinate the beef up to 8 hours ahead and cook when you're ready. If leftovers remain, tuck them into a crunchy baguette or roll them into a wrap.

Ingredients

1      tablespoon whole black peppercorns, coarsely crushed with the bottom of a cup or pan

3      garlic cloves, grated

2      teaspoons light brown sugar

1      teaspoon cornstarch

Kosher salt

¾      pound sirloin steak, thinly sliced crosswise

3       tablespoons sunflower oil or other neutral oil

2       tablespoons soy sauce

½      head small green cabbage (about 8 ounces), thinly sliced

1       tablespoon sherry vinegar

1     tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, crushed with your fingertips

2     scallions, thinly sliced

Cooked rice, for serving

Preparation

 Add peppercorns, garlic, brown sugar, cornstarch and 1 teaspoon salt to a medium bowl and stir to combine. Add sliced steak and toss to coat.

2.     Heat the oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Add steak and cook, stirring frequently, until some of the edges are lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add soy sauce and toss beef to coat, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer beef to a bowl or plate.

3.    Add cabbage to skillet, spread in an even layer and let cook, undisturbed, for 1 minute so that some pieces caramelize in the pan. Toss and cook cabbage, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Stir in vinegar and season with salt.

4.    Add steak and any juices back to the skillet, and stir until well combined with the cabbage and warmed through, about 1 minute. Top with toasted sesame seeds and scallions; serve with rice.

 

 

Ham and Cabbage and Cauliflower Gratin

Bourbon Glaze, yummy!

We ordered a Smoked Ham from Nueske's. They have the best Bacon and Hams. We used the Smoked Ham to make Bourbon and Honey Glazed Kurobuta Ham. With the Ham we made a Cabbage and Cauliflower Gratin.

You can find the recipe for the Bourbon and Honey Glazed Kurobuta Ham on our blog of: April 17, 2020. Click the date to get the recipe. With all of the Cheese and Cream it was very rich (also it was very good!). This made for a great dinner with lots of leftovers. We loved it! You can find the recipe for the Cauliflower  Gratin on our blog of: January 26, 2019. Click the date to get the recipe.

Rigatoni Modo Mio (Pasta with Cauliflower and Ham)

We had a serious amount of leftover Ham. Cathy found this recipe for Penne or Rigatoni Modo Mio (Pasta with Cauliflower and Ham) in Craig Claiborne’s The New York Times Cookbook. It was perfect! I love cauliflower and we had lots of delicious ham. It was a perfect use of some of the leftover Ham. You can find the recipe on our blog of: May 7, 2014.  Click the date to get the recipe.

Salmon from Faroe Islands

Once again we had Salmon from Black Hogg. It is caught near the Faroe Islands. You can read about the Faroe Islands and get our recipe on our blog of: September 26, 2020. Click the date to get the recipe. The Salmon is spectacular!

We had Bratwurst purchased from Nueskey's. Sausages With Apples and Onions was the perfect winter dish to make with them! My kind of dinner!

Sausages With Apples and Onions

New York Times

 

There are lots of kinds of wurst, or sausage: bratwurst, bockwurst, knackwurst, weisswurst (similar to the French boudin blanc). Bratwurst is popular the United States, and there are some new high-quality packaged supermarket brands now available, or look for other types from a butcher shop. But let’s face it: Nearly any kind of sausage will taste great paired with caramelized onions and apples fried in butter.

 

Ingredients

 

4       tablespoons unsalted butter

3       large yellow onions, cut in 1/4-inch half-moons (about 4 cups)

Salt and pepper

1       bay leaf

2       cloves

3       allspice berries

½      teaspoon caraway seeds

1       thyme sprig

4       large tart apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch slices (about 4 cups)

8       bratwurst or other sausages, about 3 to 4 ounces each

Parsley sprigs, for garnish (optional)

 

Preparation

 

1.     Put 2 tablespoons butter in a large cast-iron skillet or wide, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, season generously with salt and pepper and stir to coat with butter. Add bay leaf, cloves, allspice, caraway and thyme. Cook, stirring frequently, until soft and nicely browned, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat as necessary to keep onions from browning too quickly.

2.            Remove onions from pan and arrange on a platter. Put 2 more tablespoons butter in pan, and add apples. Raise heat to medium-high and brown apples on both sides, using a spatula to turn them, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove apples and arrange them on top of onions. Keep platter warm in a low oven.

