I wanted to make a very simple, non-time consuming main dish for Christmas Eve dinner and a roast seemed to be ideal. Many people recommended that I make a prime rib, which seems to be the traditional Christmas main dish in this country. I look through different recipes at Epicurious.com and decided on this one based on its good reviews and its simplicity. It was a great choice. The meat itself was tender beyond belief and very flavorful, so much so that it didn't really need the au jus, though this tasted great as well.

This is a very expensive dish, however, I paid about $16 a lb for the "rib eye steaks" which apparently is what a boneless prime rib is. We got a mid-priced cab for the sauce (about $5) and that seemed to be good enough. I didn't change the recipe much, though I did decide to start cooking the prime rib at a slightly higher temperature than recommended and then bring it down to a slightly lower one. Given how perfect it came out, I'd do it like this again. I also halved the au jus recipe, which proved to be a good thing as we barely consumed half of it as it was.

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Prime Rib with Cabernet Jus

Ingredients

For the prime rib

1 6-pound boneless prime rib beef roast

4 large garlic cloves, pressed

2 tsp. dried thyme

kosher salt

black pepper

For the au jus

1 bottle good quality Cabernet Sauvignon

1 cup ruby Port

2 cups beef stock or broth

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 large shallot, peeled and halved

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Prepare the Roast. Remove prime rib from the fridge and let rest for an hour. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 450 F. Rub the beef with the garlic and thyme. Rub it with kosher salt and pepper. Put in a roasting pan and roast for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 300 F and roast until a meat thermometer indicates its internal temperature is 120 F (about 1 ½ hours, but check!). Remove, place in a serving platter, tent with aluminum foil and let sit for 20-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the au jus. Combine the wine, port, broth, garlic cloves, shallot and bay leaf in a medium-saucepan. Boil until it's reduced to 1 cup, about 1 hour. Add dried thyme. (This mixture can be prepared and refrigerated up to 28 hours in advance).

After removing the roast from the roasting pan, pour off all the fat. Place the roasting pan on the stove top over medium heat and add the Cabernet mixture. Bring to a boil scrapping all the browned bits. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a gravy boat and serve.

Adapted from a recipe at Epicurious.com