Cuba Libre Back Ribs

These ribs have become an absolute favourite in my house. This recipe is from “Cooking with Booze” by Ryan Jennings and David Steele. I had never heard of this book until my awesome real estate agent, Larry Jennings, gave me this book, autographed. Turns out his son is Ryan Jennings. But how did I find Larry to be my real estate agent? I have worked with his other son Shane on many occasions. This happens to be a 6-degrees-of-separation-type-thing! (But with less degrees :) 

This is a must try recipe that I highly recommend. “Cuba Libre...literally means “free Cuba” but really it’s just fancy bartender talk for a classic run and Coke.” These are literally Rum and Coke ribs. I love ‘em. You need to try ‘em.

Cuba Libre Back Ribs

Ribs:

2 racks pork back ribs

1tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 onion, peeled and quartered

6 cloves garlic, crushed

2L cola

Caribbean Barbecue Sauce

1 tsp vegetable oil

1 onion, minced

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

3/4 cup ketchup

1/3 cup dark rum

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Dash hot pepper sauce

1. Preheat oven to 200F.
2. For the ribs, trim any visible fat and remove membrane from underside if attached. Season both sides with salt and pepper and place meat-side down in large baking dish. Arrange onion and garlic evenly around ribs. Pour enough cola to cover ribs completely. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 3 hours. Remove from oven and allow ribs to come to room temperature in cooking liquid, about 1 1/2 hours.
3. Meanwhile, to make sauce, heat oil in small saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, cumin and chili powder and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes. (Note: I generally add a bit more brown sugar than the recipe calls for. I like the sticky sweetness of the brown sugar. Feel free to play around with your flavours)
4. Preheat BBQ to low (about 300F).
5. Place ribs meat-side down on grill and close lid. Cook, turning occasionally, until meat is browned and caramelized, about 30 to 45 minutes, or until tender and bones are exposed at ends. With 10 minutes remaining, brush ribs with BBQ sauce. 
6. Remove from BBQ and let sit a few minutes before serving. Bring lots of napkins to the table and dig in. I like to serve this with roasted potato fries (finger food!) Simply cut up potatoes into fry-like-shapes and coat with olive oil and herbs de provence - bake in 475F oven for approx 30mins.

Roasted Herb Chicken

After much debate with my beautiful, pregnant sister-in-law, we finally decided to try this recipe for chicken. She wanted chocolate, the rest of us wanted regular chicken. I suggested a Mole sauce (spelling way off), but in the end, she decided she could live without chocolate for this dinner. LOL. This turned out really good. The chicken was moist and the glaze was wonderfully saltly and complicated. 

Roasted Herb Chicken

1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1tsp dried rosemary, crushed

salt & pepper

1 tsp dried oregano, crumbled

1 roasting chicken

1 apple, quartered

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Rinse chicken in cold water and pat dry.
3. Combine first 7 ingredients and baste chicken. Insert fresh rosemary and apples into cavity of chicken.
4. Bake for 1 hour, 15mins or until meat thermometer 82C, basting chicken with sauce every 30 minutes. 
5. Let rest 5 to 10 minutes and enjoy.

Slow Roasted Pork Loin with Honey Balsamic Glaze

Served with Rustic Sage Bread Stuffing, Glazed Root Vegetables and Apple Endive Salad with Sweet and Spicy Pecans

The following 4 recipes comes courtesy of Anthony Sedlak’s cookbook “The Main: Recipes”. This book is laid out into theme menus. This menu’s theme is Honey. Who doesn’t love honey? 

A comment on Anthony Sedlak’s cookbook: it is visually stunning. The pictures are so beautiful and all the food looks amazing. So far, this is the only menu I have tried to date, but I periodically flip through the pictures. It’s almost like a beautiful picture book for foodies. 

This menu tasted even better than it looked. I was so impressed with the flavors and my guests loved it too.

If you plan to make this delicious menu, prepare in the following order for best results: Prepare pecans for salad in advance, Glaze pork and roast, prepare root vegetables and simmer, assemble bread stuffing, remove pork and prepare jus, bake stuffing, prepare salad, carve pork at table.

Slow-Roasted Pork Loin with Honey Balsamic Glaze

• one 4 lb pork loin roast, bone in
• 3-4 sprigs rosemary
• 3-4 sprigs thyme
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup beef stock

Preheat oven to 350F.

1. Score the skin of pork roast. Cut along the bone, following bone down to the loin. Stuff the pork with rosemary and thyme and season generously (both inside and out) with salt and pepper. With kitchen twine, tie roast in between each bone, securing tightly.

2. In a saucepan, combine balsamic vinegar, white wine, Dijon mustard, and honey. Stir over medium heat until mixture has reduced by half. Set aside.

3. In a large roasting pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add meat and sear on all sides until golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Baste pork with reserved glaze. 

4. Place roasting pan in preheated oven. Cook for 60 minutes, or until meat thermometer reaches 145F, basting meat every 10 to 15 minutes. If pan appears dry, add extra water or wine, 1/2 cup at a time. Remove from oven and deglaze pan with white wine and beef stock making sure to scrape up all the brown bits. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Reserve the pan juices for the Rustic Bread Stuffing.

Rustic Sage Bread Stuffing

Rustic Sage Bread Stuffing

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1-2 sprigs rosemary
• 1-2 sprigs sage
• 1/2 loaf country style bread, torn into bite-sized pieces
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup of reserved pan juices from pork roast

Preheat oven to 350F (Oven should remain hot from pork roast).

1. In a medium saute pan, heat oil, butter and fresh herbs until oil is fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add bread and season with salt and pepper. Put pan in preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes, or until bread is light golden. 
3. Return pan to stovetop and add reserved pork drippings. Let liquid reduce slightly, then serve immediately.

Glazed Root Vegetables

Glazed Root Vegetables

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium parsnip, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1/2 medium turnip, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 leek, cleaned, cut into 1/2-inch rounds
• 2 cups Brussels sprouts, sliced in half
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1-2 sprigs thyme
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 tbsp honey
• salt and pepper

1. In a medium saute pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add parsnip, turnip, and carrot, and saute 2-3 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add leak, brussels sprouts, and butter. When butter starts to foam, add thyme and saute for another 2 to 3 minutes, or until vegetables are lightly browned. 
2. Add white wine, honey, and salt and pepper. Cover pan and simmer over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

Apple Endive Salad with Sweet and Spicy Pecans

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 1 cup whole pecans
• 3 heads Belgian endive, julienned
• 1 Granny Smith apple
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.

1. In a medium bowl, combine honey and cayenne. Add nuts and toss until evenly coated with honey mixture. Spread mixture onto parchment lined baking sheet and bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until nuts are toasted. Let cool and shop coarsely.
2. In a large bowl, toss together endive, apple, and honey-spiced pecans. Add lemon juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper. Toss to combine.