Prime Rib, Kitchen Update and Christmas Snow

Christmas had a couple of surprises for us:

First we had a white Christmas, even though the show didn't show up until late in the evening on Christmas day. We got 4 tenths of an inch. It snowed all Christmas night and we ended up with 6 inches, Considering North Carolina only gets between 6 and 7 inches annually this is considered a major storm.

Second the kitchen remodel is almost complete. I got to make our Christmas dinner in the new kitchen. We need one more box of flooring and a few drawer pulls for the job to be complete. If it wasn't for Christmas and the snow the kitchen would already be complete. Click here for a sneak preview.

While I was able to get in the kitchen and make an occasional meal I wasn't able to do any real cooking. So my Christmas dinner was the first real meal I made in the new kitchen. I decided to make prime rib, hassleback potatoes and asparagus. The prime rib recipe was based on a Tyler Florence recipe I found on the Food Network website.

Prime Rib With Horseradish Crust

1 bone in prime rib beef roast, 3 ribs, about 6 pounds
5 garlic cloves, smashed
1/4 cup grated fresh or prepared horseradish
Leaves from 2 fresh rosemary sprigs
Leaves from 4 fresh thyme sprigs
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 cups canned chicken or beef broth

I made a couple of changes to this. I only used a 1/4 cup of salt and it made a good paste (described below) and I still thought that some bites seemed very salty. I started with 1 tbs of flour and the gravy was very soupy so I added one additional tbs and ended up with a thin gravy. This was ok as the leftover gravy can now be used for aus jus. The recipe took every bit of the 2 hours, if it wasn't for my children wanting to leave to get home before the snow, I would have cooked it a little longer. It was still very good and the gravy was excellent.

Here are Tyler's instructions with my comments in brackets [ ].

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Lay the beef in a large roasting pan with the bone side down. (The ribs act as a natural roasting rack.) In a small bowl mash together the garlic, horseradish, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, and olive oil to make a paste [I used a mortar and pestle to get everything finely mashed]. Massage the paste generously over the entire roast [I had enough paste to cover top and sides but not the under side where the bones are]. Put the pan in the oven and roast the beef until the internal temperature of the meat registers 125 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer (medium-rare), 1 1/2 to 2 hours [See my comment above]. Remove the beef to a carving board and let it rest for 20 minutes before carving.

Pour off some of the pan drippings and place pan on stovetop over medium-high heat. [I saved 1 tbs of drippings to go with the original 1 tbs of flour. I wished I would have saved more since I ended up adding more flour to thicken it. I would save 2 to 3 tbs if you want thicker gravy.]

Add the white wine and bring to a simmer, scraping the bits on the bottom of the pan. Reduce the wine by half. Whisk in the flour, then add the broth and continue to cook, whisking until sauce thickens into a gravy, about 10 minutes. [I would use low sodium broth if use Tyler's 1/2 cup of salt. It took longer than 10 minutes to get thicker gravy, but I had to go back and add additional flour to thicken it.]

My wife, Annette, took this picture of the pond behind my house.

Remodel Days 4 & 5

Day 4
The kitchen started to look like a kitchen again, but a really messy one. Today they installed the new cabinets, the pantry and the desk. The new cabinets are the exact same ones they installed when the house was built. After 10 years the old cabinets have aged and the color is a little darker, you can see this in the picture of the pantry. They also did some of the electrical work.



Day 5
Today was one of those days where you can't see where much was done. The cabinets installation was finished. They added the shelving, leveled the cabinets and made sure they shut right. The guys who install the countertops came and made templates of the cabinets. They do this so they can cut the granite to the right size. The electrician moved and installed a couple more outlets and some light switches.



Tomorrow we should see a big change, but I am going to make you wait to see what it is in case they don't stay on plan.

No Christmas Cookies This Year

Twas 17 days before Christmas and all through the house
Not a chef was stirring not even the mousse
The plastic was hung by the island and chairs
In hopes that the new kitchen would soon be there

At the beginning of the year my wife and I decided to replace the flooring and countertops in our kitchen. They were both original to the house and needed replacing. This of course got us talking about what we could do to improve the design of our kitchen to improve it. After talking to 6 or 7 seven contractors over the course of the year, we found one that we really liked. The new floors and countertops now include doubling the size of our island, adding a pantry and cupboards, a new backsplash and adding a desk. We also replaced our old appliances, they were installed before the remodel so the br=efore pictures show the old but the during show the new ones. We are three working days into the project. The contractor says we will be done before Christmas.

