Fourth of July BBQ

It's a test kitchen Fourth of July, Charlie Brown!

(Sorry, couldn't resist!)

What fun is trying out new recipes if you can't use your close friends and family as guinea pigs?! With an adventurous spirit and a couple of inspiring e-mails from my sister, Christine, Dad happily announced that we were having ribs for the Fourth. In my whole life, I don't think we've ever strayed from the traditional holiday standards of hamburgers and hot dogs. Maybe an occasional kielbasa or sausage, but never have we ever tried ribs.

Dad got a recipe from their neighbor, Larry, for a Memphis style dry rub. He seasoned and prepped them the night before the picnic and then, almost in the tradition of Thanksgiving, he got up at 6AM the next morning to put them into the oven. There they slowly baked at 250° for over 8 hours with Dad rotating them every half hour. After all the guests had arrived, he put the ribs on the grill, brushing them with the mop sauce from Larry's recipe (see below). The smell was incredible! All the seasonings working together to create that classic backyard barbecue aroma.

After a short stay on the grill, we offloaded them to a large serving pan and placed them back in the kitchen to complete the buffet line. Rounding out this culinary rodeo were some great barbecue sides dishes like Mom's Mac Salad, Aunt Mary's Watermelon Fruit Basket, Mom V's Antipasto Squares, Texas Caviar Bean Dip, Cole Slaw and Cucumber Salad.

Mom's famous Mac Salad and Dad's Cole Slaw

Joining in with the test kitchen Fourth of July spirit, Matt and I tried a new recipe for corn bread as our contribution to the party. Corn bread always goes great with any barbecue and this one I got from AllRecipes.com seemed to over pretty well. It had all the great elements you would ask for in a warm hunk of cornbread; moist but not mushy, buttery but not greasy. I made two 8 x 8 pans for our small party of twelve or so and all the servings went pretty quick. I wish there was some more leftover, because it would have made a great breakfast treat. I think the next appearance for this recipe will be to accompany a thick and spicy beef chili later on this summer.

Lunch was great, particularly the ribs, which were tender on the inside with a well-seasoned bark on the outside. I'm not a big rib eater, because I don't want sauce or spices stuck in my fingernails all day. (I can be girlie once in a while.) But this meat came off the bone very easily and I was really impressed how the spices soaked into the meat.

While in the oven, the ribs were stacked four tall in the baking pan. Every half hour, Dad had to take the slab that was on the bottom of the pan and move it to the top. Since the one at the bottom was the hottest, it created the most juices, so when it was moved to the top, all the juices would run down the stack to the drier racks below. This, undoubtedly, was the key to making sure the flavors spread evenly throughout the meat.

The Crazy-Long List of Seasonings

Dry rub:

3 TBSP sweet paprika

3 TBSP chili powder

1 TBSP salt

2 Tsp ground pepper

2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp dried thyme

2 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp yellow mustard seeds

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp celery seed

1 tsp cayenne pepper

MOP Sauce:

1 cup distilled white vinegar

1 TBSP salt

2 TBSP dry rub from above

Ribs:

4 racks baby back pork ribs (6 - 8 pounds)

Salt & Ground black pepper

No picnic or party is complete without desserts, especially if my Mom has anything to say about it. When all were rested from lunch, she laid out the dessert table. She personally created Peach Pie, Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies, Mocha Fudge Brownies and the ever popular (with Matt) Texas Sheet Cake. Larry's wife, Sally, also came bearing her famous Chocolate Chip Cookies with nuts and toffee chips. Mom's review, "Wait til you try Sally's cookies! They're to live for!"

Dinner on Sunday night: BBQ Rib Meat over Salad

That night, Matt and I headed home thoroughly stuffed and bearing a ton leftovers. Saturday night was definitely as dinner-less night, but Sunday saw the need for some vegetables in our life. I warmed a few of the ribs in the oven at 350° for about 30 minutes, de-boned all the meat and sprinkled it over a well appointed green salad. The meat was even more tender and flavorful then the day before and some light Italian dressing drizzled over the top helped to re-activate the spices.

A great holiday was had by all, left with memories of ribs, extra helpings of mac salad and some very full bellies. But most importantly, it was best spent with family, friends and good food; just the way it should be.