memphis style pork ribs

It's Memorial Day!
Time for ribs and barbeque!

This is a great recipe and of course, it's from Cook's Illustrated :)

We did adjust it, however.
Being from Texas, we reeeeally have a problem if ribs aren't dripping with sauce....
But, feel free to leave the sauce out and enjoy real Memphis style ribs.

Either way, enjoy the holiday!!

Memphis Style Pork Ribs

Serves 4-6.

Cook's Illustrated, baby!

2 tablespoons sweet paprika
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 racks St. Louis-style spareribs, 2 1/2 to 3 pounds each
1/2 cup apple juice
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup wood chips, soaked
Your favorite bbq sauce, optional

Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl.

Place racks on a baking sheet and rub them down.

And now there are no pictures :)
Because, really, who wants a picture of setting up a grill??

Combine apple juice and vinegar in a small bowl and set aside.
Place soaked wood chips in a disposable pie pan with 1/4 cup water and set on the main burner of your gas grill.  Place another pie pan filled with about an inch of water on the other burners.  Position the cooking grates over the burners.  Turn all burners to high and heat grill with lid down until very hot, about 15 minutes.  Turn main burner to medium-high and turn off all the other burners.  Scrape grate clean with your grill brush.  Maintain a temp of about 250-275*.
Place ribs, meat side down, on the grate over the water.  Cover grill and cook ribs for 45 minutes.  Flip ribs meat side up, turn 180 degrees, and switch their positions so that the rack that was nearer the fire is away from it now.  And vice versa.  Brush everything with 2 tablespoons apple juice mixture and cover and cook for another 45 minutes.
Transfer ribs, meat side up, to a rack in a rimmed baking sheet.  Brush the top of each rib with the rest of the apple juice mixture.  Pour 1 1/2 cups of water into the bottom of the baking sheet and roast for one hour.  Brush ribs with your favorite barbeque sauce and continue to roast until meat is tender but not falling off the bones, 1-2 more hours.  The temp on the meat should be about 195-200*.

Transfer ribs to a cutting board, tent with foil, and let rest for 15 minutes.
Cut between the bones to separate and enjoy!!

oatmeal creme pies....or not.

Okay, so these are not the Little Debbie oatmeal creme pies.

I was really hoping they were.

But they aren't.

I love those little pies.

Besides Oreos and ice cream, I could eat those pies all day long.

And I have been searching for years for a recipe.

I found a few and bookmarked all and eventually decided to get up the nerve to try it.

Because, you know, I'd be incredibly disappointed if they didn't turn out.

And I don't deal with failure well.

So, I finally combined all the recipes into something that I thought would be the most similar.

Fail.

Not close.

Well, okay.  Pretty close.

And pretty darn tasty.

And my husband and best friend taster says that they are better.

Meh.

I still like the originals better.

But, I have to admit, these are pretty yummy.

Reflection: you know what these do taste like?

After having one a few more, they taste exactly like a Double Doozie at the Great American Cookie Company.

Ya know, in the malls.

So, go get an oatmeal Double Doozie and then try this recipe and tell me that they don't taste exactly like those.

So....

win!

:)

Oatmeal Creme Pies

Makes about 1 1/2 - 2 dozen

Taken from multiple Google-search-"oatmeal creme pie"-results.

1 3/4 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup butter, at room temp

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon molasses

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups quick oats (must be quick and not old-fashioned)

1/4 cup butter, at room temp
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla 

Preheat your oven to 350*.

Sift the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a bowl.  Set aside.

In large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Add in eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in molasses and vanilla.

Add the flour mixture to creamed mixture slowly and mix until just blended.  Then, fold in the oats with a rubber spatula. 

Drop dough by tablespoons on parchment lined baking sheets, about 2" apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until just starting to get golden around the edges. Do not overbake!  You want the centers to still look moist and puffy.  Let sit on cookie sheet for about 5 minutes and then transfer to wire racks or foil to cool completely.

While the cookies are baking, cream the butter and shortening together in a large bowl.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until fluffy, 2-3 minutes.

Spread filling on flat side of one cookie and press another cookie on top.

Enjoy!

corn pudding

Have you heard of corn pudding?

It's a Southern thing.

It's sort of like cornbread but much more moist and creamy.

And it's got yummy green chiles and sour cream, built right in!

Although now that I think about it, I'd like to try this without the green chiles and served with warm syrup or honey.

Yum.

Corn Pudding

Serves 6-8.

1 stick butter, melted and cooled slightly

2 beaten eggs

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

1 can cream corn

1 4.5 ounce can diced green chiles

1 box Jiffy Box corn muffing mix

1 cup sour cream

Preheat your oven to 350*.

