BBQ Pork Ribs

Mmm, BBQ’d pork ribs!!  And super easy too.

Sprinkle your ribs with your choice of rub.  I use my Montreal Steak Spice mix.  Not hot, just flavourful.  Let it sit 20 minutes or so while you heat up only half of the BBQ.

Montreal Steak Spice

10 t salt

1 T black pepper

4 t onion powder

4 t garlic powder

2 t thyme

2 t rosemary (hoping to find ground)

I mix this and keep it in jar for use on all sorts of meat.

Put the racks of ribs on the ‘cold’ side of the BBQ, meat side down for now.  Turn the other burners down very low -you are aiming for 300F (at the most).  Turn ribs every 30 minutes until they are cooked.  Should take 2-3 hours depending on how much meat you’ve used (crowding takes longer).

Once the ribs are cooked, turn up/on all the burners.  Sauce ribs and grill until you are happy with them.

Read Full Post »

A Promised Recipe

I promised my girlfriend the recipe for really easy chocolate cake.  Since I’m whipping one up for Colin I thought I’d finally get it posted.

Colin’s Chocolate Cake -makes 1 9 inch cake

1 1/2 cup flour                  1 cup white sugar

1/2 tsp salt                         3 Tbsp cocoa

1 tsp bk powder                1 tsp bk soda

1 tsp vanilla                        1 tsp vinegar

1/2 cup butter, melted      1 cup buttermilk

Mix everything in a bowl and pour into a greased cake pan.  Doesn’t get easier than that!

Bake 350F for 30 minutes

or double the recipe and pour into a greased bundt pan and bake 60 minutes.

I have another recipe to share.  I wish I could include the link for where I found it.  I usually write that information down.  If any one has the link, please let me know.  But this is so delicious I just have to share.

Slow Roasted Pork with Memphis Dust

Memphis Dust:

2 T brown sugar and white sugar

4 t paprika

2 t salt and garlic powder

1 t pepper and onion powder

1 t ginger powder

Massage this onto a trimmed pork shoulder roast (around 4 lbs).

Put on a roasting pan and roast 225F for 8-12 hours.  I usually do it about 8 hours.  So delicious!

You can even enjoy this roast in the summer time!  Just preheat your BBQ (only use half the burners) to 350F.  Put roast in a foil pan and BBQ one hour per pound.  That’s it, you don’t need to fuss with it or anything.  Just keep your temperature around 350F.

Read Full Post »

Asian Inspired Stir-fry

Now I don’t claim this is anything like real Asian food.  But Colin and I enjoy this dish.

Asian Stir-fry -serves about 4

250g spaghetti, cooked separately

1 1/2 lb pork cut into bite size pieces, I use tenderloin or shoulder roast or chops

sliced vegetables, about 3 cups of your choice

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 T cornstarch

1/4 c water

1/2 c soy sauce

Brown pork over medium heat in large skillet.  Add in the harder vegetables (like carrots).  Add in the rest of the vegetables.  Stir until vegetables are crisp-tender.  Toss in cooked spaghetti and pour sauce over everything.   Stir over heat until shiny.  Serve.

Of course, I dish up Ella’s little plateful before adding the sauce and I leave out most of the vegetables.

Read Full Post »

Recipes

Customers are often asking how to cook our smoked hams.  Really they just need to be reheated (145F) as the smoking process cooks them.  Here’s a yummy way of preparing the ham.

Mix together 2 cups apple cider, 2 T honey mustard, and 1 T rosemary.   Put ham in casserole and pour mixture over top.  Cover and bring to a simmer.  Simmer 1 1/2 hours.   Broth can be thickened to make a sauce.

Don’t tell Grandma, but Jackie has actually helped me make a shepherd’s pie that I really enjoy.    I really hated shepherd’s pie when Grandma made it growing up.  I make a version that’s ok, but I only make it occasionally because I just don’t really care for it.  But Jackie’s idea makes it yummy.

Here’s my version of Jackie’s shepherd’s pie:

Shepherd’s Pie

3T butter                                          3T cornstarch

1 c milk                                               2 T beef broth liquid (or powder)

1 1/2 lb potatoes, peeled, boiled           1/2 c cheese

assorted cooked veggies, amount depends on how much your family will eat

1 lb ground beef                                   1 small onion, finely chopped

1 T Worcestershire sauce                 1 t garlic powder

Start with ‘white sauce’.  Melt butter and stir in cornstarch.  Carefully add milk and beef broth concentrate.  Stir until thick and smooth.  **you can use a can of cream soup but it’s easy to make the sauce

Brown the ground beef (drain if necessary), add the onions and saute till soft.  Mix in w. sauce and garlic powder.

Mix beef with sauce and pour into greased casserole (mine is 8×10).  Layer in vegetables, as many as your family will like (it’s a thin layer here-haha).

Mash/rice the potatoes.  Add enough butter to make nice.  Add in cheese.  We like a mixture of cheddar and mozzarella to make it stringy.