Here are before pictures.



Day 1
The existing island was ripped out, the old flooring removed and they began removing the backsplash. The backsplash became and issue as it wouldn't come down without taking chunks of the sheetrock with it.


Day 2
The backsplash was removed and new sheetrock was installed where the backsplash used to be. Then the counters were ripped out, except where the sink was. No electricity except to the appliances.


Day 3
The new cabinets were supposed to be installed, but not all of them were sent. So the painter came and primed the walls and the plumber came to fit the sink. The sink we ordered was discontinued so they sent a larger one, the plumber had to make sure that it would fit before we installed the countertops. No more water in the kitchen until we get countertops and a sink.

Turkey Shepherds Pie with Sweet Potato Topping

I have a rule that at Thanksgiving you should only eat until the button on your pants pops off and hits the chandelier or as my son says "eat until it hurts". I am not sure why we bought a 20 pound turkey for 7 people, but we wouldn't have all of these leftovers if we didn't. This recipe was based on EatingWell's Turkey & Leek Shepherd's Pie and turned out to be very tasty.

Turkey Shepherds Pie with Sweet Potato Topping

Filling
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced carrots
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon dried sage, rubbed
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 cups diced cooked turkey
3/4 cup frozen peas
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2-3/4 cup milk
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1. To prepare filling: Preheat oven to 425°F. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add carrots and cook, stirring, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute more.

2. Pour in wine and stir until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add flour and sage and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour starts to turn light brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in broth and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens and the carrots are barely tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Add turkey (or chicken) and peas and season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer the mixture to a deep 10-inch pie pan or other 2-quart baking dish and set aside.

4. To mash potatoes and bake pie: Place potatoes in a large saucepan and add cold salted water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, partially covered, until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and return the potatoes to the pan. Cover and shake the pan over low heat to dry the potatoes slightly, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

5. Mash the potatoes adding enough milk to make a smooth puree. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in egg and 1 tablespoon oil.

6. Spread the potatoes on top of the turkey mixture. With the back of a spoon, make decorative swirls. Set the dish on a baking sheet and bake until the potatoes and filling are heated through and the top is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.

Chocolate-Raspberry Torte

Many of you know that I test recipes and shop for groceries for Cook's Illustrated. This is a recipe that I tested several months ago, at that time I published a photo on the FoodBuzz website. Well Cooks Illustrated finally published the recipe in the November 2010 issue. This means I can publish the recipe now. This recipe is the first recipe I have tested where some big changes were made before the recipe was published. They added more chocolate, almost doubled the amount of almonds and the amount of vanilla was doubled. Since the first one was delicious I can only imagine how good it is with more nuts, vanilla and chocolate. The glaze turned out so shiny you can see the reflection of the raspberries in it. You can check out the entire recipe and notes in the November/December issue of Cook's Illustrated or on their website.

Chocolate-Raspberry Torte
Cake and Filling
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate , chopped fine (see note)
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter , cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 3/4 cups (about 7 ounces) sliced almonds , lightly toasted
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (1 1/4 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon table salt
5 large eggs
3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) sugar
1/2 cup fresh raspberries , plus 16 individual berries for garnishing cake
1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam
Chocolate Ganache Glaze
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate , chopped fine (see note)
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream

INSTRUCTIONS
1. FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line bottom of two 9-inch-wide by 2-inch-high round cake pans with parchment paper. Melt chocolate and butter in large heatproof bowl set over saucepan filled with 1 inch simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Stir in vanilla and espresso powder.

2. Process 3/4 cup almonds in food processor until coarsely chopped, six to eight 1-second pulses; set aside to garnish cake. Process remaining cup almonds until very finely ground, about 45 seconds. Add flour and salt and continue to process until combined, about 15 seconds. Transfer almond-flour mixture to medium bowl. Process eggs in now-empty food processor until lightened in color and almost doubled in volume, about 3 minutes. With processor running, slowly add sugar until thoroughly combined, about 15 seconds. Using whisk, gently fold egg mixture into chocolate mixture until some streaks of egg remain. Sprinkle half almond-flour mixture over chocolate-egg mixture and gently whisk until just combined. Sprinkle in remaining almond-flour mixture and gently whisk until just combined.

