As I get older spring has become my favorite time of the year.
Summer is right up there but, for me now, I appreciate the newness and the magic Mother Nature weaves as little sprouts of some bulbs, make their way through the earth into the sunshine.
Pussy willows, always a welcome sight after snow has blanketed us most of the last four months; they bring back memories of me picking them in the springtime in Saskatchewan and giving them to my mother for a present.
Ah, what a nice kid I was, huh? The geese and robins are back and that signals spring faster than a date on the calendar.
Another thing that signals spring is here is the NHL hockey playoffs. The Canuckleheads are certainly out of the playoffs and my Detroit Red Wings are also out of the post season — the first time they have missed the playoffs in 26 years.
That record number is the longest a professional sports teams has made it to the playoffs in consecutive years.
Spring brings back the barbecue season for many, although I barbecue year round, and last week I decided upon a treat for myself — a nice prime rib, thick-cut steak smothered with roasted garlic.
Steak and Roasted Garlic
• 2 buds of garlic
• Olive oil
• 1 medium sized prime rib steak, nicely marbled
• Ground pepper and seasoned sea salt to taste
Cut the top off the garlic and drizzle the buds with a little olive oil. I used a clay garlic roaster
But you can wrap them in a little tinfoil and put them in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes. Squeeze the roasted garlic into a small bowl and mush them all together in a nice paste.
Rub the salt and pepper into the steak with a little olive oil.
Then rub one half of the roasted garlic paste onto both sides of the meat.
Put the steaks on a 400 degree barbecue for searing and then turn down to 350 degrees — 20 minutes did my steak to medium done.
There are all kinds of other possibilities for this basic roasted garlic spread.
You could add a little mustard, a dash or two of chipotle sauce, a little red pepper jelly, or just use your imagination.
Enjoy spring and let Mother Nature inspire you to try this easy and tasty dish.
Bye for now and Goood Cooking!
Ken Wilson is a freelance columnist with the Tribune/Weekend Advisor.