Get A Little Messy

Because I was afraid to. Yeah, yeah, I know you are supposed to eat ribs with your hands and I usually do when it's bbq. But since these were Asian-style ribs, I tried the knife and fork way. Let's just say I would've had a lot more meat had I just got a little dirty and picked these suckers up. They were good nonetheless.

Hot and Sticky Asian Ribs
Source: Cuisine At Home

Picture taken while still cooking:

Combine:

1 jar hoisin sauce (8 oz.)

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup chili garlic sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 T. soy sauce

2 T. toasted sesame oil

2 T. garlic, minced

2 T. fresh ginger, minced

 

Heat, Season, Saute:

2 T. canola oil, divided

8 bone-in country style pork ribs (about 3 1/2 lb.)

Salt and pepper

  
Steps:

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl for the sauce.

2. Heat 1 T. oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat; season ribs with salt and pepper.

Saute 4 ribs until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes; remove from pan. Repeat process

with remaining oil and ribs.

3. Return ribs to pan; add half the sauce and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook 15 minutes. Flip ribs and simmer 15 minutes, uncovered, turning occasionally to coat with sauce. Reduce heat to low; simmer an additional 15 minutes, turning often. Serve with remaining sauce

More BBQ

This is a another really easy recipe and it's for slow-cooked barbecue. I have to get it in before summer is completely over! For the same reason, I made a corn dish with this meal. I have tried a few slow cooker barbecue recipes but I think this is one of the better ones. I made less than half the amount in the recipe for two people.  With a side, it was enough. 

Slow Cooker Barbecue Pork

3-3 1/2 lb. boneless pork shoulder/butt
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 white onion, chopped
2/3 cup worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp white or cider vinegar
2 Tbsp yellow mustard

Mix all ingredients except for pork in a slow cooker/crockpot. Add pork and turn to coat with mixture. Cook on low for 9 hours.  Shred the pork with a fork and return to the slow cooker to mix with the sauce. Serve with your favorite bbq sauce or on a bun. 

Barbecue Sauce

Barbecue can be a big deal depending on where you live in this country. A few places known for their BBQ: Georgia (of course), North Carolina, Kansas City, Memphis, and Texas. It seems like most barbecue fanatics have their own preferences on their sauce (which may be the most important part.) Some like them sweet, some tangy, some with a kick-your-ass hotness, etc. I'm not sure I've find my favorite style because it really depends on my mood. In fact, I like to have a selection in front of me so that each bite gets a different flavor. Maybe that's not normal?

With the slow cooked pork I made the other night, I set up my usual selection of sauces. I wanted to share because these three are really good ones if you are looking for a recommendation. Not pictured but also good...Williamson Brothers Original Sauce.

Big Al's Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce (Tangy and Sweet), Smack Yo Mama Death Wish Sauce (Spicy), Sticky Fingers Habanero Hot (Spicy)

What's your favorite?

Peachy Grilling

It's officially summer! Though I'm pretty sure Georgia would be surprised to hear that because she seemed to think it has been for some time now with all the plus 90 degree weather since May...

I found a recipe that I think is perfect for summer since it combines both grilling and peaches. My husband wasn't so sure that he liked it. But try mentioning that you will be adding peaches, pineapples or the like in the meal, and it won't really excite him.  I liked it and thought it would be perfect for summer get togethers. Others, well, they may not agree.

We also tried a new wine that I picked up at Total Wine, Nobilis Vinho Verde. It's a white wine from Portugal. I liked that it was a tad sweet (but not overly so) and had a hint of carbonation to it - perfect for a 95 degree day! It was a random find but I may or may not have picked this one based on the pretty bottle. It was also less than $8!

Peach-Glazed Chops
Source: Better Homes and Gardens

Ingredients:

2 medium peaches, coarsely chopped

1 medium lime, juiced (2 Tbsp.)

1/2 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce

1 Tbsp. Sriracha sauce

2 cloves garlic

4 center-cut pork chops about 1 inch thick

4 peaches, halved and pitted

1 red sweet pepper, quartered

1 Tbsp. honey

1/2 bunch basil, chopped

 
 Steps:

1. In blender, combine the chopped peaches, lime juice, soy sauce, and Sriracha sauce. Blend until nearly smooth. Transfer to a resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish. Smash garlic with the side of a wide knife or the bottom of a skillet. Add garlic and pork to bag; seal and turn to coat. Let stand up to 30 minutes at room temperature, or refrigerate 2 to 4 hours, turning occasionally.

