BBQ Sauce

My husband was grilling for the first time this year and felt inspired to make homemade barbecue sauce. He kindly let me whip it together so I could claim it for this blog. Hurray! Another sauce toward this year's goal (3rd of 24)!

From the Joy of Cooking:

Barbecue Sauce

• 1 1/2 cups ketchup
• 1 cup cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 Tbls dry mustard
• 4 Tbls chili powder, or to taste
• 1 Tbls grated, peeled fresh ginger, or 1 tsp ground
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbls vegetable oil
• 3 sliced lemon

Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring often, until the sauce comes to a simmer.  

Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the lemon slices if desired.  

This sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.

Makes about 2 cups.

Our verdict:  It was much thinner than what you expect from a commercially-bottled sauce, but it was tasty. I don't know if I'd rush to make this exact recipe again;  I would probably try out a few different BBQ sauce versions from my other cookbooks, to compare to this one. But certainly it was fine. Had a zest to it. Easy to make. All-in-all to be considered a successful receipe.

Pie for Dinner!

Do you love complements and enjoy savory pie? I've got the perfect recipe! This is one of those dishes I can remember my mother making. I think I enjoyed it back then (I hope I told her so?), and I know my family and I enjoy it now!

from Recipes for a Small Planet by Ellen Buchman Ewald:

Complementary Pie

• 3/4 cup raw brown rice (or barley), cooked
• 1/2 cup dry beans, cooked (use large colorful beans like kidneys or black)
• 1 Tbs butter
• 2 cups sliced onions
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp crushed dried tarragon
• 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce

While the beans are rice are cooking, saute the sliced onions in the butter until they are very soft and just begin to turn golden. Set them aside. 

Beat the milk into the eggs; stir in the grated cheese, salt, tarragon, and worcestershire sauce. 

Then fold in the sauteed onions, cooked beans, and cooked rice.

Turn the mixture into an oiled 10-inch pie plate. 

Bake at 325 F for 25 to 30 mins, until the custard has set and the edges are browned. Let stand for 10 mins before serving, then slice into wedges.

Variation--Complementary Pie with Crust: Prepare any whole wheat pie crust for a more elegant pie. Use a larger pie pan, press the crust in, pour in the custard, and bake as above.

Of course, much of the Small Planet premise (that ingredients must be combined in carefully-considered amounts so that the dishes contain "complete proteins") has since been largely debunked; it's not nearly so difficult to eat well as a vegetarian. But that in no way means that Ewald's recipes shouldn't be made and enjoyed. Reading through the cookbook is a pleasure (for me); it's interesting, even if its concern for amino acids is unnecessary, and the recipes themselves are well-described, delicious-sounding, and hearty. Plus, I appreciate her suggestions for sides, breads, and salads. Makes planning an entire meal simple. This cookbook is staying on my shelf, and this dish will continue to be a favorite for years to come.