LOW, SLOW & SMOKING PERMITTED..BBQ 101

Saturdays should be declared as the official BBQ day of the week! It the end of the stressful week and the only day that is really yours to kick back and do just what you want to do.

I wanted today to be a special bbq day since I ve been craving this all week. Furthermore this is the place that my passion for cooking started so from time to time I need to take the pilgrimage back to the place of divine intervention!

There it is ...... marinated for a couple hours in cider vinegar and other dried seasonings. Since I was using my kettle grill today and not any of the smokers I decided to get these partially cooked in the oven at 140C for 1 hour then it was off to the grill to get the charred look which took about 45 mins. I then reduced the flame and allowed these to slow cook while basting them in a marinade of seasoned pan drippings from the pre cooking process another 40 mins or so.

Once cooked through as indicated by the meat pulling away from the bones I started the glazing with the BBQ sauce and then left them a further 40 mins to be smoked with a wood chip blend.

You need some of this!

Let me Cater to you!

On May 5th my wife's office had a breakfast sale and based on the pics I shared with her colleagues and the many samples shared, I was asked to produce 144 bite sized pastries.

My famous Donut Muffins, Pepperoni Pizza Puffs and Cheese/Garlic Biscuits were prepared with the assitance of my loving wife (she did all the sampling).

This was my first major order and based on all the +ve comments and kudos received this is the beginning of a wonderful dream.

Spinach Crostini

I have been experimenting lately with Italian bread based sides to accompany our meals. So I have entered the realm of Crostini & Bruschetta.

In the Parmesan Meatball post I added the tomato and basil crostini which were a hit not just with their appearance on the plate but the subtle yet distict taste they confer on the meal.

Tonight I made these Spinach Crostinis with Parmesan and Mozzarella and they accompanied a Corned beef stew, Lentils, my signature Parsley rice and Iceberg salad.

Look out for more combinations as these delights are as customizable and endless as a professional LEGO set!

Good Stuff!

Bacon, Cheese, Tomato Strata. T Minus 10, 9,8......

A couple months ago I signed found an interesting recipe at the back of a can of marinara sauce and since the dish turned out great I decided to signup for additional recipes.

So periodically I receive recipes via email from HUNTS and they are usually quite easy to prepare and features one of their products which reduces preparation time by half- easily.

One of those recipes is the focus of today's post. From the first time I saw the recipe I knew I had to make it not just any day but part of the most special breakfast time at our home - Sunday Morning.

So I got up a little earlier than usual and made this fantastic dish. Prep time was about 15 minutes, bake time 30-35 minutes and the time it took for the portion in the pictures to disappear- 5 minutes which includes the before and just before the end of it all pics.

Great breakfast! Many many thanks to hunts.com!

I'm Bringing Sexy Baby Back Ribs.....Back!

It took three ribs and close to 9 months to get these photos for this site!

The first ribs I wanted to feature were back in November but I just couldnt resist tearing into them and lets just say they were no longer 'photogenic'

The second attempt was in late February and my family got to those ribs before I could retrieve my camera so again no pics to share.

I am in awe tonight as I upload these pics that I was able to resist my GREATEST BBQ RIBS EVER and by so doing have them to 'savor' as they are now immortal..the pics at least!

I am not sure whether you can see the rub that I applied to this Bad Boy Baby Back but it was by far the best. Chef John of Foodwishes would be proud of these ribs as indicated by the brush marks of the bbq sauce on the meat and great lacquered apperance of the finished product.

Somebody ask Mr Chow if he's ready for a Throwdown!

Coming Soon - Pseudo Bento Plates?

Well I had elaborate plans for this long weekend to bring everything in my life up to date that has been somewhat neglected.

So I had plans to knock off a couple projects around the home and from my classes.... epic failure!

There were numerous cooking plans as well with and each day of the four day long weekend was supposed to have it own theme ...another epic failure!

This was about the best I could put together on the last day of the weekend even the table and plating were a bit sloppy.... but all the same the food was fantastic and should have been served over three courses but I reduced it to two the first course of soup is not featured but who know maybe another long weekend.

Ebelskivers & Honey Glazed Fruit- Good Morning World!

This is the second time that I'm featuring Ebelskivers on the site which is consistent with rhe promise I made in an earlier post.

It was a beautiful Sunday morning with the light and crisp and its that freshness that inspired this simple meatless breakfast of lemon batter ebleskivers with cinnamon honey butter and a honey glazed medley of fruits in a bed of iceberg lettuce.

Light, Tasty, Crisp and Satisfying.