Butter a 7x11" baking dish.  (Anything bigger than an 8x8" but smaller than a 9x13" will work here.)

Mix all ingredients until combined.

Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes until golden.

brown sugar glazed bacon

Are you one of those sweet and salty people??

I am.

This will be right up your alley.

Serve next to some golden waffles or pancakes and you'll be in heaven.

Go try this.

I mean it!

You'll love it.

Brown Sugar Glazed Bacon

Makes 12 slices, about 4-6 servings.

12 slices of bacon

1/4 cup brown sugar

Drizzle of maple syrup

Preheat your oven to 375*.  Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray and line with foil.  

Arrange bacon in a single layer on the baking sheet.  

Sprinkle with brown sugar and maple syrup.  

Place in the upper third of the oven and bake until sugar is caramelized and bacon is brown and crispy, about 15 minutes.  

Remove and immediately remove bacon slices using a pair of tongs to a serving platter.  Let cool slightly and enjoy!

frozen tiramisu

Sometimes, when are you sitting in the dentist's office and you don't have your iphone, you read those magazines.
The crumpled, dirty ones that many a child has licked.

I always turn to the recipe section.
Because that's just me.

Usually, it's how to combine a can of condensed cream of chicken with a poached chicken breast and some dried spices and make something bland and dull looking.
(Not that there's anything wrong with a casserole like that.)

But sometimes, you happen upon something that, with some tweaking, could be something interesting.

I like tiramisu.
A lot.
And I like ice cream.
So, here we are.
Enjoy :)

Frozen Tiramisu

Serves 8ish.

Adapted from Family Circle.
1 pint coffee ice cream
3 tablespoons chocolate syrup
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 cup heavy whipping cream
3 ounces fresh ladyfingers
1 tablespoon cocoa powder

Begin by softening the ice cream on the counter for about 10 minutes. 
Combine the chocolate syrup and the espresso powder with one tablespoon warm water in a small bowl.  Set aside.
Whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.  Remove all but about a cup of the whipped cream and set aside.
Combine the remaining whipped cream with the softened ice cream until smooth.
Place half the ladyfingers on the bottom of an 8x8" baking dish.
Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the chocolate-espresso mixture.
*I forgot to do this.  So disregard that picture.  And please do it.*
Spread about one cup of the ice cream mixture over the top.
Top with about one cup of the whipped cream.
Repeat layers (ladyfingers, chocolate-espresso mixture, ice cream, and whipped cream).
Dust the top with the cocoa powder.
Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Let soften just slightly before serving and enjoy!

ginger fried rice

Leave it to my favorite, Smitten Kitchen, to find something so simple and so interesting.
I mean, who knew that crispy ginger and leeks could make fried rice so unique?

I am used to have the "traditional" fried rice.
With the carrots and the peas and the swimming-in-soy-sauce.

But, this is so much better.

The leeks do something.
And the crispy ginger and garlic?
And the oozing egg on top?

Yum.

Ginger Fried Rice
Serves 4

Adapted from Deb!

1/3 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced ginger
Salt, to taste
2 cups leeks, white and light green parts only, rinsed really well, dried, and sliced in half moons
4 cups day-old cooked jasmine rice, or any left-over rice you might have on hand
6 large eggs
2 teaspoons sesame oil
4 teaspoons soy sauce

In a large skillet, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp and brown. Watch it carefully!  It'll burn within seconds of being done.  With a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels and salt lightly.
Leaving the same oil in the pan, reduce heat to medium-low and add the sesame oil and leeks. Cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until very tender but not browned. Add a touch of salt.
Raise heat to medium and add rice. Cook, stirring well and scraping with a spatula, until golden and slightly crunchy. Beat 2 of the eggs with a fork and add to rice.  Fry until egg is done.  Season to taste with salt.
In a nonstick skillet, fry eggs in remaining oil, over easy or sunny side up, until edges are set but yolk is still runny.
Divide rice among four dishes. Top each with an egg and drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil and 1 teaspoon soy sauce. Sprinkle crisped garlic and ginger over everything and serve. Enjoy!!

savannah!

A couple months ago, as a pre-deployment mini-vacation, my husband took our son and I on a trip to Savannah, Georgia!  We had a great time sight-seeing, relaxing, and trying new restaurants.  Below is the culinary journey through Savannah....enjoy!

The first night, we got in late and headed down to a great restaurant called 700 Drayton, which was a block from our hotel!
Mike got:
Cashew Crusted Salmon Sriracha with mandarin glaze, red chili sauce, baby bok choy, and basmati rice.
He gave it:
A-, because the salmon was a touch overdone

I got:
Fried Green Tomatoes with creamy smoked jalapeno sauce, goat cheese, basil oil, and tomatoes.
I gave it:
A

I got:
Poseidon Crab Bisque with lump crab and gremolata.
I gave it:
A+, although there was no gremolata to be found...

