Palo Santo Wood Beer Braised Baby Backs

Palo Santo Wood Beer Braised Baby Backs

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

Update

It has been a busy and stressful fall for us. So busy that I haven’t had much time to cook. Kinda bums me out. I also have several new recipes I need to get posted. It takes a lot of time to keep up on a food blog. From photography to writing witty banters. As much as I love it, it’s been a low priority for me. Sad.

For the holidays, we head to our families for Christmas eve and Christmas day. No menu planning for me, but I have to bring something. I went hunting in my freezer and caught a few racks of ribs. I was thinking, “I don’t have the time to make this recipe, but ribs sound yummy. What can I do?”

I’m actually going to make a version of this in the slow cooker for Christmas. One would think that slow cooking would take longer, but this will cut the time in half. You will not need to marinade, use as many ingredients, or have as many steps. So why not just always make ribs in the slow cooker? Well, I still prefer the recipe below because I prefer dry ribs with a dipping sauce. If I had a grill, that would be the best way.

Let’s get started

Obviously, the full rack of ribs will not fit in your slow cooker. I’m going to cut three ribs together, and toss in the following ingredients.

2 Rack of Ribs, cut

1/2 Cup of dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper

1 teaspoon of Old Bay

1 medium onion, diced

1 bottle of dark beer

1/4 cup of honey

1/3 cup of Worcestershire

1/4 cup of white wine vinegar

Cook on high for about 4-5 hours, or until the meat is nice and tender (falling off the rack). That’s it!

I hope you enjoy your holidays. Peace to you and your family.

Original Post

In the past, the only way I’ve made baby back ribs is on an open campfire with just a little season salt and ground pepper. However, for Mother’s Day, I had to add a BBQ sauce for my favorite mother-in-law. Not a fan of BBQ, I had to really put my thoughts together on this recipe. Of course I wanted her to love it because it is for her after all, but I also wanted to enjoy the ribs. I’m cooking it after all.

Hmm. Where do I begin. The rub…

A mixture of spices make the world go round. I love the unique smells and flavors of each of them.

You can do this a few hours before, or at least one hour before cooking. Better still rub down your meat the night before and let it chill out in the refrigerator.

Rub Ingredients

1/2 Cup of dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon of ground cloves (I buy whole and ground myself. Makes me feel like a chef, I guess)

1 teaspoon of paprika

1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper

1 teaspoon of green jalapeno seasoning

1 teaspoon of Old Bay

1 teaspoon of ground thyme

1 Tablespoon of chili powder

1 medium Mayan onion, grind in a blender for juices

Mix all of the above together.

Place a rack of ribs on a long piece of aluminum foil. Rub both side of the rack, making sure to cover the meat.

Take another long piece of foil and set it on top. Pinch and fold the layers together to seal. Place in the refrigerator over night or a few hours before cooking.

Time for the saucy stuff that makes you go yum…

Grab a beer, and make sure you get one for yourself.

Sauce Ingredients

I used Dogfish Head that is brewed in Palo Santo Wood.

Palo Santo means “holy tree,” and its wood has been used in South American wine-making communities. The caramel and vanilla complexity unique to this beer comes from the exotic Paraguayan Palo Santo wood…

via Dogfish web site

But I’m a strong believer that beer makes sauces better, so try it with another malt beverage if you choose.

Add in…

1/4 cup of honey

Add in…

1/3 Cup of Worcestershire. I love Lea & Perrins. L & P is like Heinz is to ketchup. – Nothing better.

1/4 Cup of white wine vinegar

The remaining ingredients…

5 garlic cloves, chopped

6 green onions, finely chopped

1/4 Cup of dark brown sugar

1 Cup of Heinz ketchup (I’ll warn you now. Do not use anything but Heinz)

1/4 Cup of olive oil

1 Tablespoon of Chinese chili garlic sauce

Bring it all to a boil. Simmer over medium heat. Let it reduce and thicken for about five minutes. Set aside and cover.

Preheat your oven for 250. Take the ribs out of the refrigerator and open the foil. Pour 1/4 cup of cooked sauce over the top. Reseal and place racks in a roaster, or on a baking sheet. Cook for 1 1/2 hours. Turn heat up to 275 and cook for another 1 to 1-1/2 more hours. or until ribs are tender and done.

Take the ribs out of the foil and place on a baking sheet to broil until skin becomes crispy.

Warm up the sauce and put into a serving dish.

