"I'm making a very special dinner," says Rach. "The holidays have come and gone for the most part, but we always have special Sunday dinners and we often have things we want to celebrate—anniversaries, birthdays, big gatherings." She prepares a rib roast the way her mom always did it, slathered with a garlic-herb butter, and serve it with a horseradish and Dijon sauce. It goes great with these super-simple Scalloped Potatoes with Spinach, a small riff on a recipe from the brilliant Mark Bittman. You can add anything you like to round out the menu—Brussels sprouts, broiled or charred tomatoes, etc. Enjoy!
Note: Place the slathered roast in the fridge the night before you want to roast.
For the roast, combine butter with garlic and herbs. Season roast with salt and pepper, slather with flavored butter and chill overnight.
Bring roast to room temp and preheat oven to 450°F, with rack at center.
Roast 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 325°F and cook to an internal temperature of 130 to 135°F.
While roast rests, stir up sauce.