3. Divide batter between cake pans and smooth with rubber spatula. Bake until center is firm and toothpick inserted into center comes out with few moist crumbs attached, 14 to 16 minutes. Transfer cakes to wire rack and cool completely in pan, about 30 minutes. Run paring knife around sides of cakes to loosen. Invert cakes onto cardboard rounds cut same size as diameter of cake and remove parchment paper. Using wire rack, reinvert 1 cake so top side faces up; slide back onto cardboard round.

4. TO ASSEMBLE TORTE: Place ½ cup raspberries in medium bowl and coarsely mash with fork. Stir in raspberry jam until just combined. Spread raspberry mixture onto cake layer that is top side up. Top with second cake layer, leaving it bottom side up. Transfer assembled cake, still on cardboard round, to wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet.

5. FOR THE GLAZE: Melt chocolate and cream in medium heatproof bowl set over saucepan filled with 1 inch simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and gently whisk until very smooth. Pour glaze onto center of assembled cake. Use offset spatula to spread glaze evenly over top of cake, letting it flow down sides. Spread glaze along sides of cake to coat evenly.

6. Using fine-mesh strainer, sift reserved almonds to remove any fine bits. Holding bottom of cake on cardboard round with 1 hand, gently press sifted almonds onto cake sides with other hand. Arrange raspberries around circumference. Refrigerate cake, still on rack, until glaze is set, at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours. Transfer cake to serving platter, slice, and serve.

Easy Cassoulet

One of my favorite cookbook authors is Pam Anderson, no not that Pam Anderson, this one is married to a minister. The reason why I like her is that in most of her books she just doesn't give recipes, she gives formulas. So a recipe for a stir fry maybe use 1/2 pound of protein, 1 pound vegetables, etc. Then she will give a list of suggested proteins and vegetables. Then she will give you a list of sauces you can use for stir fries. Finally she will finish with some recipes for her favorite stir fries. I usually recommend her books to people who are just getting into cooking, you will learn how to cook not recipes like you do from Betty Crocker or some of the other beginning cookbooks. Pam just came out with a new book, Perfect One-Dish Dinners, so I had to try a recipe. As usual it was delicious. I am looking forward to trying some more of her recipes from Perfect One-Dish Dinners.

Cassoulet-Style Italian Sausages and White Beans

2 1/2 punds sweet Italian sausage links, I cut mine into 1/4's as they were large
3 pints cherry tomatoes
1 medium onion, cut into 1 1/2" chunks
4 large cloves garlic, sliced
3 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tsp dried thyme
3 bay leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cans (around 16 oz) white beans, undrained I used Great Northern and Cannellini

Serves 8

Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 425 degrees.

Mix sausages, tomatoes, onion, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, thyme, bay leaves and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper in a large heavy roasting pan. Set pan in oven and roast until sausages are brown and tomatoes have reduced to a thick sauce, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven, stir in beans, and continue to roast until casserole has heated through, about 10 minutes longer. Fish out bay leaves and serve.

Nutella Tart

I hate to bake, but every year I am tasked with making my wife a birthday cake. This often becomes the cake for my son's and my birthday as well. My son was born on my wife's birthday and my birthday is 8 days later. Now this year my wife and I turn the big 50, so I thought the cake should be special. Here is what I came up with.

Nutella Tart
1 1/2 cup Graham Crackers, crushed or you can but them
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
9 oz dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup Nutella
1/2 cup Half n Half or heavy whipping cream
1/2 to 1 cup of chopped nuts, depending on how nutty you want it.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Mix the crushed graham crackers with the butter. Spread the graham cracker mixture evenly over the bottom of a spring form pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the crust cool.
While the crust is cooling melt chocolate chips with a couple of ounces of the half n half. After the chips are melted mix in the Nutella. Then mix in the rest of the cream. The results should be a thick but easily spreadable. When the crust is cool add the filling and sprinkle the nuts on top. Put in freezer for about 20 minutes. The purpose of putting the tart in the freezer is to set the chocolate not freeze the tart. After you remove the tart from freezer move it to the refrigerator until about 30 minutes before you are ready to serve. Then let the tart set at room temperature so it is easy to cut.