Dark Days - Week #6

Dark Days #6
Butternut squash and sage soup with sage breadcrumbs Whatever you do, DO NOT skip making the breadcrumbs, these absolutely make this dish! We had a little snow fall the day we made this – so it was a little strange harvesting sage from the front yard covered with snow!
Soup
1 ½ tablespoon butter (Golden Glenn Creamery, Bow, WA)
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil (not local)
2 cups chopped onions (Walla Walla, WA)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (organic, not local)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage (front yard)
4 cups ½ inch cubes peeled seeded butternut squash (Full Circle Farm, Carnation, WA)
1 ½ teaspoons coarse sea salt (Bonair, brought home on vacation)
1 garlic clove (organic)
5 to 6 cups chicken stock (home made)
Breadcrumbs
2 crustless slices fresh whole grain wheat bread, torn (Essential Baking Company, WA)
4 teaspoons butter (Golden Glenn Creamery)
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage (front yard)
Soup
Melt butter with oil in large pot over medium high heat. Add onions, parsley, and sage; sauté until onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add squash and coarse salt; sauté until squash softens and onions are golden, about 6 minutes. Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Add 5 cups stock; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until squash is very soft; about 25 minutes. Cool slightly.
Working in batches, puree soup in blender, allowing some texture to remain. Return soup to pot. Thin with stock if desired. Season with pepper and more salt, if desired.
Breadcrumbs
Place bread in a food processor; blend until fire crumbs form but some slightly coarser crumbs remain. Cook butter in skillet in large nonstick skillet over medium heat until golden; about 2 minutes. Add breadcrumbs and sage. Cook until crumbs are crisp, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
Serves 6. Taken from Bon Appétit, February 2008

Dark Days - Week #5

Dark Days #5
Christmas Eve we were lucky enough to have the evening to ourselves. We decided to splurge on making some prime rib(no we did not go for the full size roast from the recipe, just picked up a nice 2 bone roast). We served it with oven roasted baby bok choy (Full Circle Farm, Carnation, WA) and mashed red potatoes (Full Circle Farm, Carnation, WA).
For dessert we had peach crepes made from local flour and frozen peaches from the summer. For a little decadence we added some Smith Brother's whipped cream on top (WA).
Roast prime rib au poivre
1 9 pound prime rib beef roast (about 4 ribs), excess fat trimmed (Painted Hills, OR)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (organic)
4 teaspoons minced garlic (organic)
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon mixed whole peppercorns, coarsely crushed (not local)
1/3 cup minced shallots (organic, WA)
3 ½ cups beef broth (homemade)
1/3 cup Cognac or brandy (not local)
Position oven rack in center of oven and preheat to 450 degrees. Place beef, fat side up, in shallow roasting pan. Sprinkle beef all over with salt. Mix mustard and garlic in a small bowl. Spread mustard mixture over top of beef. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons crushed peppercorns over mustard mixture.
Roast beef 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Roast until meat thermometer inserted into center of meat registers 125 degrees for rare, tenting loosely with aluminum foil if crust browns too quickly, about 2 hours 45 minutes. Transfer beef to platter. Tent loosely with foil to keep warm. Let stand 30 minutes.
Pour pan juices into 2-cup measuring cup (reserve roasting pan). Spoon off fat from top of pan juices, returning 1 tablespoon fat to roasting pan. Reserve pan juices.
Place roasting pan over 2 burners on medium-high heat. Add shallots and sauté until soft, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan, about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Add beef broth, then Cognac or brandy (mixture may ignite). Return pan to heat and boil until mixture is reduced to 2 cups, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add reserved pan juices and remaining 1 teaspoon crushed peppercorns; whisk to blend. Transfer pan juices to sauceboat.
Carve roast and serve with pan juices.
Serves 10. Taken from The Bon Appetit Cookbook (2006)