In the morning, the husband ordered room service (love him!) from our hotel's amazing, gourmet kitchen!
I got:
Peach Pecan French Toast with bourbon vanilla custard.
I gave it:
A+, loved the pecans in the batter and the bourbon custard was to. die. for.

He got:
Grilled Ham and Eggs - Ham steak topped with two over easy eggs and hash brown.
He gave it:
B, because they labeled it a "southern favorite"....not so much....

For lunch, we headed to the famous Mrs. Wilkes and stood in line for an hour and a half for the famous food!

Served up family-style, you get to meet some pretty interesting people, as you dine...

Luckily, the line was worth it!
We got:
what everyone gets!
Huge portions of about 15-16 different southern dishes.
From the best fried chicken ever, to succotash, to creamed corn, to cold cucumbers, to beef stew, to cornbread, to....
We gave it:
A++, best meal of our trip!

*Traveler's tip: cash only ($16 each) and only iced tea or water to drink*
....and please come hungry.  You will stuff yourself.  And not need dinner.  Although we did eat dinner that night.  We powered through.

Next, we headed over to the Savannah Candy Kitchen to sample some pralines :)

Luckily, it was Lent (we always give up sweets) so, still full from our enormous lunch, we bought some pralines based on a previous sampling of mine :)

*Traveler's tip: they have awesome deals!  Buy a pound of pralines, get a half pound free!  And free shipping if your order is over $15!  And they throw free, home-made, salt-water taffy at you!  So, be a good catcher.  I am not.*

For dinner, we headed to Paula Deen's famous Lady and Sons restaurant.

A few minutes before we were herded inside, they came out into the street to ring the dinner bell :)
(Sorry for the horrid picture...)

We got:
These fantastic garlic cheddar biscuits atop a lovely corn Johnny cake.
Eat the biscuit plain.
Drizzle the Johnny cake with maple syrup.
Yum.
We gave it:
A++

We got:
Fried green tomatoes with Vidalia onion relish and roasted red pepper sauce.
We gave it:
A
(the onion relish: A+)

We got:
Steak and Pie - Beef Tenderloin and mushroom ragout surrounding the famous tomato pie.
We gave it:
A, creamy and delicious (albeit, a bit overdone) and the tomato pie was heavenly.
(We only got an appetizer and split an entree because we were still so full from lunch!)

*Traveler's tip: Lady and Sons doesn't take reservations by phone...you have to show up at 9:30am the day of and get your name on that list!  The husband showed up at 9:40 (while the baby and I were getting ready...) and the only seatings left were 5pm and 9:30pm!  Crazy!!  Get there on time.*

Breakfast in bed again, compliments of our hotel :)
He got:
Western Omelet with Ham, Onions, Green Peppers and Local, Creamy Stone Ground Grits.
He gave it:
B, omelet was okay, grits were fantastic!

I got:
Buttermilk Pancakes with toasted pecan quince butter with breakfast sausages.
I gave it:
A+, sooooo yummy!  Loved the quince!

After shopping on River Street all day, we headed to Fiddler's Crab House.
We got:
Bloody Mary's
We gave it:
A++, almost as good as New Orleans but pretty fantastic all the same :)

He got:
Wild caught Atlantic Steamed Shrimp dinner with Savannah Red Rice and Cole Slaw.
He gave it:
A

I got:
Fried Seafood Sampler (shrimp, oysters, and scallops) with Grits.
I gave it:
A+, seafood was tender and not rubbery and the grits were awesome!

For dinner, we headed to a recommended brewery, the Moon River Brewing Co.
He got:
The Sampler: five 4 ounce beers - whatever is on tap that night.
His favorite?  A rosemary infused beer!
A++
(I got a Long Island...I don't drink beer.)

He got:
The Moon Burger with everything on it with Gouda escalloped potatoes
He gave it:
A+

I got:
Low Country Crabmelt - Grilled Texas toast topped with fresh blue crab salad and Monterey Jack cheese, smothered with a creamy Parmesan sauce and baked.
With sweet potato fries on the side.
I gave it:
A++, so so yummy.  Usually I don't care for crab with cheese on it, but my heavens.  And the sweet potato fries were the best I've ever had.  Usually soggy or mush, these were extra crispy and tender on the inside!

That night, we headed down the street to another candy company, River Street Sweets.

We had visited the Market Street Sweets in Charleston SC, a sister company of this one.
I wanted a few gophers for after Lent :)
*Incidentally, I thought these were turtles.  They are gophers.  Anyone know the difference?*

Lookie that caramel.
Heaven.

That concludes our lovely trip to Savannah!  If you are ever on the East Coast, I highly recommend :)