3.    Keep stovetop heat at medium and place sausages in pan in one layer. Prick each sausage in several places with the tip of a sharp paring knife or toothpick.

4.    Let sausages brown slowly on one side (check their progress by turning them over with a fork or tongs) for 6 to 8 minutes. Lower the temperature if they're browning too quickly.

5.    Turn sausages over, and add 1/2 cup water to the pan. Let water evaporate completely, then continue to let sausages brown slowly for about 5 more minutes. (Cooking sausages at too high a temperature will cause them to burst; err on the cooler side.)

6.    To serve, place cooked sausages in the center of the onion-apple mixture on platter. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

 

Cassoulet

We had lots of left over Ham, Pork, Sausage and Bacon. What could be better than making a Cassoulet? Cathy started with the recipe for: Lazy Chicken-and-Sausage Cassoulet. She then modified with the ingredients on hand. This is the essential rule of home cooking in a Pandemic. You don't always have what you want, but you have what you need, if you are creative. In the past it was easy to run out and get any missing ingredient. Now we scrounge around the pantry and make do. Cassoulet especially lends itself to this kind of cooking, because it really is a melange of ingredients. Cathy's version was delicious!

Lazy Chicken-and-Sausage Cassoulet

Food and Wine

 

Cassoulet ranks as one of French Provincial cooking’s most iconic recipes, and it’s one I've been besotted with since I was young cook. My first encounter with the regional classic (broadly described as a hearty casserole of beans, various meats, sausages, and poultry) was in the writings of Richard Olney and Elizabeth David. These legendary food writers portrayed the dish with such passion and poeticism that my 23-year-old self actually made a pilgrimage to southwest France just to eat it in situ—and, I dared hope, to unlock the secret to making great cassoulet at home.For more than a week, I travelled around Languedoc and Gascony voraciously tasting my way through versions that ranged from sumptuous feasts (crowded with duck confit, goose, sausage, pork belly, pork trotters, lamb breast, lamb stew, and game meats) to deliciously modest examples (no more than pork-studded bean casseroles baked under crunchy breadcrumb crusts). In the end, the infinite variety far outlasted my appetite—and my travel budget. I returned home with the understanding that there is no single best cassoulet, and, perhaps more importantly, I felt free to adapt this rustic dish to suit my own appetite and cooking routines.In the decades since my cassoulet quest, my fondness for this meat-enriched bean gratin has not wavered, and I continually play around with various formulas and techniques. But the version I crave most remains the simplest: one that I can get on the dinner table in under an hour. I start with boneless, skinless chicken thighs (unless I have leftover roast chicken, which works great, too). If I have duck fat on hand, I use it to sauté the chicken for an extra flavor boost (and because that's the fat most used in southwest France), but any neutral-tasting oil will do. Either way, the chicken should be tender, cooked through, and well-seasoned. Then it's a matter of sautéing an onion, a healthy amount of garlic, and a heap of smoked sausage to create a flavor base that will carry through the entire dish. A bit of tomato paste ups the umami quotient, and a splash of white wine contributes just enough acid to balance the richness.From there, everything gets gently folded together with cooked white beans (canned or home-cooked), spread in a shallow dish (either a gratin or a heavy skillet), topped with breadcrumbs, and baked until bubbling hot on the inside and crunchy-golden on top. Add a green salad, and you've got one of the most enduring and satisfying bean-and-meat dishes ever.

 

Ingredients

 

2          pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, patted dry 

1-3/4   teaspoons kosher salt, divided 

1          teaspoon black pepper, divided 

½         cup olive oil or canola oil, divided 

1          medium-size yellow onion, chopped 

6          ounces smoked sausage, such as kielbasa, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces 

3          garlic cloves, minced 

1          tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, plus more for garnish 

1/8       teaspoon ground allspice 

¼         cup dry white wine 

2          tablespoons tomato paste 

2          (15-ounce) cans white beans, such as Great Northern or cannellini, drained and rinsed 

1          cup unsalted chicken stock 

1-1/2   cups fresh breadcrumbs

 

Directions

 

1.   Preheat oven to 375°F. Season chicken thighs with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add chicken thighs, smooth side down. Cook, undisturbed, adjusting heat as necessary so thighs cook evenly without scorching, until edges turn opaque and bottoms are nicely browned, about 6 minutes. Flip and cook until internal temperature reaches 165°F, 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside on a plate. Do not wipe skillet clean.

