I was inspired to post this because of my sister-in-law's recent posting on Facebook about her own prime rib. :) We hosted a dinner to raise money to send my wife to serve on board Mercy Ships. The fundraiser was a huge success and we are grateful for all who attended!
The main course was Thomas Keller's blowtorch prime rib. The recipe details can be found at the link, so I won't bother rehashing that. The key to the recipe is to torch the outside before you roast it, so that by the time it comes up to the correct temperature, it has a nice crust on the outside.
This is a dish I've made several times in the past, and I've found that it really lets the quality of the beef come through. My favorite type of beef to use is corn-fed, dry aged beef. You really get some nice complex flavors from the dry aging process, as well as the marbling from corn-fed beef. Just remember if you use dry-aged beef, you need to cut off the dry outer layers or else it will be tough.
For this particular dinner, we used a corn-fed, non-dry-aged prime cut of beef. You might say it was wet-aged for a week. The result was still delicious, although you don't get the complex aromas and flavors from the dry aging process.
The most fun part about doing this is using the blow torch! Don't bother using a "creme brulee" torch you get at fancy culinary stores. Go straight to your local home improvement store and get yourself a serious blowtorch at a cheaper price.