Short ribs smokin' on the gas grill

Red, White and Blue Pies

I was on Twitter this morning and read a tweet from bittman, a.k.a. Mark Bittman from New York City.  He’d posted some recipes on his blog  http://markbittman.com/sunday-supper-4th-of-july-menu as suggestions for a Fourth of July menu.  CLICK HERE for Victoria’s Rib Rub Recipe.

I was particularly intrigued by his ribs recipe because they have a good sounding rub, and that it precisely the way Scott likes them.  I’d never prepared smoked ribs with a rub, and thought I was up for the challenge.

Mixed green salad with fresh berries and avocado.

Scott grilled some perfect looking brats.

I cut the rack of ribs in half, they weighed about 5lbs.  To his rub recipe, I did add a teaspoon of garlic. You see, garlic is one of those mandatory ingredients in our cooking.  My mother, when she was teaching me to cook, told me that I should always put garlic or  vanilla into everything I cook/bake, but never together.  I also used a smoked paprika, because that is what I had available.  It added a nice depth of flavor.  The New Mexico chile powder I included in the rub was medium spicy which contributed some warmth for the palate.

The wood chips I had on hand were from the Aspen trees in our yard.  I don’t think they add much flavor-wise, but the

Scott's plate.

smoke smelled yummy.  I think next time, I will try them with some Apple or Oak chips.  All in all, the ribs cooked on the grill for about 3 hours.  The color on the ribs was really beautiful, and the smell of them was mouth-watering.

I enjoyed making these ribs, and the quality of the finished product was equally on par with the best ribs we have ever eaten.  Considering this fact, I would easily try some of Mark’s other recipes in the future.

With our delicious, slightly spicy ribs, we rounded out our menu with some grilled bratwursts, a mixed green salad with fresh berries, red onion and crumbled goat cheese.  I liked the way the cool, cream goat cheese soothed our mouths from the spicy ribs.  We drank some unsweetened berry ice tea, fresh water melon, and salt Lays® potato chips.

Cherry & blueberry pies topped with vanilla ice cream and blueberry compote.

For dessert, we enjoyed fresh baked individual cherry & blueberry pies with top quality vanilla ice cream and a good drizzle of blueberry compote.  With our dessert we all enjoyed a glass of Gysler Spätburgunder Rose Beerenauslese, 2003.

Thank you, Mr. Mark Bittman for the inspiration.