Slice the racks into four rib bone portions. I always allow each guest to add their own sauce. The recipe makes just enough for dipping three racks of baby backs. If you like your ribs nice and sloppy, double the recipe.

Fantastic. I love how they smelled up our house. So moan-worthy.

The reason for this recipe was inspired by mom. A conversation with my mother-in-law prior to making these delicious ribs…

Me, “If you were on death row, what would be your last meal?” Mom, “Lasagne. Well, I like everything. Hmmm. Well. I don’t know. Oooo, I really like baby back ribs. Oh! And, I like shrimp scampi.” – Stay tuned for the shrimp scampi recipe.

What’s your favorite baby back rib recipe? Because this girl likes to eat.

Bluemoon Pulled Pork

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

Sweet citrus. This was a lot of work; even using a slow cooker, but well worth it. I’m not much of a BBQ girl. Imagine that! It has to be really yummy BBQ for me to like it.

I did a little Internet search to find a qualifying pulled pork recipe. My inspiration came from Bobby Flay‘s Cuban Pulled Pork Tacos with Guava Glaze, Sour Orange Red Cabbage-Jicama Slaw and Chipotle Mayonnaise. That’s a mouth full. Check out his recipe. It’s awesome, but I’m not as talented as this man. Hell! I had to Google Jicama.

Of course I changed it a little bit. Actually, I changed it a lot, but the inspiration is still there. Thanks Bobby. Love. You.

Let’s get started. Grab two Bluemoons, and turn up the iTunes.

First, get a pork roast. Toss it in your warming crock pot. Take 1/2 cup of fresh oregano leaves, eight garlic cloves, 3/4 cup of EVOO, some sea salt and grind it together in a blender. Put it over the pork roast.

Looks like something from Untold ER Stories.

Add in a 12 ounce jar of red raspberry jam, 1/4 cup of Dijon, and 1/2 cup of Bluemoon pale ale. Add in a zest from one large orange. Squeeze in two small fresh limes, and lots of fresh ground pepper. Let it cook for about seven hours on low, or until the pork pulls apart nicely. My friend Monica told me to cook it while I slept. Great idea. Or, you can do this while you are at work, but I’m not a big fan of leaving appliances plugged in while I’m not home.

Next up…

Chipotle Mayonnaise. This is the cherry on top. Mix it in a grinder/blender two small chili peppers, squeeze in one fresh lime, and 3/4 cup of low-fat Hellmann’s mayo. I like it spicy, but this was not spicy enough. When I make this again, I’m going to use two more chili peppers. And, if that’s not hot enough, I’m going to add in hot sauce – Damn it!

Let the ingredients party together for a night or two.

Coleslaw topping. Bobby Flay, God love him, uses all kinds of fresh veges that I never knew existed. His job is cooking, but I worked the next day, so I did a little improv. Use two bags of coleslaw mix and add in a half of red onion. Done!

For the dressing I used one large fresh squeezed orange, two packets of Truvia, two tablespoons of honey, and lots of fresh ground pepper, and some sea salt. Toss it in a baggie for a few hours. It’s also good overnight, but can become wilted. Still good.

The bread. I used Tuscany style ‘Tear and Share’ bread from Giant Eagle. Oh My God! So, moan-worthy. It’s perfect for small sandwiches.

The finale…

Toast your bun, top with pork, slaw, mayo. Ah! Sweet pork.

For the calorie conscience, serve it in a whole wheat wrap.

As my ex-brother-in-law would say, “Good Groceries!”

Did you drink the second Bluemoon I told you to grab? Good for you! Grab another and drink and eat and be merry.

I served the leftovers to a few coworkers and they absolutely loved it. Thank my lucky stars because this took me two days. Whew!

If you try it, or if you do something different, let me know; because this girl likes to eat.

Thanks for reading.

Irish Lamb Stew in Guinness and Puff Pastry

Guinness Irish Stew in a Puff Pastry

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

Happy First Day of Fall!

This time of year is awesome. I really enjoy it for the the vibrant orange and yellow colors, and for the smell of baking. Even if it’s colder outside our senses are filled with warmth. Not to mention, I love Halloween and Thanksgiving.

This is my first attempt at stew. I have to tell you, I’m not a fan of stews. Mainly, because it has cooked carrots in it. I have no idea why, but I’m not a fan. In my humble opinion, carrots are best served raw dipped in ranch dressing. Glen, my significant other, loves a good stew. So, I thought, “I’ll make it for him.” And, I thought, “I’ll add beer. Maybe that will make it all the better.”