Bake 350F for 45 minutes.  Let sit for a few minutes because it will be molten!

I’m sharing these recipes over at Miz Helen’s Full Plate Thursday

Read Full Post »

Recipes

Here’s the rib recipe we had the other week.  It is delicious.  The only complaint was I cooked them too long for as ‘spare’ as the spare ribs were.  Use your best judgment.

Maple Glazed Ribs

3 lbs pork ribs, cut to serving size

3/4 c maple syrup                                       1 T apple cider vinegar

2 T brown sugar                                            1 T Worcestershire sauce

2 T ketchup                                                     1/2 t salt

1/2 t mustard powder                                 2 cloves garlic, minced fine

Stir everything together (except ribs).  Cook 5 minutes.  Let cool a bit and pour over ribs (I use a Ziploc baggie).  Let ribs marinate a few hours, turning occasionally.

Meanwhile, cover a rimmed cookie sheet with in foil.  The more carefully you do this step, the easier clean up will be.  Pour ribs and sauce onto cookie sheet.  Bake 350F for 40 minutes, turning every 20 minutes or so.  Turn oven to 300F and bake for another 20 minutes.   Don’t over cook ribs.

Every Day Bread

2 1/2 c warm water                                   3T butter

1 T salt                                                            3 T brown sugar

3/4 c potato flakes                                    6 c flour

1 T instant yeast

Put everything in the bread machine in the order listed (or as your instructions say).  Run dough cycle.  Divide into 3 loaves and put into greased pans.  Let rise.

Bake 350F for 30 min.

or

Soak yeast in a bit of water and sugar.  Add everything else.  Knead till smooth and elastic (don’t add too much flour).

Another good bread I like to make, when I have extra eggs is Challah.

Challah

1 1/2 c water                                   1/2 c sugar or honey

1 1/2 t salt                                         1 T oil

4 eggs                                                  5 c flour

2 T yeast

Follow same instructions as above.

There are more yummy supper ideas over at Full Plate Thursdays.

Read Full Post »

Recipes

I love Julia Child. I received her Mastering the Art of French Cooking from my sweetie (I think he had ulterior motives). My favourite French Onion Soup is based on Julia’s, but I leave out the booze (of course) and use homemade chicken stock. Last week I made the Casserole-Roasted Pork. It was delicious!!! I’ll share the recipe with you here because it is more a method than an actual recipe. Julia suggests marinating the pork first but I didn’t get it thawed in time.

Casserole-roasted Pork

3lb boneless shoulder roast

1 onion, sliced

1 carrot, sliced

2 garlic

1 T parsley

1 bay leaf

¼ t thyme

½ c stock

Dry roast and brown on all sides. Put 2T of fat in casserole and cover and cook vegetables and herbs for 10 minutes. Put meat in casserole (fat side up). Season with s&p if not marinated. Cover and bake in 325F oven for about 2 hours, or until meat thermometer reads 170F. Baste meat a couple of times. Makes delicious gravy.

This would be really yummy with roasted potatoes.

Roast Chicken and Dressing

chicken any size -don’t forget to remove inside bits

soft butter

s&p

Place chicken on roasting pan, stuff, tie legs closed and rub with soft butter. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Roast at 325F for about 30 min/pound or until 175F.

Dressing -4-5 lb bird, double as needed

¼ c butter 3 T parsley

½ t sage 2 eggs

½ c milk (use some chicken stock if not cooking in the chicken)

1 onion, chopped fine

2 celery, chopped fine

½ loaf bread, cubed

salt & pepper

Colin is always happy when I have enough leftover chicken to make chicken a la king. I’ll give you the from scratch version, but I often use leftover chicken instead.

Chicken A La King

3-4 lbs chicken (I use boneless)

1 onion 2 whole cloves

1 ½ t salt

Cover with boiling water and simmer until tender. Dice chicken (needs 3 cups) and strain broth.

In a large saucepan (I use non-stick), melt butter and cook relish until tender. Add 5 T corn starch and cook a little bit. Add 1 ½ c stock and cook until nice and thick. Add ¾ c milk or cream, 1 egg and the diced chicken.

Cookie making happens on a fairly regular basis in our house. Most of my recipes make at least 5 dozen. Any less and there is no real point, they get eaten too quickly. Here’s Colin’s favourite chocolate chip recipe. This is one of my favourites too, it makes 11 dozen so they last for a while.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

4 c brown sugar 4 eggs

4 T hot water 2 c butter

1 ½ t vanilla 6 ½ c flour

3 t bk soda ½ t salt

3 c chocolate chips (sometimes I add Skor bits too)

Drop onto lined cookie sheets and bake 375F for 10 minutes. Do not over bake.

We didn’t get a chance to make Poor Knights this week. We were pickling beets and didn’t have stove top room. I’ll share the recipe anyway, it’s yummy.

