Standing Rib Roast with Madeira Sauce

Vegetarians beware, this post is not for you!

For Thanksgiving, my mom and I usually prepare our traditional meal: turkey and gravy, cranberry sauce, green beans, mashed potatoes, dressing, and crescent rolls. However, this year my parents were visiting my brother in South Carolina while I stayed in dreary St. Louis. Since it was going to be a small crowd this year, I decided to try something different! 

I'm not going to lie, meats are not my forte in the kitchen. I tend to be extremely intimidated by the cooking process and constantly worry that I will over cook them. However, for this Thanksgiving I decided to be brave and try something other than the traditional turkey. I saw this recipe for a standing rib roast in Cooking Light and thought it would be perfect for a delicious Thanksgiving meal. 

Along with the rib roast we prepared: homemade cranberry sauce, double baked potatoes with fontina, sauteed green beans with pearl onions, dressing, and pumpkin gingerbread trifle for dessert!

Standing Rib Roast with Madeira Sauce

Yield: 12 servings

From Cooking Light

Roast:

1 5 lb. rib-eye roast

1 garlic clove, halved

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Sauce:

1 cup water

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

½ cup Madeira wine

½ cup beef broth

½ teaspoon black pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. 

To prepare roast, rub roast on all sides with garlic. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Place roast, fat side up, on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Insert meat thermometer into thickest portion of roast. Bake at 450° for 25 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300° (do not remove roast from oven); bake an additional 1 1/2 hours or until thermometer registers 145° (medium) or desired degree of doneness. Place roast on a platter; let stand while finishing sauce.

To prepare sauce, wipe the remaining drippings from pan with paper towels, leaving brown bits on the bottom of pan. Combine the water and 2 tablespoons flour in a small bowl. Add Madeira to pan, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, scraping bottom of pan with a wooden spoon to loosen brown bits. Add flour mixture; cook for 1 minuteor until slightly thick. Stir in broth and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; cook 2 minutes. Keep warm.

Thanksgiving Dinner 2010

The rib-roast was a HUGE success. I even surprised myself! The crust was out of this world amazing and it was cooked to just the right doneness. I loved the sauce as it added a little tanginess to the meat and acted as a great dipping sauce for the sides. 

This year, I learned that cooking large pieces of beef does not have to be super intimidating or complicated to achieve great taste, and for this I am thankful! I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday and is slowly recovering from their food comas. 

Happy Thanksgiving!