Roasted Garlic Beef Roast and Savory Pear Bread Pudding

Ingredients

• 4 lb boneless New York strip loin roast
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
• 1 ½ teaspoons pepper, divided
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 ½ cups beef broth
• 1 ½ cups red wine (or beef broth)
• 1 cup peeled garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Season roast with 1 ½ teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper, then place in roasting pan (wash hands) and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Add broth and wine to bottom of pan; roast 10 minutes.
2. Reduce oven to 350°F; bake 1–1 ½ hours until roast is 125°F (for medium rare; warm red center), 130°F (for medium; warm pink center), or up to 170°F (for well done).
3. Chop rosemary and thyme; place in medium bowl. Place garlic, oil, and remaining ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper in food processor bowl (or blender); process into paste, then mix paste with herbs. Spread garlic mixture on roast; bake 15–20 more minutes until roast is 145°F. (If cooking past 145°F, add additional broth as needed).
4. Transfer roast to cutting board and let stand 15 minutes; temperature will rise 5–10°F during this time. Slice roast and serve with pan juices.

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 medium pears
• 1 medium leek
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 ¼ cups heavy whipping cream
• 8 oz Bakery Italian bread
• 4 oz sharp white cheddar cheese
• Cooking spray
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 5 large eggs (or 1 ¼ cups egg substitute)
• Aluminum foil

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Chop garlic. Peel and grate pears. Chop leek, white part only (1 cup); remove thyme leaves from stems.
2. Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high 2–3 minutes. Place oil in pan, then add garlic and leeks; cook and stir 2–3 minutes until browned and tender. Stir in cream and thyme; remove pan from heat and let stand 5–10 minutes to cool. Cut bread into 1-inch cubes (5–6 cups) and shred cheese.
3. Coat 9-inch square baking dish with spray. Combine in large bowl: bread, pears, one-half cheese, salt, and pepper. Whisk eggs in small bowl, then stir into leek mixture. Stir egg-leek mixture into bread-pear mixture until well blended; transfer to baking dish.
4. Top with remaining half cheese and cover dish with foil; bake 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15 more minutes until top is browned and center is 160°F. Serve.