Oven Barbecued Spare Ribs

Oven Barbecued Spare Ribs

Now that you've prepared a few quarts of barbecue sauce, it's time to put it to work! The sweet and tangy sauce brings out the tender and meaty taste of pork; using it on a slab of ribs is a must.

I don't have an outdoor grill, so rely on my trusty oven to barbecue my ribs. Cooking ribs indoors is a three step process, but the end results give you fall off the bone tender ribs that are packed with flavor.

Oven Barbecued Spare Ribs
1 3-to-6 lb. slab spare ribs
2 tbsp dark brown sugar
2 tsp. kosher or coarse salt
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 cup barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 225 degrees.  Place ribs, meat side up, on broiler tray. Fill bottom of tray with 2 cups of water.

Combine sugar, salt and spices. Rub the ribs with this mixture, completely covering all meaty surfaces.

Ribs covered in spice rub

Ribs covered with aluminum foil tent

Tent the ribs with aluminum foil, and heat at 225 for 2 hours.

After baking, remove ribs from oven and remove aluminum foil tent. Turn on broiler, and allow to preheat for 5 to 10 minutes.

Using a pastry brush, cover the ribs generously with barbecue sauce. Place under broiler for 10 to 20 minutes, or until sauce is bubbly and becoming caramelized. Remove ribs from oven; allow to rest for  minutes before slicing. Serves 4 to 6.

Apple Carrot Bread

Apple Carrot Bread

The second wave of apples is ripening at my house. These are the heirloom variety, Pound Sweet, which live up to their name. The apples can weigh as much as a pound each, and the fruit is exceptionally juicy and sweet. The only downside is that these apples don't have that little bit of tart (malic acid) that characterizes the best eating and cooking apples.

Pound Sweet apples (and Golden Delicious, which shares a lot of the genetics) are very good for baking. They don't get mushy, and their size means that it doesn't require peeling and coring a lot of apples to have enough material for a recipe.  And since daytime temperatures have dropped from the high 80s to the mid-70s, I decided today was a good day to bake some loaves of apple carrot bread.

Is it bread, or is it cake? That's a difficult question. It doesn't require cake flour, but the texture and flavor are cake-like. It really doesn't matter, though, unless you are prejudiced against eating a piece of cake for breakfast.

NOTE: The flavoring I used in this is called Princess Cake and Cookie emulsion. This is a thick liquid that has a slightly floral flavor that combines vanilla and citrus. It can be purchased through Lorann Oils, or on Amazon.com.

Apple Carrot Bread

3 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter (no substitutes)
1/2 c. solid vegetable shortening
2 c. granulated sugar
1 tsp. Princess Cake and Cookie emulsion (or substitute 3/4 tsp. vanilla and 1/4 tsp. lemon extract)
3 eggs
1 c. shredded carrots
1 c. grated peeled apples

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two 9 x 5 loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray.

In medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.

In large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter and shortening on high. Pour into bowl of stand mixer. Add granulated sugar and Princess Cake and Cookie emulsion. Using flexible blade, cream together until sugar is dissolved in shortening.

Alternate addition of eggs, grated apples and carrots and dry ingredients on low speed. After all ingredients are folded together, increase speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes.

Pour batter evenly into 2 prepared loaf pans. Bake for 50 - 60 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean and bread begins to separate from sides of pan. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack.

If desired, frost with cream cheese icing or drizzle loaf with confectioner's icing. Because the fruit in the bread keeps it very moist, it is prone to molding if left at room temperature. Store in airtight container(s) in refrigerator, or freeze for future use.