If the title doesn’t make you hungry, we don’t know what will. In honor of April being National Pecan Month and April 27th being National Prime Rib Day … we thought it was only appropriate.

Slow Roasted Prime Rib with Porcini Au Jus

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours
Yield: 6 servings
Calories per serving: … who cares, right?

Ingredients

For the beef rub:
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon coarse ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried minced onion
1 teaspoon dried minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flake

For the roast:
4-6 pound bone-in beef rib roast
1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 quart beef stock
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms

Instructions

1. Mix together the salt, pepper, onion, garlic, parsley and pepper flakes.

2. Remove the butcher’s twine and lightly coat the roast and ribs with oil.

3. Season on all sides (including the space between the ribs and roast) with the dry rub. Re-tie the beef roast and ribs back together. Let sit at room temperature for an hour.

4. Set up your grill for indirect heat and preheat to low (250-300°F).

5. Place the roast, bone-side down, on a roasting rack and pan combination. Add enough stock to fill the pan about 1 inch deep. Add the dried mushrooms.

6. Place the roast and pan on the grill on the indirect side where you don’t have any burners on. Close the grill lid and cook until the rib roast hits 10 °F less than your desired level of doneness. This should take about 3 hours for medium rare. It’s a good idea to turn the roast around every 45 minutes or so. (For rare – pull at internal temperature of 115°F. For medium rare – 125°F. For medium – 135°F).

7. Remove the roast and pan set up and let rest at room temperature until the internal temperature stops rising – about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, turn up the grill heat to high (500 °F).

8. Taste the au jus (seasoned broth in the pan) and season with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm.

9. Fully remove the rib bones. Place the rib bones cut side down over the heat. Sear the roast 2-3 minutes on the cut side and 1-2 minutes on the other sides.

10. Remove from the grill. You can let it rest for 5 minutes but it isn’t needed – it already settled during the previous rest.

11. Slice, top with some of the porcini au jus and serve.

Now let’s return to not counting calories and make some cake!

Brown Butter Pecan Pound Cake

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Yield: 12 servings
Calories per serving: … again, no one is counting!

Ingredients 

Cake
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 cups granulated sugar
6 large eggs
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups chopped pecans

Brown Butter Caramel Sauce
1/2cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease and flour a round tube pan and set aside.

2. To make the cake: Place the butter in a light-colored pan over medium heat and whisk constantly as it melts. The butter will start to bubble and foam and then subside as the water evaporates and the milk solids start to turn a light brown color. Just as it starts to turn light brown and you smell that nutty aroma, remove it from the heat to let cool for about 10 minutes. (Once the butter starts to brown, it will race into burnt, so watch it carefully and remove from the heat as soon as it starts to brown.)

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the brown butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla. Add the flour and baking powder and beat until just combined. Stir in the chopped pecans.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared tube pan. Bake for 75-90 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean. Let cake cool in pan for 20 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.

5. To make the sauce, brown the butter the same way you did the butter for the cake. Once butter is browned, whisk in the sugar, heavy cream and vanilla. Let simmer over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes and then pour into a bowl to cool completely. The sauce will thicken as it cools.

6. Once cake is cooled, place it on a serving plate or stand and pour half of the sauce over the top of it, letting it drizzle down the sides. Reserve the remaining sauce to drizzle over individual slices.

That’s how you celebrate national holidays about nuts and meat!