Mama, Mama, Holiday Drama

Ready for Christmas? Got all your shopping done? If one more person asks me something like that I will scream! Because I am extremely unready. Yeah, I know, IT'S TOMORROW! EEEKK!!

Yesterday was the Christmas program at preschool. Now they are all tucked up in their house with their parents and I can work on MY family's Christmas.When I mentioned how behind on preparations I was, Mr. Ose said, "Maybe you should learn to multi-task". He is definitely getting coal in his stocking. He was kidding, he knew I was already multi-tasking my little heart out. Next year will be easier, first year is the hardest, (I keep telling myself). Really, we just have to buy stuff. Gifts, food, etc. Teenage boys are hard to buy for. It's amazing how much of this is Mama-driven, at least at our house.

At least I don't have to make up a menu. That may be the reason that traditions are born, so that you don't have to make everything up from scratch every year. (Mothers are geniuses!) We will have rib roast, mashed potatoes, broccoli, carrots, jello for Nick, Yorkshire pudding, and gravy. We will have English "crackers", party favors that look like wrapped tubes from toilet paper. Inside the tubes there is a small firework that goes "POP" when you pull on it, a tissue paper hat, a corny joke and a small, cracker-jacky prize. (I mean the kind of prize you USED to get in Cracker Jack, not the piece of paper you get nowadays). Lucy dog is so afraid of the small pop sound the crackers make that she hides in the basement anytime we sit at the dining room table, in case it is Christmas Eve. She comes up later, looking for fatty bits from the roast.

The roast is a BIG DEAL. It is expensive, the best price this year is from Cub, $6 a pound. I rarely buy meat that expensive. I would hate to ruin it. Ruining, to me, is well done. I like my steaks on the rare side of medium rare. I do not want to overcook this roast. My friend Mary gave me this recipe she got from County Market. She said it is foolproof. As I am a fool, it is exactly what I need! I'm going to try it, while still hovering over the oven with thermometer in hand.

I wish you a Merry Christmas,
Kellet

Prime Rib

This recipe works for ANY size rib roast.
DO NOT open oven door at all during the cooking time.
Preheat oven to 375
Roast should be placed in a shallow pan on a rack, do not cover.
Season with Salt and pepper
Bake for 1 hour.
Turn oven off for at least 2 hours, but not more than 4 hours.
DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR DURING THIS TIME.
Turn oven back on to 375 and cook for another 45 minutes.
Remove from oven and let set for 15 minutes before carving.
Roast will be medium rare from end to end.