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Some of you may already know this, but I am a late bloomer.

Ribs of any sort have never been a real favorite in our house. Mainly because I did them as my mother did thinking that was the only way to cook them. And I gotta tell ya..Mom was a good cook, but her ribs were fatty, overcooked, and dry even with sauce on them.

Recently I have experimented with a different way to cook them that I saw on a Food Network show called “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives”. These are awesome and nothing like Moms (thank goodness).

Heat your oven to around 225 degrees, place your Baby Back ribs in a shallow pan and season well with your favorite seasonings. Making sure season is rubbed in well. Then place in the oven and cook at this temperature for at least 4 hours, longer if you have a lot of ribs. During the last half hour of cooking brush on your favorite homemade or bottled barbeque sauce. Continue cooking until the sauce becomes sticky!

I make my own sauce with Ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, clove of garlic pressed. I cook it in a saucepan for about half an hour before putting on ribs. As you add the ingredients for the sauce start with the ketchup and brown sugar and taste, then continue with the other ingredients, tasting all the while to get a flavor you like. I am sorry I don’t have the exact ingredients, but I never measure when I make this.

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It has been awhile since I lasted posted, my only excuse is:  The Holidays wore me out!

I also have been trying out some new recipes I found both online and in some of my mothers old cookbooks.

This one we are having tonight.   I love the simplicity of a sub.   I will serve it with a tossed salad for a complete meal.

Ingredients

* 1  egg, lightly beaten
* 1/3  cup fine dry bread crumbs
* 2/3  cup finely chopped onion (2 small)
* 1/2  teaspoon salt
* 1/2  teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
* 1/4  teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1-1/2  pounds lean ground beef
* 1  15-ounce can tomato sauce
* 1/2  cup chopped green sweet pepper (1 small)
* 2  tablespoons packed brown sugar
* 1  tablespoon yellow mustard
* 1  teaspoon chili powder
* 1/4  teaspoon garlic salt
* 1/4  teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1/8  teaspoon bottled hot pepper sauce
* 8  hoagie buns, split and toasted
* 2  cups shredded mozzarela cheese (8 ounces)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, stir together egg, bread crumbs, 1/3 cup onion, the salt, oregano, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add ground beef; mix well. Shape meat mixture into 32 balls. Arrange meatballs in a single layer in an ungreased 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree F oven for 25 minutes. Drain off fat.

2. For the sauce, in a 3-1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker, stir together tomato sauce, the remaining 1/3 cup onion, the sweet pepper, brown sugar, mustard, chili powder, garlic salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and the hot pepper sauce. Add cooked meatballs, stirring gently to coat with sauce.

3. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 3 to 4 hours or on high-heat setting for 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

4. Place four meatballs on the bottom of each bun. Top with some of the sauce and a slice of cheese. Add bun tops. Makes 8 servings.

Better Homes And Garden Magazine

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Or any time really.   The last minute gift shopping and wrapping is over in this house.  It is time to get down to some serious celebrating of the season!

Our cookies are done, stuffed cabbage done, kielbasa bought, Pierogis are made.  What else?  Not much…except maybe appetizers.  After all when my family gathers for the holidays we “graze” as my daughter likes to tell it.

Here are some grazing appetizers for you to try.

Roll ‘Em Ups. Spread a thin layer of your favorite cream cheese spread on large flour tortillas (you can use plain, herb, sun-dried tomato, or spinach-flavored). Top with thin layers of turkey or roast beef, thinly sliced tomato, and baby spinach leaves. Roll the tortilla up very tightly, similar to a jelly roll. Chill rolls for about 30 minutes, then cut rolls into slices, creating small finger sandwiches.  These are also good after Christmas for snacks, use whatever cheeses you like and thinly sliced ham or turkey.   Great way to use some leftovers.

Where’s the Shrimp? Who doesn’t love shrimp? For a super-easy appetizer, thaw cooked frozen shrimp (or steam, saute, or boil your own raw shrimp). Place bowls of dipping sauces on a platter (such as tartar or cocktail sauce or aioli), then surround the bowls with the cooked shrimp.

Dip This. Every party needs a dip, but here’s an option that’s a little bit more gourmet. Purchase garlic- or basil-flavored oil or make your own variations by stirring herbs, garlic, or grated Parmesan cheese into olive oil. Pour the oil into small dipping dishes and serve with chunks of focaccia or baguette slices for dipping.

Twisted Salsa. Here’s a fun salsa variation that’s almost a meal in itself. Combine drained canned black beans, thawed frozen corn, chopped roma tomatoes, sliced green onions, chopped cilantro, chopped green pepper, and chopped avocado. Toss the mixture with some lime juice, salt, and pepper. If you like, you can also add chopped garlic, sliced black olives, chopped jalapeno peppers, or anything else! Serve with tortilla chips, or just give guests a spoon to dig in!

All of these recipes are from Better Homes and Gardens, one of my favorite magazines.

Happy “Grazing” and have a safe holiday season!

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Christmas traditions are part of every family experience. Whether it is spending time shopping, going to parties, staying home with family and friends these traditions are important.

They are important because they give continuity to family. Something you can look forward to year after year. Something your parents did, your grandparents and if you are very lucky your great-grandparents.

In my family it is the traditional cookie baking Sunday. It started when the children were small and the only treat I could afford to give them during the holidays were homemade cookies. The kids and I spent one Sunday making cookies together. We then gave them as gifts to teachers, friends, the local shelter, and the nursing home down the street. The children would make the wrapping out of whatever paper was available even newspaper. Presents came from the heart, not the department store, and because the children helped in making the recipients appreciated the presents all the more.

Since the children have become adults and moved out of the home you would think this little tradition would have been forgotten. The truth is it hasn’t. My daughter who is the oldest and one of my twin sons spend the second Sunday in December in our kitchen making cookies to hand out to friends. They still take cookies to the local shelter for other children to enjoy.

It is a time of much laughter and memories. The recipes have broadened to include some new favorites. One of the newer cookies for them to make is a recipe handed down to me from my grandmother. It is a simple sugar cookie with a twist. The recipe is at the bottom of this article.

This is a tradition that I have passed down to my children and hopefully if any of them have children they will pass down to my grandchildren. Gifts do not have to be store bought, do not have to have a dollar sign attached; they should come from the heart.

During the holiday season take a moment to reflect what you have rather than what you can’t afford and start a new tradition. Maybe it is taking baked goods to a shelter, to a nursing home, give of yourself in little ways and involve your children. Teach them the tradition of giving.

Soft Sugar Cookies (Gram’s Cookies)
½ cup of shortening
1 cup of sugar
1 egg
½ cup milk (best if sour)
pinch of salt
½ tsp of baking soda
2 ¼ c flour
2 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
banana 1-2
chocolate chips- whatever feels right to you
Maraschino cherries cut in half.
A little cherry juice

Mix all with a spoon, not an electric mixer. Combine shortening with the sugar. Add egg,, blend in milk and vanilla and a small amount of cherry juice. Sift in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix all together very good with large spoon.
Last add 2 mashed bananas and chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls on a lightly greased cookie sheet ( I use parchment paper) and sprinkle with sugar and top each with a maraschino cherry. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes

(I want to say that I was luckY that Gram lived with us while growing up, a plate of these cookies was always made for us when we got home from school. She never had a written recipe. Her cup of anything was measured with a coffee cup, her teaspoons with a regular table teaspoon. For that reason these measurement might be a little off. She gave us the recipe towards the end of her life. When the texture looks the right consistency, then you have added enough flour. Have fun and enjoy)

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