2. Remove pork from marinade, reserving marinade. For a charcoal grill, grill chops on rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 14 to 18 minutes or until chops are slightly pink in center and juices run clear (160 degrees F), turning once halfway through grilling and adding the peach halves and pepper quarters for the last 7 minutes of grilling. (For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place meat on grill rack over heat. Cover and grill as above.)

3. Meanwhile, pour marinade into a small saucepan. Add honey and bring to a simmer. Simmer 2 to 3 minutes, or until slightly reduced and thickened (discard garlic cloves). Remove pork, peaches, and peppers from grill and brush with reduced marinade. Chop peaches and peppers as desired for serving. Pass remaining marinade. Sprinkle with basil. Makes 4 servings.

 

 

Best Saturday Night At Home Ever!

Saturday night is usually date night in my mind which to me means going out to eat. So it's pretty rare that I (we) make dinner on a Saturday. But I think my mind on that matter is forever changed. We decided that we wanted to BBQ (I think that can be used as a verb?) at our house. The main part of the meal was a smoked brisket that was so so good. We smoked it on our deck all day long with hickory wood chips and then poured some Big Al's Kansas Style BBQ sauce over it. I kind of felt bad for our neighbors. Our street smelled divine and the neighbors were having a birthday party. I imagined that when their guests arrived they said "oh, it smells wonderful" and then realized that they were being served hotdogs or something like that. :-p

If you are interested in the process for smoking the brisket, let me know and I can post the detailed instructions. With the brisket, we had country-style biscuits and mexican-style corn.  For dessert, I made a lower-fat cinnamon chocolate bread pudding.

Okay so, I am not a corn-on-the-cob kind of girl. I don't dislike it but I can easily pass it up at a cookout. This is yet another thing I have changed my mind about if it is prepared like this. I thought the corn was out of this world delicious. I don't even like mayo usually but YUM. I highly recommend trying this since it was pretty easy and so worth the minimal effort required. While I probably wouldn't change a thing, I think you could try it with sour cream instead of mayo and cayenne or paprika instead or chili powder if you wanted to.

Mexican Corn-on-the-Cob
Serves 3

Ingredents:

3 ears of corn (husks and silk on)
Canola/Vegetable Oil
Mayonnaise
1 lime, quarterd
Red chili powder
Parmesan cheese, grated

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
2. Put corn in a large pot. Cover with water.  Bring water to a boil and cook for a minute. Take corn off the stove and rinse with cold water.
3. Peel husks and silk.
4. Brush corn with oil.
5. Roast corn in roasting pan for 30 minutes.
6. Let corn cool before slathering on the mayo. Then, squeeze lime juice over the corn.
7. Next, liberally shake chili powder and cheese over the corn and enjoy!

Chocolate Cinnamon Bread Pudding
Source: SparkPeople 

Ingredients:
5 slices white whole-wheat bread (yes, it exists or at least Sara Lee makes it), torn into small pieces
2 large eggs
12 ounces evaporated skim milk
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 cups nonfat vanilla frozen yogurt
Steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil an 8-inch square baking dish. Spread the bread in the dish in an even layer. In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the evaporated skim milk, brown sugar, cocoa, vanilla, and cinnamon. Whisk until the sugar and cocoa dissolve. Pour the cocoa mixture over the bread. With a fork, mix in any unsoaked bread pieces. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top and let stand for 10 minutes. Bake for 35 minutes, or until puffed and set in the center. Serve warm, with a scoop of the frozen yogurt on top.

Makes 6 servings.  

Happy Easter and Recipes For Your Next Cookout!

I was very fortunate that the Easter Bunny made a visit to my house even though I said that I didn't believe in him. How embarrassed am I?! Also, who knew the Easter Bunny was a foodie? He must know me well because look at the treats that he brought me!

And there was more fun to be had this past weekend since we had some friends over for a cookout. We had quite a few things but I'm just going to share a few of the recipes for time's sake.

