Smoked Prime Rib with Garlic and Herb Rub

 Smoked Prime Rib with Garlic and Herb Rub

A five pounder ready for the garlic herb rub

Who doesn't like Prime Rib? I love it, and it  is one of my favorite ways to serve beef to guests. People assume prime rib has to be expensive. The term, prime rib, actually refers to the grading of the meat. Prime, being the best grade possible, is very expensive and his hard to find. Any beef rib roast that is of good quality, such as choice, will do fine. I picked New York Strip for this dish. The trick is when the grocery has bone in beef such as strip or rib eye on sale, ask the butcher to give you some that has not been cut. The one I used was five pounds. Have the butcher trim it. I am smoking this one so I asked them not to trim the fat to much. 

1 five pound bone in beef rib roast

4 tablespoons fresh sage

4 tablespoons fresh thyme

4 tablespoons fresh rosemary

4 tablespoons fresh parsley

1 head of garlic

salt and pepper

olive oil

Chop all the herbs and place in a bowl. Finely chop the garlic and form a paste using the side of your knife. Add to the herbs. Generously season herb and garlic mixture with salt and pepper. Mix together while adding olive oil until you form a paste. Rub mixture on to the roast. Let rest in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Overnight is even better.

Ready to be smoked out!

 

 

Smoking it up!

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Fire up the smoker! I used a wood combo of pecan and oak. Pecan for the flavor and oak for heat. Place the roast on indirect heat of about 250* for about 6 hours.Rotate the meat a quarter turn every hour.

Feeling relaxed after a good rest!

Let rest for an 20 minutes.

Perfectly pink and tender on the inside with a crispy bark outside!

Slice and serve!!!

Poached Pears in Cognac and Spices with Blackberry Citrus Reduction

 

Poached Pears in Cognac with Spices and Blackberry Citrus Reduction

 This easy and delicious desert is as elegant as it is beautiful. I got inspired after spotting some gorgeous  pears and some local blackberries. If you do no want to spring for the cognac you can defiantly use brandy since it is practically the same thing. This was a dinner for my moms birthday we decided to use the good stuff. Serve with some local vanilla ice cream.

• 3 medium pears 
•  1 pint of fresh Blackberries
• 1 orange
• 1 large lemon
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup cognac
• a piece of cinnamon and a couple of cloves

In a sauce pan combine the water, cognac, cinnamon, and cloves. Bring to a boil.  In the mean time cut a large piece of the rind from the orange and the lemon  at least an inch wide and the juice from each. Add to boiling water and cognac. Wash the pears and cut them in half. Remove the pit. Slice the pears into about 6 to 10 slices without cutting all the way to the stem. This will keep them intact. Add them to the pot and poach for about 10 minutes. remove and let cool.
Add the blackberries and the sugar to the pot. Reserve a few berries for garnish, at least 2 per plate.  Reduce until it forms a thick  syrup. Stain the sauce and  loosen the it with a little cognac.
Fan out the pear on a plate. Spoon the sauce over the pears. Garnish with a some fresh blackberries and serve with your favorite vanilla ice cream.

Seared Fish with Butternut Goat Cheese Ravioli In Sage Butter Sauce

Seared Fish with Butternut Goat Cheese Ravioli in Sage Butter Sauce

 

This savory dish is easy to prepare and always impresses your guests. You can use any kind of fish you like and is also great with pork, chicken and especially seared duck breast.  If you have the time make the pasta for the ravioli from scratch, it’s worth it. It adds an extra level of depth of flavor and texture to the dish. In this case I was short on time so I used wonton wrappers.  You can cut and crimp them to look just like ravioli or just make them into triangles. This recipe served three.

 

1 small butternut squash

3 firm fish filets

20 leaves of sage

1 tablespoon fresh chives

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

2 cloves garlic

4 ounces goat cheese

1 stick of unsalted butter

Wonton wrappers

Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Roast the butternut squash in a 375* oven for about an hour or until tender.  After cooling, dig out all the squash and transfer to a bowl and mash it up. Wrap up the squash in a cheese cloth and squeeze gently until liquid stops flowing out.  Finely chop five of the sage leaves, chives and parsley and add to the bowl of squash. Chop the garlic and make a paste using the side of your knife and to the mixture. Now add the goat cheese and blend. 

Make an egg wash and brush the edges of the wonton wrappers. Place a teaspoon of the butternut squash mixture into the center of the wonton and fold to form a triangle. Be sure that none of the mixture is coming out of the edges. It will leak out during boiling if it is. Dust them with a little flour and let rest in the fridge until you’re ready to boil them. 