2.   Return skillet and any drippings to medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil, onion, and sausage. Cook, stirring often, until onion is tender and light golden, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, allspice, remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring often, until heated through and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add wine and tomato paste, and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer; cook, stirring often, 1 to 2 minutes. Add beans, stock, and 2 tablespoons oil; bring to a simmer.

3.   Shred chicken into bite-size pieces; add to onion mixture along with any drippings that have accumulated on the plate. Transfer to an 8- x 11-inch baking dish. Spread into an even layer. Toss breadcrumbs with remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Scatter breadcrumbs over bean mixture.

4.   Bake in preheated oven until heated through, top is browned, and sides are bubbly, about 20 minutes. (If baking from refrigerated, bake an additional 5 to 10 additional minutes.)

 

Make Ahead

 

The dish may be prepared through step 3, covered, and stored in refrigerator up to 1 day ahead.

 

Election Victory

 

To a better USA

Finally got to drink it!

Biden won, we drank Veuve Clicquot Champagne labeled by one of our favorite artists from Japan! On our last trip to Japan we went to 2 different Yayoi Kusama shows! We thought we would be drinking this on Tuesday night, but had to wait till Saturday, when Biden officially won.

Yayoi Kusama

Chicken Vesuvio, Butterscotch Blondie Brownies

Chicken Vesuvio is a nostalgia tribute to Cathy's Chicago upbringing. Although the history of the dish is convoluted and probably lost in myth, the dish was great. We will make it again and be transported back to the Windy City. It is a great winter dish. You can find the recipe on our blog of: October 21, 2019. Click the date to get the recipe and history.

Dinner in our Front Yard

Butterscotch Blondies

New York Times

 

These rich, chewy bars get their deep caramel flavor from a combination of brown butter, dark brown sugar and an optional sprinkle of flaky salt on top. They're delicious as is, but feel free to add some mix-ins (see note), if that’s more your style. You'll want to keep the amount of extra ingredients, like nuts, chocolate and dried fruits, to 2 cups total, since blondies with a lot of mix-ins may take a few minutes longer to bake. For an especially delicious combination, try a mix of 1 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate or chips, 1/2 cup toasted walnuts and 1/2 cup chopped pitted dates.

 

Ingredients

 

1       cup unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan

1-½  cups dark brown sugar

2       teaspoons vanilla extract

1       teaspoon kosher salt

2       large eggs

1-¾  cups/224 grams all-purpose flour

½      teaspoon baking powder

Any mix-ins you like (see note)

¼      teaspoon flaky salt (optional)

 

Preparation

 

1.     Heat oven to 350 degrees and butter and line a 9-by-9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.

2.     Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook butter, occasionally scraping the bottom and sides of the pan with a rubber spatula, until it turns deep golden brown and smells nutty. Don’t walk away from the pan during this process. The butter can go from brown and nutty to acrid and burnt in mere moments. Transfer the butter and all the brown bits from the pan to a large heat-safe bowl to cool slightly.

3.     When the butter is cool (but still melted), add sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Whisk until smooth. Add the eggs and mix until well combined.

4.     Fold in the flour and baking powder along with any mix-ins until well combined and no streaks of flour remain in the batter.

5.     Pour batter into prepared pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with flaky salt, if desired. Bake the blondies until set and slightly puffy, 20 to 27 minutes. For gooey blondies, err on the short side of the baking time. Cool before slicing.

        Tip

        For other add-ins, try 1 cup chopped white or milk chocolate; about 1 cup toasted, chopped nuts; 1/2 cup toasted unsweetened shredded coconut; about 1/2 cup dried whole cherries or apricots, chopped; 1/4 cup crumbled halva; 2 tablespoons bourbon or rum, or 1 tablespoon espresso powder, mixed in with butter and sugar; or a sprinkle of cinnamon or cardamom, mixed in with the butter and sugar. You can also swirl 2 to 4 tablespoons Nutella, peanut butter or tahini into the top of the batter before baking.

 

We have made Sausage and Polenta many times. Cathy decided to add Port Wine and a special Pepper to enhance the taste. It was a great idea. This is another hearty winter dish that we love. You can find the recipe for Sausage and Polenta on our blog of: October 26, 2015. Click the date to get the recipe.