Christmas Eve Dinner

I hosted Christmas Eve dinner this year.   We had Prime Rib, Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, Roasted Potatoes, Smashed Bourbon Yams, Chocolate Pie & Pecan Pie.

When cooking a large meal I suggest doing all the prep work in the morning.  After having a cup of coffee the first thing I did on Christmas Eve was chop all the vegetables up.   My entire counter space was full of bowls containing chopped veggies, aromatics and spice blends.   I then got out all the pots & pans I would need so that everything was ready.   Dinner was to be served at 6 pm.

At 2 I parboiled the potatoes and sprouts and then set out the Prime Rib to come to room temperature.
At 3:30 I put the roast in the oven.
At 5:30 the roast came out and the potatoes went in & all the veggies were started.  At 6 dinner was ready.

Easy Prime Rib:  I bought a 7 lb rib in roast that was already tied with butcher string at the meat market.  Preheat your oven to 450.  Slice 2 large onions into thick pieces.  Lay them on the bottom of your roasting pan.  Place the roast on top of  the onion.  Cut about a dozen slits in the fat of the roast and shove in slivers of garlic.  Rub the whole roast down with salt & pepper.  Sprinkle your favorite spice blend over the top as well.  I used some savory, aleppo pepper, garlic & onion granules, and some rosemary.   Pour about 1.5 cups of beef stock and 1 cup of good red wine in the bottom of the roasting pan.
Place the roast in the oven at 450 for 20 minutes then turn the heat down to 350 and roast an additional 90 minutes.  This produced a medium rare roast in the center. 
Use a meat thermometer if your not use to cooking large roasts.  120 degrees in the center is medium.  Let your roast rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing.

Roasted Potatoes:  I quartered small creamy yellow potatoes.  Par boil the potatoes in salted water first.  This will help keep oven time to a minimum and produce a moister potato.  Liberally coat the parboiled slices in olive oil and spread evenly across a baking sheet.  Sprinkle the potatoes with your favorite spice blend.  I used the following:  salt & pepper, garlic & onion granules, dried parsley, paprika, aleppo pepper, savory and thyme.

Steamed Broccoli:  I steamed my broccoli florets over water that had 1 lemon sliced in half and 2 large bay leaves in it.  This produces a nice flavor.  Season steamed broccoli with a little salt & pepper.

Caramelized Brussels Sprouts & Shallots:  Slice the sprouts in 1/2 or quarters depending on their size and par boil.  Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add a little olive oil.  Add in 3 or 4 thinly sliced shallots and the sprouts.  Stir them around a bit making sure they don't burn, but making sure to let them caramelize to get a nice sweet flavor.  Season with salt & pepper.

Smashed Bourbon Yams:  Peel and chop up the yams.  Steam until tender.  Drain and smash with a fork.  Add one tablespoon of your favorite bourbon, 1 tablespoon of butter, a dash of salt and a little bit of half & half. 

Oktoberfest Dinner

Sausages with caramelized onions, roasted brussel sprouts & roasted potatoes.

For the sausages: simmer some bratwurst sausages & 1 sliced onion in about 1/2 a bottle of  good German beer for 10 minutes.  This should cook them most of the way through.  Drain the sausages & onions and saute them in a hot pan with a little olive oil until the onions are nice and caramelized.

For the veggies:  Boil the fingerling potatoes in heavily salted water for 10 minutes.  Steam the brussel sprouts for 8 minutes.
Spread the veggies and taters out on a foil lined baking sheet.  Toss with olive oil.  Sprinkle with spices.
Veggies=garlic granules, salt & pepper.  Potatoes=aleppo  pepper, black pepper, salt, garlic granules, savory & parsley.
Roast at 425 for 20 minutes.

I also served a side of baked beans because that's what he wanted.

Bacon, Gruyere & Potato Tart

This is delicious and addictive.  I ate two slices.

Ingredients:  Good quality thin sliced lean bacon trimmed of excess fat; 2 baking potatoes (russet); 1/2-1 cup of grated Gruyere cheese;  1 teaspoon savory & some  black pepper.  There is no added salt in this recipe.  The bacon & cheese had plenty.

Preheat Oven to 425 and get out a pie pan.

Arrange the bacon slices in a circle from the center of the pie pan going out.  leave the ends hanging over the edge of pan.

On top of the bacon create a layer of over lapping potato slices.  Make sure the slices are pretty thin.  I left the skin on mine, but you can peel yours if you like.

 On top of the potato layer sprinkle a bit of grated Gruyere cheese and season with 1/2 a teaspoon of savory and some black pepper.  Add another layer of potatoes, cheese and seasoning and top with a final layer of potatoes.

Wrap the bacon over the potatoes and bake in the oven at 425 for about 45-55 minutes.  The bacon should be crisp and the potatoes will be cooked fully through. 

Slice into wedges and serve.  I plated my tart up with a light salad of butter lettuce, radishes, cucumber & carrot.  I also made some steamed asparagus and broccoli & garlic toast.

Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes with Pork Tenderloin

I love mashed potatoes and am always trying to find new things to throw in them.  Tonight I added in goat cheese, chopped green onion, chopped parsley, a little half 'n half and salt & pepper.

To get extra creamy mashed potatoes the trick is to always use red or gold, never russet, and simmer them a little longer than you think.  Cutting them into smaller pieces will decrease the cooking time.  I always salt my cooking water pretty heavily as well.

For the pork tenderloin: Preheat oven to 400.  Heat up a cast iron skillet with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  Season the tenderloin liberally with salt & pepper.

 Sear all the juices in by cooking on the stove top each side about 3 minutes.  Tenderloins don't really have "sides" so I turn it about 3 times until the outer surface is nicely caramelized.  Pop it in the oven for an additional 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of the tenderloin.  Let rest 5 minutes before cutting.

I also served steamed broccoli (it's the only vegetable he really likes) with a little bit of butter, Parmesan cheese and red chile flakes.

All of the leftovers went into a container for an easy homemade TV dinner.

This entire meal cooked up in about 40 minutes.
Happy Eating!