Nothing quite says Merry Christmas in Texas like a prime rib served as the main dish of your Christmas meal! When it comes time to prepare your prime rib this holiday season, be sure to reference Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service’s Path to the Plate’s tips and tricks to ensure that the meat is cooked thoroughly and properly.

With beef production being the largest sector of the agriculture industry in Texas, it is both fitting and appropriate that prime rib act as the centerpiece of the Christmas meal. According to Dan Hale, Ph.D. and meat specialist with Texas A&M’s Department of Animal Science, it is estimated that Texas produces approximately 60 million pounds of prime rib per year. Most commonly referred to as ribeye roast, beef rib roast or standing rib roast, prime rib is typically sold as both bone-in or boneless in stores. Despite its name, prime rib does not have to be from beef graded as USDA Prime — it is primarily from beef graded as USDA Select or USDA Choice. It should be noted that beef with higher USDA grades often produce a more desirable eating experience due to the higher amount of marbling present in the roast.

After purchasing, prime rib must be thawed and stored at a temperature below 40 °F to minimize the growth of bacteria. When cooking, it is traditionally prepared with a mixture of seasonings, then roasted under dry heat for 2-3 hours, depending on its size. When using a conventional oven to prepare your prime rib, follow these instructions:

• Preheat oven to 300 °F
• Season the outside of the roast as desired
• Cook, fat side up, to an internal temperature of 145 °F for medium doneness, which may take 20-25 minutes per pound. Use a thermometer to check the internal temperature
• Let stand 15-20 minutes before carving

When determining how many mouths your prime rib will feed this Christmas, keep in mind that a full prime rib is seven ribs, meaning that it weighs anywhere from 15 to 18 pounds. A prime rib this size can feed a family of 16 or more people, depending on the size of their appetite’s. Smaller prime rib options are available, including those that weigh five pounds which can serve up to six to eight people.

Because lean beef cuts such as prime rib are considered nutrient rich with low amounts of calories and fats, Hale says this particular cut of meat acts as an excellent source of essential nutrients such as protein, Zinc, B12, Iron, B6, Niacin, and Selenium. Nutrition facts for 3.5 ounces of broiled USDA Choice (lean only) prime rib are as follows:

• 205 Calories
• 28.9g Protein
• 9g Fat
• 3.4g Saturated Fat
• 3.6g Monounsaturated Fat

In search of other ways to spice up your holidays or family mealtime? Head over to dinnertonight.tamu.edu or beefitswhatsfordinner.com to explore the wide variety of recipes offered for prime rib!

For the last 22 years, Grace Episcopal Church has hosted a Christmas party for the orphans of The Bluebonnet Youth Ranch. This year, on December 8th, will be the 23rd year for this event. Children attending can number up to 38 kids ranging from tots to teenagers.

Each year the community responds with support of funding, gifts, tours…whatever the individual or company can contribute. These offerings come from donors as different as The Olephins Unit at Formosa to the Port O’Connor Service Club. Santa is always there, along with Sister Two and Larry Robinson singing Christmas carols.

The event is a mission of Grace Church and its members, sponsored by my wife Cherre and me. The kids have pizza and gifts, along with a terrific Christmas cake for the holidays
.
One family of five brothers and sisters we specifically remember as being placed there ten years ago by child protective services. The youngest came to visit me three years ago. He is married and has his own family now. He said he will always remember the Christmas Party at our church in Port Lavaca and how it was something all of the kids looked forward to…touring around the sights of Port Lavaca, the chemical plants, Indianola and Magnolia Beach…then… pizza, presents…songs and Santa.

Thank you for taking the time to read this story of people touching the lives of others at Christmastime.

Russell and Cherre Cain
Grace Episcopal Church at 213 E. Austin in Port Lavaca, TX 77979

Cooking is an art and a science. If you don’t follow the recipe it might not taste right, but if you don’t experiment and try new things you will never know how good some new thing might taste. I once made lemon bars with my son who measured lemon zest in T for tablespoons not t for teaspoons. The lemon bars tasted like insect repellent. Ugh! I also stumbled upon my favorite spicy sweet recipe when the lid fell off the cayenne pepper and added more than a pinch to my recipe. Life is just the same. Everyone needs sweet and spicy, savory and sour to make life more complete. We need to sense it all to make sense of it all in life.

Your family recipe for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year may be very different than mine. Maybe you like your Christmas tamales fiery hot and your Christmas family visit peppered with drama from Aunt Amy and Uncle Aaron who often fight and then makeup. Or maybe you like traditional turkey with simple salt and pepper and hope the only drama at your family gathering is when Aunt Barbara can’t find her new false teeth at dinner time. No matter which, spice it up your way and have a Merry Blessed time with those you love and hold dear. Then, don’t be afraid to try something new and spicy in the new year. Maybe you never cooked with Curry but when you do you discover you love love love Curry. Sometimes it just works that way.

I can tell you from personal experience that my new spice this year turned out to be spice-alicious. I added a little farm in the big oak treed area of south Texas to my life and Little Oak Tree Acres in Live Oak County has become my new very favorite thing. After over a decade of fulltime POC living we are sharing time with acres of oaks, chickens and cows and a big ole garden I just love. I miss POC but get back often to see those I love and miss. I have discovered several other new favorite things in my oak grove that I never would have discovered if I had been too afraid to take a risk. Like cooking without a recipe, moving was not in the plan. It did not follow the recipe. But, when we did, it made the perfect dish.

So, follow the recipe for old favorites but take a risk, dare to dream, chance it, venture something new…! What you create or discover might just be the best new unplanned thing you never had the recipe for before. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year full of Blessings and Love and Joyful Crazy Cooking with new spices and new things in 2019!

VICTORIA – Calhoun senior defensive specialist Elle O’Donnell helped the Maroon defeat the White 25-20, 15-25, 25-19, 25-19 in December 5th’s 10th Annual Victoria College Chick-fil-A All-Star Volleyball Game at VC’s Sports Center.

O’Donnell was one of 23 seniors representing 15 high schools in the Victoria area chosen to play in the game.

Victoria College will begin competing in the National Junior College Athletic Association in women’s volleyball and men’s basketball in 2019.

This was not Ricky Dudley’s and Gunner Moore’s first Victoria College Welding Rodeo.

The two Calhoun High School seniors teamed with senior Ignacio Fortanel and junior Creighton Orsonia to capture the event’s title for a second straight year on Nov. 9.

Five high schools were represented in the six-team competition that began at 9 a.m. and concluded at 2 p.m.

The Calhoun team arrived at the competition not knowing what they would create.

“We just started looking at pictures this morning when we got here,” Moore said. “We had no clue what we were going to do.”
The foursome decided on creating a potted cactus plant with “CHS” prominently displayed.

“It was pretty difficult lining all the pieces up,” Dudley said. “Gunner was cutting. The rest of us started bending them and welding them.”
Victoria College offers welding training, including a Welding Occupational Skills Award, a Basic Welding Certificate, an Advanced Welding Certificate and three levels of Workforce and Continuing Education training.

For more information visit VictoriaCollege.edu/Welding or call (361) 573-3291.