This time I decided to do something non-traditional with my pasta salad. There's nothing wrong with serving traditional pasta salad, potato salad, cole slaw, etc. But doesn't that get a little boring? So, I tried something different and added a southwestern flair. I had been meaning to try this recipe for quite some time since so many people were recommending it. I'm actually not sure where it came from so I didn't include my source. I really liked it. But the verdict is that my "other pasta salad" is still better, the more traditional one.


Wagon Wheel Pasta Salad

 


Ingredients:
 1 lb wagon wheel pasta
1- 14 3/4 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 10-oz package frozen corn, let thaw a bit
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
8 oz shredded mexican-blend cheese
1.5 cups salsa
1/2 cup olive oil
3-4 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp cumin
1-2 tsp chili powder
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt& pepper
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 avocado diced
Steps:

Cook pasta. drain and rinse with cold water.

In a large bowl, combine black beans, corn, tomatoes, salsa and cheese. Toss with the pasta and mix well.

In another bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime juice, garlic, cumin, chili powder. Pour dressing over pasta salad. Add cilantro and avocado right before serving, mix well. season with salt and pepper

I made a casserole also to the tune of a southwest theme. This one I had made before and liked. Also, it's so easy!

Corn Casserole (I don't remember where this one came from either or if I made it up way back when)

Ingredients:

 1 cup biscuit mix

1-14.5 oz yellow cream corn

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large egg, beaten

½ cup milk

1-4 oz can chopped green chilis

6 oz Monterey Jack cheese, sliced

Steps:

 Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine first five ingredients.

Spread ½  mixture in greased 8X8 pan.

Sprinkle with chilis and cover with sliced cheese.

Add remainder over top of chili/cheese.

Bake 30 minutes or until top is golden brown.

Beer-Braised Brats

  

My husband makes these and they are damn good! You will need a large aluminum pan, a grill, uncooked bratwursts, an onion, and two beers (this was for 9 brats.) Basically you put the onion and beers into the aluminum pan and get it heated on the grill. The onions will need to simmer for 15 minutes then you add the brats. The brats will simmer for another 30-45 minutes. Finally, put them on a medium heat grill to crisp the outside (another 10-15 minutes or until done.) You can save the juices and onions from the pan to pour over your brats. Put them on a bratwurst bun and add sauerkraut!
 

A Lil' Sunshine

Again, we had beautiful weather this past weekend. I love when the temps reach mid to late 70's in February. But this is Georgia so even though today it is still in the 70's, we are under a tornado watch. I know this because my mother will always update me on all weather conditions. I really think that she should get a job at The Weather Channel (she might even know someone that may or may not have worked there before and has connections.) But for real, she can stay on top of those weather conditions better than any meteorologist that I've met. It's true, my friends remember the days when the sky would look a little dark and they could predict that I would not be allowed out. Oh, mom...

But back to this weekend... it was definitely patio weather again which usually makes me crave an ice cold beer but not this time. I went to the grocery store on a whim and picked out a cool, white wine, Erath Pinot Gris from Oregon. It was a tad sweet and perfect for sipping on a warm day.  With the wine, I picked up some cheese and crackers. I go gaga for cheese and crackers. I think it is a childhood thing. That was "my snack" and to this day I still get just as excited. In fact, the wine may have even been an excuse to make a meal of cheese and crackers.

Warm days also make me crave barbeque like any good southern girl so I thought I'd share a bbq recipe. This is fantastic on it's own or served on buns or texas toast.

Texas Brisket

4 1/2 lb. beef brisket
2 large onions, sliced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup liquid smoke
1/4 cup Worchestershire 
1/4 cup A1 Steak Sauce
1/4 cup strongly brewed black coffee

1. Spread onions evenly along the bottom of your slow cooker.  Place brisket in slow cooker,  fatty-side up.
2. Mix together the remaining ingredients and pour over the meat and onions. 
3. Cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours. 
Optional: I like to eat the flavorful onions just as they are when they come out of the slow cooker. But you could also choose to use them as a gravy by throwing them in a blender with a ladle or two of the liquid and pouring it over the meat. 

*Note: If you do not have a slow cooker, you can make this in the oven. You would instead place everything in a roasting pan and cook at 325 for 3 and 1/2 hours.