Just in time, we have Perfect Prime Rib from Chef John at AllRecipes.com in this, our Christmas holiday edition of Kapers.
A lot of people save this very special (expensive) cut of beef for their Christmas celebration dinner. Chef John uses simple math to figure how long to roast your prime rib roast to perfection. However, you must have a full-sized, modern oven with a digital temperature setting that indicates when it is preheated. Older ovens with manual controls can vary greatly, and the doors may not have the proper insulation, so says Chef John. (But, I might just chance it with my older oven!)
In her book titled Gullah Geechee Home Cooking, Mrs. Emily Meggett says, “Frying Seafood can be a tricky thing. It’s a fast process, but the key is to add just enough oil, and make sure the oil is hot enough for the oysters to actually fry instead of just soaking up the cooking oil. If you have a deep-fry thermometer, clip it to the side of the skillet and heat the oil over medium heat until the thermometer registers 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don’t have a thermometer, just drop one oyster in on its side and cook: It should be golden brown on that side within one minute.”
Here is a recipe for sweet potatoes that you will quite possibly want to add to your family’s repertoire of “Favorite Christmas Dinner Dishes.” This comes from Goodhousekeeping’s food and recipes department. It’s called Rosemary-Pecan Mashed Sweet Potatoes. The GH writer says, “Mashed potatoes are tasty and all, but mashed sweet potatoes? That’s my carb go-to, every time! Add a little rosemary and sprinkle the whole shebang with roasted pecans, and watch your guests scrape the bowl clean!”
From the Stay at Home Chef, we have Old Fashioned Homemade Eggnog from Rachel Farnsworth. This is a real treat for me because I remember while celebrating at my Grannie’s house, she served a very thick and creamy eggnog. That eggnog is the “nonpareil” by which I judge all others. And, of course, they never measure up to Grannie’s eggnog. I sincerely hope Ms. Farnsworth’s eggnog will prove to be its equal. I was way too young to realize I was missing a wonderful opportunity to ask for Grannie’s recipe. Now, I don’t have my Grannie to ask.
About a month ago, in our November 17 issue, we had instructions from Southern Style by Jane Bradley on how to process your canning jars in a water bath. My sister in South Carolina, who has been canning her garden produce for better than 60 years, told me last Sunday night that we had failed to caution the readers that they must have a Canning Jar Rack or similar device first placed in the pot to keep the jars elevated off the bottom. Otherwise, the jars are subject to breakage if they are in direct contact with the pot bottom because of extreme heat from the stove. She said, “I’d hate to think that people who have no experience in canning might have their jars break in the canning pot! People experienced in canning will know this already.”
CHEF JOHN’S
PERFECT PRIME RIB
Recipe from ALLRECIPES.COM
Chef John from AllRecipes.com says to have your prime rib out of the refrigerator for six hours at least to come up to room temperature. The math won’t work if the roast is cold. Multiply the weight of the prime rib by 5 minutes. If your prime rib roast weighs 4 pounds, multiply by 5, which equals 20 minutes; 5.5 pounds 27-1/2 minutes rounded up to 28 minutes. Have your oven preheated to 500 degrees before putting the meat in the oven.
Mix in a bowl, 1/4 cup room-temperature unsalted butter and herbs de Provence (rosemary, thyme, and other Mediterranean herbs) along with a tablespoon of black pepper.
Spread this softened, seasoned butter mixture all over the surface of the room-temperature roast; sprinkle kosher salt all over the buttered roast. Put your roast into the 500-degree oven for however many minutes you have figured, then turn off the oven after that many minutes. Leave the roast in the hot oven. DO NOT PEEK! Don’t even touch the oven door. Set your timer for two hours.
Leave the roast in the oven for those two hours to finish cooking. Then you can take it out of the oven. It will be warm for serving. You don’t have to let it sit for more time.
It will be a perfectly cooked medium-rare prime rib roast.
EMILY MEGGETT’S
FRIED OYSTERS
Recipe from
Gullah Geechee Home Cooking
by Emily Meggett
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon grated onion
1/3 cup self-rising flour
1 pint shucked oysters
2 cups vegetable oil
1 lemon, quartered
Cocktail sauce for serving
1) In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Add the onion and flour, creating a batter. Set aside. 2) Drain the shucked oysters, and add them all at once to the batter. Mix the oysters and batter together, coating the oysters in the batter. 3) Pour the oil into a large cast-iron skillet. Heat the oil over high heat. There must be enough oil for the oysters to float, and the oil should be hot enough so the oysters don’t sit and soak up all the oil. Once you have enough hot oil, reduce the heat to medium. 4) In batches, spoon the oysters into the hot oil and cook for about 1 minute on each side, until golden brown.
Remove the fried oysters to a plate covered with a paper towel to drain. Serve the oysters with the lemon quarters and cocktail sauce.
ROSEMARY-PECAN
MASHED SWEET POTATOES
Recipe from
Goodhousekeeping.com
3 pounds small sweet potatoes
1-1/2 cups pecans, broken into pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
3 teaspoons roughly chopped
fresh rosemary
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
Kosher salt
1) Heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Prick sweet potatoes with fork and place on plate. Microwave on high for 6 minutes. Turn each potato over and cook until soft, 6 minutes more. Let stand until cool enough to handle. 2) Meanwhile, on rimmed baking sheet, toss pecans with oil, then Parmesan, cayenne, 2 teaspoons rosemary, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Roast until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Toss with remaining teaspoon of rosemary. 3) Peel potatoes and mash with maple syrup and 1/2 teaspoon salt until smooth. Transfer to serving dish and top with pecans.
NOTE: Make-ahead tip: This dish can be refrigerated for up to two days in advance. To serve, microwave potatoes just until heated through. Warm pecans in 400-degree F oven. Transfer potatoes to serving dish and top with pecans.
RACHEL FARNSWORTH’S
OLD FASHIONED
HOMEMADE EGGNOG
Recipe from the
Stay at Home Chef
by Rachel Farnsworth
2-1/2 cups milk
4 whole cinnamon sticks
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
7 egg yolks
3/4 cup white sugar
2 cups heavy cream or half and half for a light version
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1) Put the milk, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla into a large saucepan. Put it over the lowest heat setting on your stove for 5 minutes. 2) In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar for 1 minute. 3) Turn the heat under the milk up to medium-high heat. Remove the cinnamon sticks. 4) Slowly whisk in about 1/4 of the hot milk into the egg/sugar mixture.
Then pour all of the egg/sugar mixture back into the saucepan and whisk it all together. Put it over medium heat, whisking constantly, for 3 minutes. It will thicken a bit. 5) Pour the hot eggnog into a large bowl or beverage container and let cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Add cinnamon sticks back in (optional). 6) After 1 hour, stir in the heavy cream, 2 teaspoons vanilla, and nutmeg. Store in the fridge and allow to cool for at least 4 hours before serving.
Note: Ms. Farnsworth says that it can be made uncooked as it is traditionally with raw eggs. To keep it safe for everyone, she has written the recipe as cooked.
For an uncooked version, whisk egg yolks, sugar, cloves, and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl. Replace the cinnamon sticks with 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon and whisk in with the egg yolks. Slowly pour in milk, cream and vanilla extract, whisk until thoroughly combined. Alcohol can be added if you wish: dark rum, cognac, bourbon.
