Ja cię kocham…

I woke up yesterday morning to find 2 feet of snow at my door step.  That’s a lot of snow, at least for people in my area.  Noodles, on the other hand, had no issues with it.  She was in her glory. (Probably because she didn’t have to shovel!)

For some reason massive amounts of snow bring on a baking bug for a lot of us.  So many of my friends told me that they were baking this weekend because of the snow.  Being cooped up causes us to get ants in our pants!  Since the superbowl is this weekend, I decided to make something that would go with the beer that the husbands will be consuming.  I’m not a beer drinker, but I do love my pretzels!

They were super simple, but a little time consuming.  Anything that needs to be kneaded then rise, then rolled, then risen again will take time so make sure that you have the day to relax and enjoy making your pretzels.

They were bland in my opinion (probably because I didn’t put the huge chunks of salt on them – the huge salt makes me cringe), but this is easily remedied by putting that salt on them, sprinkling some cinnamon sugar on them or dunking them in salsa con queso!  Mmmmmmm….

Whole Wheat Soft Pretzels

Source: Delicious Wisdom
Yields: 12 small pretzels

Prep Time:  About 2 Hours (mostly inactive)
Cooking Time:  15 Minutes

Ingredients:
1 Cup Warm Water
1 Package of Dry Active Yeast
1 ½ Cups + 1 ¼ Cups Whole Wheat Flour
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
3/4 Tsp Sea Salt
3 Cups Water
2 Tbsp Baking Soda
Course Sea Salt (optional)

In a large bowl, stir yeast into warm water and set aside to dissolve for 10 minutes.  Stir in olive oil, sea salt and 1 ½ cups of flour.  Once well combined, add remaining flour and knead for about 5 minutes.  Place into a dry bowl, lightly cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for 1 hour.

Divide dough into 12 equal portions and roll into balls.  Roll each ball into a long snake-y piece and form into pretzel shapes.  (See below.) Let them rise for about 30 minutes.  Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.  Bring water and baking soda to a simmer in a deep pan.  Simmer pretzels in simmering water for about one minute, flipping halfway through.  Place pretzels on a lightly greased baking sheet, sprinkle with sea salt, and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.

Try to eat them the day of baking that’s when they are the best!

These ribs are always a huge hit with our family and friends, and I cannot take one ounce of credit.  These are made by my grill master husband, Jay.   If something needs to be grilled, he is always ready to go, beer and cigar in hand.  It’s so funny because on our teeny, tiny patio outside we have a huge Weber grill, a charcoal grill, and a smoker.  Do we have enough??  Apparently not because we’re thinking about getting a tailgate grill for when we go to sports events, too.  Ha.  We love our food in this house.

We pretty much always get our meats from the super wholesale store, Costco.  Their meats are outta this world.  Honestly, a lot of Costco’s stuff is pretty amazing.  (Their birthday cakes are unbelievable!)  If we don’t go to Costco, then we go to our local Amish farmer’s markets for meats.  They, too, have great stuff for great prices.  And I have to just give a shout out to Trader Joe’s because it’s my favorite grocery store.  I can’t talk about good food and prices without mentioning TJ’s.

So…. the superbowl is about a month away and you need a great recipe for a party, don’t you?  I suggest you try these ribs.  They can be cooked in the oven, on a grill, or in a smoker.  Does not matter.  We’ve done it all and they are always a huge hit.  HUGE hit.

My only critique is the price of the food to make this meal, but it is important to know before you get to the grocery store.  Bobby Flay uses 2 different types of chili powder both of which are expensive (and hard to find) in addition to a whole lot of maple syrup, which is also expensive. It’s totally fine to use any chili powder and syrup you have in the house.  Yes, the specific kinds that are chosen do make these ribs particularly yummy, but using any chili powder and syrup still tastes amazing and you will still rock the house in grilling.

For New Years we served these babies with Sauerkraut with Bacon and apples (recipe follows).  Mmmmmmm…..

Spice Rubbed Smoked Ribs with Maple-Horseradish Baste

Source: Bobby Flay

Serves 8

Prep Time: 15 min

Inactive Prep Time: 30 min

Cook Time: 1 hr 30 min

Ingredients:

Maple-Horseradish Glaze:

2 cups pure maple syrup
1/2 cup prepared horseradish, drained
2 heaping tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Ribs:

1/3 cup Spanish paprika
3 tablespoons ancho chili powder
3 tablespoons New Mexican chili powder
2 tablespoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
3 cups wood chips (hickory, mesquite, or applewood)
4 racks pork ribs (3 pounds each)

Directions:

Glaze:

Whisk all ingredients together in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ribs:

Stir spices together in a medium bowl.

About 1/2 hour before cooking time, soak hickory chips in enough water to cover. Drain chips. In a covered grill, place slow burning charcoal in both sides of a drip pan. Sprinkle coals with wood chips.

Rub top side of each rack of ribs with about 3 tablespoons of the rub. Place ribs, bone side down, on grill. Close cover or place cover on the smoker. Grill about 1 1/2 hours, adding chips every 20 minutes. During the last 10 minutes of grilling, brush liberally with the Maple-Horseradish Glaze.

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SERVED WITH:

Image courtesy of Simply Recipes

Sauerkraut with Bacon and Apples

Source: Simply recipes

Serves 8-10