Take The Ranch Table Home With These Recipes

For some delicious proof that a cookbook can be so much more than a litany of instructions with an index, look no further than Elizabeth Poett’s The Ranch Table (2023, HarperCollins). Treasured Rancho San Julian recipes that will be right at home in your own kitchen, Poett’s collection of favorite dishes shared during “a year of harvests, celebrations, and family dinners on a historic California ranch” reminds us that for every inspired meal, there’s a story, a place, and a season.

“I really wanted to make my first cookbook an introduction to all the things that happen on the ranch during an entire year, and also to express how we could never do it all without our incredible neighbors and community,” Poett says. “There’s no greater tribute and celebration of that than sharing a wonderful meal together.”

Structured around spring, summer, winter, and fall at historic Rancho San Julian — and the workand food-filled gatherings that define those times, from “Branding Day” to “Tailgate After a Gather” to “Cider Press Potluck” — the book is an illuminating and appetizing ode to ranch life and the celebratory meals it inspires, seasoned with gorgeous photos and flavorful family anecdotes.

“If there’s one thing I wanted to express in The Ranch Table, it’s that cooking should be a joy,” says Poett, who shares two of her favorite recipes for a classic California ranch-style feast wherever you happen to be stirring the pot.

Ranchers’ Beef Chili

“Chili might just be the very best food to make for a crowd … I make chili with cubes of meat rather than ground beef. This way, you end up with a variety of textures in the pot and you can actually taste all the individual ingredients as you eat,” says Poett, who recommends pairing a big bowlful with her “fluffy, tender, slightly sweet” Cast-Iron Cornbread with Honey Butter.

Active Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Serves: 8 – 10

Ingredients

2 pounds chuck roast, at room temperature
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon chile powder
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ cup beer, ideally a lager or ale
One 14.5-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
One 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained
One 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
2 cups bone broth aka beef stock (*separate recipe) or store-bought
Freshly grated queso fresco or Monterey Jack, chopped cilantro, and sliced green onions

Instructions

1. Cut the chuck roast into 1-inch cubes and use paper towels to pat the pieces dry. Season them generously with salt and pepper.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-duty pot over high heat. Lightly brown the meat on all sides, about 2 minutes per side. Remove the meat from the pot and set it aside.
3. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the pot. Then add the onion and garlic and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring, until the onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chile powder, and paprika to the pot and stir.
4. Add the beer and mix everything well. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook until most of the beer has evaporated, about 2 minutes.
5. Put the beef back into the pot and add the canned tomatoes (and their liquid), both types of beans, and the broth.
6. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the flavors have melded and the meat is fork-tender, at least 1 hour.
7. Serve with cheese, cilantro, and green onions.

Fudgy Caramel Brownies

“These sugar bombs are perfect for days like brandings, when everyone is working hard and needs a boost of energy — and a fun treat,” Poett says.

Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours, including cooling time
Makes: 12 brownies

Ingredients

Vegetable oil, for greasing
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
1 ½ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 ½ cups Homemade Caramels (*separate recipe) or 4 ½ ounces Werther’s Original soft caramels, cut in half
2 large pinches of Maldon salt or other flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with oil and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper.
2. Melt the butter in a double boiler (or a large heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water) over medium heat. Then add the sugar, cocoa, and salt and stir until the sugar has dissolved and everything is well-mixed, about 5 minutes. Remove the top of the double boiler (or the bowl) from the heat.
3. Stir the vanilla into the chocolate mixture. Then add the eggs one at a time, stirring until the mixture is silky. Add the flour and stir until it is fully incorporated.
4. Pour about one-third of the batter into the prepared pan; there should be enough to form a thin layer that coats the bottom when you spread it around with a rubber spatula. Bake for 10 minutes, until the batter is barely starting to firm up on top (baking this bottom layer before adding the filling and top layer will ensure that it firms up properly).
5. Remove the pan from the oven. Scatter the chocolate chips evenly over the partially baked batter. Then arrange the caramels evenly over them. With a spatula, spread the remaining batter over the top and gently smooth it evenly to the edges.
6. Bake the brownies for about 20 more minutes, until the top is just starting to firm up and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with very moist crumbs attached. Sprinkle the flaky salt on top.
7. Let the brownies cool completely, at least 2 hours. Then remove them from the pan and cut into 12 squares.

From our May/June 2024 issue.

PHOTOGRAPHY: Courtesy of B.J. Golnick

Recipes from the book The Ranch Table by Elizabeth Poett. Copyright © 2023 by Elizabeth Poett. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers.