Oh the holidays, I'm so glad I don't work retail anymore. People always ask me, "Why are you such a Scrooge?" I usually reply, "You ever work in a place where Christmas is a corporate shill nightmare and Christmas music is on repeat for eight hours a day and you go home and dream of Christmas merchandise and 'White Christmas' now sounds like a funeral dirge?" And then the nice man in the white coat with a net comes and gives a ride back to Happydale.
The real upside to the holidays is food (and being with people you don't want to sell into white slavery). Now we all know that I've been known to make a turkey or ham at random but for the holidays I've been known to do something different. Last year I spent it with friends; they made goose and I did a pot roast (that cooked at about 275 for over four hours). This year they're doing another goose and since it's going to be a bigger affair than the three of us gorging ourselves like ticks we decided to kick it up a notch. Hence an eleven pound goose and an eleven pound standing rib roast. Ooo, fancy pantsy you say? Yeah, kind of better than turkey and ham but we shop smart and got hella good deals.
I've never made a goose. Personally that's all Amazonbutterfly's domain and seems to require a level of elbow grease I'm not normally willing to put forth. I'm doing the standing rib roast. Kids, let me tell you a secret. Ready? It's one of the easiest things you will ever make. Seriously, it's easier than turkey. Sure you can do all kinds of fancy stuff and hibbity jibbity but this is one of those dishes where simplicity reigns. 350 @ 15 minutes per pound. Whilst preheating the oven liberally apply (a.k.a. coat that sucker) fresh black pepper and kosher salt (why do you even own "table" salt?). Put roast in sufficiently large pan. Put pan containing roast in oven. Set timer (easy math? one hour = four pounds). Timer goes off, take stuff out of oven, let rest fifteen minutes. Tada, you just made a big ass fancy roast.
It's one of the things I grew up eating on Christmas and my father would sometimes add herbs to the rub and I might have except I was out of everything except dill. I might have used #42 but I'm cooking for a mixed crowd so I didn't want to throw anyone off. This is one of those dishes where the meat itself is the main attraction and should not require bells or whistles.
The tricky part for me is going to be making gravy because I never make gravy. I know it's relatively easy, I just never do it.
I am also going to make Yorkshire pudding because, well, that's what one does with a proper roast. It's pretty simple and cooks while the roast is setting. It's basically egg, milk, flour, salt, pepper, and roast drippings mixed and baked. I frigging love the stuff. Last night I prepped all the dry ingredients (and added a few dashes of herbs de provence for fun) so I wouldn't have to monkey with them today. Lookit me bein teh smrts.
So yeah, that's the long and short. Hopefully everything turns out okay. There will probably be some pictures.
Hope that all of are well and safe and relatively not miserable.
The real upside to the holidays is food (and being with people you don't want to sell into white slavery). Now we all know that I've been known to make a turkey or ham at random but for the holidays I've been known to do something different. Last year I spent it with friends; they made goose and I did a pot roast (that cooked at about 275 for over four hours). This year they're doing another goose and since it's going to be a bigger affair than the three of us gorging ourselves like ticks we decided to kick it up a notch. Hence an eleven pound goose and an eleven pound standing rib roast. Ooo, fancy pantsy you say? Yeah, kind of better than turkey and ham but we shop smart and got hella good deals.
I've never made a goose. Personally that's all Amazonbutterfly's domain and seems to require a level of elbow grease I'm not normally willing to put forth. I'm doing the standing rib roast. Kids, let me tell you a secret. Ready? It's one of the easiest things you will ever make. Seriously, it's easier than turkey. Sure you can do all kinds of fancy stuff and hibbity jibbity but this is one of those dishes where simplicity reigns. 350 @ 15 minutes per pound. Whilst preheating the oven liberally apply (a.k.a. coat that sucker) fresh black pepper and kosher salt (why do you even own "table" salt?). Put roast in sufficiently large pan. Put pan containing roast in oven. Set timer (easy math? one hour = four pounds). Timer goes off, take stuff out of oven, let rest fifteen minutes. Tada, you just made a big ass fancy roast.
It's one of the things I grew up eating on Christmas and my father would sometimes add herbs to the rub and I might have except I was out of everything except dill. I might have used #42 but I'm cooking for a mixed crowd so I didn't want to throw anyone off. This is one of those dishes where the meat itself is the main attraction and should not require bells or whistles.
The tricky part for me is going to be making gravy because I never make gravy. I know it's relatively easy, I just never do it.
I am also going to make Yorkshire pudding because, well, that's what one does with a proper roast. It's pretty simple and cooks while the roast is setting. It's basically egg, milk, flour, salt, pepper, and roast drippings mixed and baked. I frigging love the stuff. Last night I prepped all the dry ingredients (and added a few dashes of herbs de provence for fun) so I wouldn't have to monkey with them today. Lookit me bein teh smrts.
So yeah, that's the long and short. Hopefully everything turns out okay. There will probably be some pictures.
Hope that all of are well and safe and relatively not miserable.
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