Poor Knights or Arme Ritter

3 eggs, separated 2 c milk

2 T water breadcrumbs

8-10 slices of bread

butter for frying cinnamon and sugar to top

Lightly beat egg whites with water. Beat the yolks and milk together. Dip bread into custard. Then carefully dip into egg whites. Coat with breadcrumbs on both sides. Fry slowly in butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

A nice variation on French Toast.

I’m sharing these recipes over at Full Plate Thursday, go see what else is on the Plate.

Read Full Post »

Some New Recipes

Here’s one of my childhood favourites.  My Grandma Rees often made this when we visited her in Toronto (Little Italy area).  Grandma always served this with roasted potatoes (in plenty of butter) and green beans.  I usually serve with roasted potatoes too, but do a more healthy version in the oven with oil and a bit of butter.  Oh yeah, Grandma always picked up a crusty loaf of Italian bread from the bakery.  MMMMMMMMMM.

Chicken Cacciatore

3lb chicken pieces, we use thighs                     1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced                                         salt & pepper, to taste

28oz stewed tomatoes                                           28 oz tomato sauce

1/4 cup red wine                                                     1/4 tsp thyme

1 bay leaf

Brown the chicken in a little oil(optional and not needed if you use skinless chicken).   Add everything into a dutch oven. Cover and simmer all afternoon until the house smells wonderful 🙂 Don’t use a crock pot, the sauce doesn’t reduce and is too runny.

Honey Barbecue Pork Ribs

2 lb pork ribs                                    1 sm onion, chopped

1 c bbq sauce, we prefer Diana’s honey and garlic

1/3 c honey

Arrange ribs in the crock pot, sprinkle with onions.  Combine sauce and honey.  Pour over ribs.  Cook on Low for 7-9 hours.

Two really yummy recipes for you to enjoy.  Even better, they don’t need an oven and can be basically tossed in the pot and forgotten about.  Some days we all need recipes like that.

Read Full Post »

More Recipes

Growing up I hated pork.  It came from the grocery store and Mom was from the ‘cook it till it’s grey’ school of pork cooking.  Now that I’m married to my pork producer husband I’ve discovered that farm-fresh pork is delicious.  It tastes nothing like the stuff at the grocery store!  I actually enjoy making and eating pork.  Also, remember that most pork can be eaten with a hint of pink (or 165F).  This pork dish is actually one that I was happy to find in the oven growing up.

BBQ Pork Ribs
serves 6
3lb ribs                      1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c vinegar              2 c ketchup
2 c water                   2 T Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c brown sugar      1 onion, chopped
2 t salt                        1/2 t pepper
2 T butter

Mix the sauce ingredients.  Cut the ribs into serving size portions.  Pour everything into a roasting pan or large casserole dish.
Bake 350F  for 2 hours, stir after the first hour.  This also turns out well in a crockpot on low for 8 hours.

Honey Garlic Legs
1 T oil                        1 onion, finely chopped
3/4 c honey                1/4 c lemon juice
1/4 c soy sauce           2 T ketchup
4 lbs chicken drummies         6 cloves garlic, chopped

Boil sauce for 5 minutes.  Pour everything into a 9×13 inch pan.  Bake 375F for 30 minutes, turning at least once.

Read Full Post »

Greek Souvlaki

Ok, this isn’t an authentic souvlaki recipe.  But my family enjoys it.  Sometimes I cut the meat into cubes and skewer, but more often than not I just do the roast whole.  I usually forget to get the roast out of the freezer in time to marinade over night, so it usually only marinades from morning to late afternoon.  Either way is yummy.

Marinade (also makes a good salad dressing):

3 T olive oil

3 T red wine vinegar

1 clove garlic minced (very fine for dressing)

1/2 t oregano

salt and pepper

I usually use a shoulder roast, they cook up so nice and tender.  Mix the ingredients and pour over roast.  Refrigerate and turn roast occasionally.

Roast, whole, at 350 F for about 35 minutes a pound -time will depend on whether your roast is boneless or not.  Use your thermometer to 165F

For kebabs, you can broil 5 minutes a side, or in the 350F oven until done (sorry I have forgotten how long, but not long if the meat is cubed)

Read Full Post »

Marinated Roast Pork

This is one of our favourite roast pork recipes. It marinades overnight and is super yummy. I usually use a shoulder roast. It has more marbling, but that makes it that much more tender and juicy.

In a Ziploc baggy combine the following (increase if needed):

6 cloves garlic, minced
2 T oil
2 t salt
1 t pepper
1 t paprika
1 t dried parsley
1/2 t dried thyme

3 lb shoulder or fresh ham pork roast.

Smoosh it around to mix and then put roast. Roll the bag around to coat the roast. Put in fridge. Turn from time to time if you think of it.

Next day, take out of bag and place in roast pan.

Roast 350F for about 1/2 hour per pound, until it reaches 160F.  Or do a slow roast at 225F for 45-60 min per pound (use the shorter time if using ham).

I’m sharing this recipe over at Miz Helen’s Country Cottage, head over and see the other yummy things.

Read Full Post »