With a little research on the Internet, I reviewed many recipes. A few from Food Network, Food.Com and AllRecipes. There are a lot of stew recipes out there. I needed to make it my own, but how? I dig Pepperidge Farms Puff Pastry Sheets. I use those for all kinds of things, especially, my baked brie that I make over the holidays. The pastry sheets are super easy to use. If you haven’t tried it, I highly recommend you get some.

Being this is my first time at stew, I should call it Virgin Lamb Stew, but who knows what kind of spam comments I’d get. Er… I’ll end it here and get on with the show.

You’ll Need

1 pound of smoked bacon, chopped
3 to 4 lbs of boneless leg of lamb or beef for stew
1/2 cup of flour
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves of garlic, crushed
2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme leaves
2 Guinness (one for the recipe and one for you to drink)
4 bay leaves
7 cups of beef broth
3 carrots, chopped
4 potatoes, chopped
Cornstarch, as needed
Salt and pepper to taste

For Pastry

Pepperidge Farms Ready to use Pastry Sheets (two sheets per box)
1 egg
1 tablespoon of water

Let’s get started…

In a cast iron skillet cook your bacon. Transfer it to a paper towel and let it cool before chopping. Keep the bacon grease in the skillet.

While you cook your bacon, cut (cube) up your leg of lamb (or beef). Toss it together with the flour, a little sea salt, and fresh ground pepper until your meat is nicely coated. That’s what he said.

Once your bacon is cooked, brown the meat pieces on all sides and toss into a five quart dutch oven, or stock pot.  The bacon should be cool enough to handle. Roughly chop it up and toss it into the pot with your meat.

In the same skillet, sauté your onion, garlic, and thyme for about five minutes over medium heat. Pour in your Guinness to help scrape up all the goodie bits sticking to the bottom of the skillet.

 Toss it all into your pot with the meat and bacon.

Add the beef broth and bay leaves. Bring it all to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 2 hours or until the meat is nice and tender.

Add in of carrots and potatoes. Mix your cornstarch with a little water. Bring the stew back to a boil. Add in a little cornstarch mixture at a time. Take baby steps. This will help thicken your broth. I put in a tablespoon every few minutes until I like the consistency. The broth should be a little creamy but not overly thick.

Continue to simer over medium-low heat for about 15-20 minutes, or until potatoes and carrots are tender.

Remove the bay leaves before serving.

The Umph

Follow the instructions for thawing on the Pepperidge Farm Pastry Sheet box. I usually set it out on the counter before I start to prepare the stew.

Once the pastry is thawed,  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Beat an egg and a little water together for the egg wash.

Here are two ways you can bake the stew in a puff pastry:

In a 16-ounce oven safe dish, spray with PAM. Place one puff pastry into the bowl  like a pie crust; wrapping over the sides. It doesn’t have to be a perfect fit.  Add in a scoop (about 3/4 to 1 cup) of stew.  Fold your pastry over the stew and pinch dough to seal shut.
Or, before placing the pastry sheet in the bowl, first scoop your stew into it. Cut the pastry sheet in half and place on top. Pinch the dough around the sides of the bowl to seal shut.

For either method, brush the top with the egg wash. Place the bowls on a baking sheet, and bake for 25 – 35 minutes, or until golden brown.

Side note: Oven-to-table bowls are a must! I love that I can use it for everything. From eating cereal to baking a pot pie. I only have two, but want more. I’ve added a set of four Le Creuset Stoneware Soup Bowls to my wish list. I’m hoping Santa brings me these this year.

I’m hungry!

This recipe serves 8-10, depending on the size of your bowls. Since I freeze the majority of it, I only use one box of pastries. If you plan to use all 8-10 servings in one meal, you’ll need to buy more than one box of pastry sheets. Use one sheet per bowl. Of course, you do not need to use the puff pastry. You can serve it in a bowl all by itself with a sweet crusty bread. However, the pastry really makes the dish.

Glen always pokes fun at the fact I never cook the same thing twice. Since blogging, I need to make sure I have something to write about. He said the stew was by far the best thing I’ve made, and has requested I make it again for his Birthday. Beginners luck! But, I truly believe that the secret ingredients are the cast iron skillet, the smoked bacon, and the puff pastry. The iron skillet gives it that rustic flavor, the smoked bacon makes it smoky, and the puff pastry makes it gourmet. Not to mention, the Guinness does make it all the better.

Let the soup & stew season begin.