One thing I miss from having my home is my WEBER grill. Unfortunately there is no outside space for grilling on our apartment building property. My solution : Bring the BBQ indoors! My brother suggested buying the George Forman indoor/outdoor grill but I was against spending an extra money beyond the food.
Since I have discovered a love for cumin after trying a recipe for Spicy Chicken Thighs I decided this recipe was perfect for chicken with a grilled taste.
I am always in search of new and delicious recipes which has made MyRecipes.com my all time favorite site for recipes.
My patience will not allow for preparing any meal the day of so I am all about prepping food the day and night before. It saves time, allows all the flavors to infuse in each dish and keeps me sane to entertain.
Menu: BBQ chicken thighs and legs, BBQ baby back ribs, Spinach salad with tomatoes, cucumber, strawberries and shredded cheese, homemade potato salad, corn on the cob, baked beans (I use Bush’s vegetarian beans), Wegmans creamy cole slaw.
For BBQ chicken:
I used the first 6 ingredients of the recipe to season chicken overnight!!! Instead of thighs I used thighs and legs for our bbq. Also baked the chicken for an 1 1/2- 2 hours on 350F vs. broiling only.
Once the chicken was done I drained the fat and poured(I need a brush!) on the honey and vinegar to create a glaze. Next I turned on the broiler and put the chicken in for 1 minute on each side. Just make sure you time the food once it is in broiler setting. I love lots and lots of bbq sauce so I slathered the chicken with Sweet Baby Ray’s Sweet and Spicy BBQ sauce. My days of making homemade bbq sauce are over!!!!
For oven BBQ baby back ribs, I found a delicious recipe online with amazing pictures. This recipe was my inspiration for the oven BBQ baby back ribs, ForTheLoveofCooking. I purchased one rack of baby back ribs from Wegmans.
When I grilled ribs I would start in the oven and finish on the grill for that smoky flavor. I did tweak the recipe slightly by using what was on my shelf for the rub. I created my rub with Lawry’s seasoning salt, McCormick garlic powder, salt, McCormick black pepper and a dash of chili powder. Next time I want to experiment with a little brown sugar. Also I always buy the jarred minced garlic to make prep time a little faster and easier. After putting garlic on each side of the rack of ribs, I pressed the rub in on both sides.
I tightly sealed the ribs in aluminum foil and baked for 1 1/2 -2 hours. Another tweak on the recipe is that I used the honey and vinegar glaze from the chicken recipe. Since the broiler was already on for the chicken I put the ribs in for 5 minutes. Reminder: Watch the ribs once on the broiler setting. After I let the ribs rest I cut them and slathered with Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce.
I grew up learning to cook without recipes. My mother and grandmother called it cooking by rote. For staple side dishes like baked macaroni and cheese, potato salad(I do use red potatoes, Hellmann’s mayo is a must according to my mother) and baked beans. I learned to make the recipe my own by adding a little of this and a little of that!!!!! A true confession on the baked beans. I always use Bush’s vegetarian baked beans and I doctor up with brown sugar, regular sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and this time. For Saturday’s dinner I added diced celery and onion. Typically I add whatever produce I have at the time like diced red onions and green bell pepper.
Baking is another one of my fortes however I had my eyes on the double crust apple pie at Wegmans for weeks. What is July 4th without apple pie even if it’s not from your oven!!!! A la mode is even yummier!!! Everyone was stuffed after dinner so the pie went home in doggie bag!!!! Wegmans never fails!!!!! The pie got rave reviews!!!!! even my kids ate it and they are picky eaters.
This was truly an impromptu dinner that I pulled together in 24hours. I am determined to never waste food so everyone took home a doggie bag even the guests who were absent!!!
What is July 4th without fireworks? Our after dinner activity…….