In a small sauce pan melt the butter on medium low heat. Once melted add the sage leaves. Season with salt and pepper. I do a rough chop on them but you can chop them any way you want. Let simmer while pasta is boiling.

Boil the ravioli in salty water for about 3 or 4 minutes. Remove from the water and let drain in a colander.

Season the fish on both sides with salt and pepper and lightly dust with a little flour. This will let them brown without over cooking the fish. In a saute pan heat some olive oil and sear the fish.

Plate the ravioli with seared fish on top and cover with the sage butter. 

Salmon Tartar dressed in Lemon Caper Vinaigrette

This is an easy and versatile dish that takes minutes to make. Buy the freshest salmon you can find, this is the key to this dish. You can use any style of vinaigrette you like or just lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper works fine. I did this version for an opening salad with simple mixed greens.

Serves four

16 ounces fresh salmon
2 tablespoons capers
1 tablespoon fresh chives
1 tablespoon fresh parley
1 large garlic clove
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Mixed greens

Remove the skin from the salmon and and cut into 1 inch cubes.
Transfer to a bowl and place in the refrigerator.
Chop the garlic clove and make into a paste using the side of you knife. Finely chop the herbs and the capers. Place all the ingredients I'm a jar and shake till emulsified.
To make a salad put 1 tablespoon of vinaigrette in the bottom of a plate and place greens on top. Add the rest of the vinaigrette to the salmon and toss. Add the dressed salmon on top of the greens and serve.

Gros Pain

I never bake. I don't have the time. I watched one of the greatest French chefs ever,Jacques Pepin, make the simplest and tastiest bread ever! Here it is!

4 1/2 cups bread flour
2 cups water
1 pack of yeast
1 tablespoon salt

Mix it all in a food processor of 30 seconds. Turn into a bowl and let proof for at least 3 hours. Turn the sides of the dough in on it self ,this is a very important step, for at least 10 go arounds the ball to make a seam in the middle. Turn
it over and pull the ball tight. Put it down on a baking sheet, seam side down, covered in corn meal and proof again covered until it doubles. Score it and flour, then shove it into a steamy oven till its dark brown and beautiful. 400* for about an hour. You will know when it is done by the hollow sound it will make when you tap the bottom. Please enjoy all the ways you can make this simplest of pleasures!!!

Cured Country Ham Pâté

I love food that is spreadable. I found the basis for this recipe in an early 1970's Cajun cookbook and tweaked it. Whole cured country hams are very expensive and this recipe only calls for two cups of ham. I use a cured ham steak. It's the perfect amount, price and availability for this recipe.

1 country cured ham steak
1 stick unsalted butter
1 teaspoon powdered mustard
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon of mixed fresh herbs, I used rosemary and oregano
2 tablespoons Rye whiskey

Cook the ham in a skillet with a little oil until cooked through.
Cut ham into pieces until you have 2 cups. Pulse in the food processor until finely chopped. Add butter and pulse until smooth.
Add all the dry ingredients and pulse until well mixed.
Refrigerate over night to let flavors settle and mix.
Take out of the fridge at least one hour before serving so it becomes spreadable. Trust me it won't spread straight out the fridge.
Serve with crusty bread.

Grilled Herb Seasoned Flat Iron Steak

 The Flat Iron Steak is one of my favorite cuts to grill. The cut has nice marbling and is usually cut into a twelve inch long strip, generally an inch to an inch and a half thick. Look for one that is nicely marbled and has the same thickness all the way through.  This size makes it perfect for slicing and cooks evenly.
 When you season your steak your possibilities are endless. I've used many different combinations of everything from different chili's, herbs, hot sauces, garlic, and onion pastes. In this recipe I used one of my favorite combos of earthy herbs.


Grilled Herb Seasoned Flat Iron Steak

1 Flat Iron Steak
6 tablespoons Oregano
3 tablespoons Rosemary
Season generously with sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Season the steak with salt and pepper. Chop the herbs and coat each side. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

 I grilled this steak over a charcoal and pecan coal mix. Set the coals about 6 inches from the grates.This allows for some time on each side of the steak to cook with out burning. The most import thing, to me, is this longer cooking time allows  the delicate Pecan smoke to leave a great wood flavor to meat. I generally start with a charcoal base. Once the coals are white I add 2 to 3 pecan logs and let them burn down to coals. This fire should be nice and hot.  Time to grill!
 Grill for 6 minutes on each side. Let rest for 15 minutes and slice away. Serve with a fresh chimichuri sauce.

This is also makes great leftovers, if you have any. Add a fried egg and it just does not get any better than this! Especially at 2:30 in the morning!