My son Aiden's birthday was yesterday 1/16/11.  He turned 8 years old and requested a BBQ Rib dinner.  He wanted it to replicate a place called Famous Daves.  So I did my best.  Now I have made ribs and potato wedges before but never the rest of this meal!  This dinner included pork ribs, drunken apples, corn muffins and seasoned potato wedges.  Oh and we cannot forget the Pirate Ship Cake!!  I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did!!!




Ok so I have a confession to make.  This recipe is NOT mine.  This recipe actually belongs to "The Neely's" On the FoodNetwork.  However I do not follow it to a T.  I also do not cook this bbq sauce for the hour plus as they say to.  I cook them completely different too!  And I add in a little liquid smoke, and they do not.  So with a little help from the Neely's....this is how I make my bbq ribs.  You can use pork or beef. This is a three day process!!  Soooooo worth the wait.


Beef or Pork Ribs (about a pound per serving, keeping in mind most of the weight is fat and bone)
Neely's Dry Rub Recipe:
1 1/2 cup paprika
3/4 cup of sugar
3 3/4 tablespoons onion powder
Mix all the ing. tog. and keep in an airtight container for up to 6 months.


Rinse and dry the ribs real well.  Now you wanna pull off any membrane on the ribs.  This is the thin fatty side you see on the ribs.  Very liberally rub both sides with this dry rub.  Cover and set in the fridge over night (about 24 hours). 


Neely's BBQ Sauce:
2 cups of ketchup
1 cup of water
1/2 cup cider vinegar
5 tablespoons brown sugar
5 tablespoons of white sugar
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (about half a lemon juiced will do)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tablespoon black pepper
1/2 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon dried mustard powder.


Mix it all together really well with a whisk.  Be sure to get out any lumps. Now they say to let it cook for an hour and 15 minutes on the stove.  I don't do that step.  I take half of the bbq sauce and rub it on both sides of the ribs, over the dry rub.  Set it in the fridge for another 24 hours.  Finally the third day we take our ribs out and put them in the oven. I first take the other half of the bbq sauce and pour it over the ribs.  Oven temp. should be @ 300.  Now depending on how many ribs your cooking the cooking time will vary. It can be from 2 to 4 hours.  Flipping half way.  Once you can stick a fork in them with ease, they are done!  4 hours will be fall off the bone tender and may be hard to pick up. If this isn't something you want cook them less.  However pork should be at a temp. of at least 171 so keep that in mind.  Enjoy!


Now onto Corn Muffins.  I have another confession!!!  I know. I know!! I called on the Neely's again for a little help here as well. 
Ok I thought that the baking time on these were absolutely perfect!  However I felt it needed just a tad more honey then the recipe calls for.


1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/4 cup of honey ( I thought it could use a little more though)


Preheat oven to 400
In a large bowl mix all the dry ing.  add in all the wet and stir until just mixed.   Place muffin papers in a 12 cup muffin tin.  Evenly divide the batter in each muffin holder.  Bake for 15 minutes.


Onto a recipe that is ALL me baby!!!  Drunken apples
2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
3 tablespoons of butter.


Combine everything and put into a saucepan.  On med-high heat stir until it reaches a boil.  Turn heat off, cover and let simmer until apples are just soft. Now if this was an adult dish, I would tell you to add in some Vodka, hence "drunken".


Finally we have the seasoned potato wedges.
2 baking potatos cut into wedges skin left on
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2  teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon basil
Place potatoes on a baking sheet, pour some extra virgin olive oil over top, sprinkle on spices and bake on 400 turning half way for about 20 minutes.  That may be too long for you.  We like them crisp, so watch them carefully!