Brisket

When we were with Gman  and his people last month, my son made the best brisket I've ever had.  He smoked it for something like 14 hours.  The meat was tender and juicy, the smoke level was perfect, the bark was delicious and just crusty enough...it was so good.  I wanted to try my hand at it so I went and bought a 12 lb. brisket.  But after I talked to him, and watched the video he suggested, I realized I couldn't do it because I don't have a smoker, or a grill that would work for this.  So, I decided to punt and do it a different way.

I used my oven for the low and slow part 250° for 8 hours, then on the grill, with smoke, for 1 hour; slathering it with sauce every 15-20 minutes to build a bark of sorts.

My brisket was also delicious.  We all enjoyed it, but it wasn't the same as my son's.  We are going to go visit in December, I hope he will make it for us again.

Oven Brisket

10-12 lbs. brisket, trimmed
1/2 cup yellow mustard
salt
pepper
garlic powder
1 bottle beer, lager
1 cup apple juice
1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce, we used this

other:
aluminum foil
wood chips or pellets for smoking

THE NIGHT BEFORE! (I'm not yelling, just don't forget this step.)
Place trimmed brisket in large roasting pan, I used a disposable aluminum pan.  Rub 1/2 the yellow mustard on each side and get the edges.  Generously sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic powder over all sides of the brisket.  Cover with cling wrap and place in fridge overnight.

Remove brisket from refrigerator about 45 minutes before you want to put it in the oven.

Preheat oven to 250°F.

Pour beer and apple juice in pan with brisket, cover tightly with aluminum foil.  Place in oven and bake for 6-8 hours, until internal temp. is 165°F.  Remove from oven, remove brisket from pan and place of medium-hot grill.  Add aluminum foil pouch with wood chips or pellets for smoking, according to manufacturers directions (We used charcoal, and placed the wood chip package on the briquettes to smoke).  Smoke for 1 hour, basting with sauce every 15-20 minutes.  Remove from grill and let rest 15-20 minutes.  Slice against the grain and serve.

1 year ago:    The Surprise Cucumber Harvest
3 years ago:  The 9-1-1 Call and Snicker Bar Cookies
5 years ago:  Shotgun Wedding Soup and Waiting on the Mouse
7 years ago:  Canning Tomatoes

September 4, 2020  Sunrise 6:42 am  Sunset 8:45pm  Temp. H55/ L 39°F

Baby Back Ribs in the Instant Pot

It has been really cold in Fairbanks, and I've been a bit of a baby because I was sick.  Dave decided we needed a taste of summer on Sunday so we made baby back ribs to eat after the football games.

I usually bake ribs low and slow for 3 hours, but today I decided to try them in my Instant Pot.  I can fit two racks of ribs in my pot, I cooked them for 25 minutes and then finished them under the broiler for 5 minutes to cook the sauce.  They were delicious!  And we needed a treat after the way the Packers lost to the 49ers.

Football season is over, bring on the baseball!

Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs
2 racks baby back ribs
2 Tbsp. Executive Chef, or your favorite seasoned salt

Barbecue sauce of choice, I used my homemade sauce

Pull silver skin off the back of ribs if it has been left on.  Cut racks in half.  Place the trivet in the IP, add 1 1/2 cups water, place ribs on the trivet.  Lock lid and close steam valve.  Cook for 25 minutes on high or meat setting.  After cooking time is over, let cool for 10 minutes, then quick release steam.  Remove ribs from IP and place on a baking sheet.  Slather with barbecue sauce and place under broiler for 3-5 minutes to caramelize sauce.

1 year ago:    Meet Franklin and Keto Bagels
5 years ago:  Walnut and Blue Cheese Poached Pear Salad
7 years ago:  New Cookbooks

January 23, 2020  Sunrise 10:05 am  Sunset 4:01pm  Temp H -11/ L -14°F

Spicy Grilled Chicken Wings

Summer is busy.  In Fairbanks, we try to squeeze every bit of warmth and sunshine out of every activity.  This time of year is for grilling easy recipes so you can do important things like play washers, go fishing, water flowers, plan escapes for zombie attacks, ride your bike, and eat ice cream.

I have a couple of "cheater" recipes I use a lot in the summer.  These are recipes that use packaged spice mixes, bottled sauces, and/or canned starters.  If you are a food snob, stop reading and move on, but for those of us who usually make our own but depend on some cheats once in a while keep reading.

I've made these chicken wings for years.  When I get a cookbook, I always date the recipe the first time I use it, then list any changes I make to it and how it turns out.  A running record of how I've changed or used the recipe.  The date on this one was 2010.  My brother in law asked for the recipe last weekend when I made them and I just laughed at him.  After the barbecue sauce stand-off he knows I'll just laugh.  These are a great starter or a good snack for an evening of drinks and sunshine on the deck. One batch is never enough.

Spicy Grilled Chicken Wings
adapted from Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Grilling

2 pkg. Hot taco seasoning (sometimes I use my own and add more cayenne)
3 Tbsp. canola oil
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 tsp. tabasco
4 lbs. chicken wings or party dummets, thawed if frozen
1 cup ranch salad dressing
1 tsp. Tabasco
Celery sticks

In a large bowl combine taco seasoning, canola oil, red wine vinegar and the 2 tsps. Tabasco.  Add chicken, toss to combine.  Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 4 hours.

For the Tabasco-ranch sauce, in a small bowl, stir to combine ranch dressing and the 1 tsp. tabasco.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Set up grill fro direct cooking over medium-high heat.  Oil grate before cooking (trust me on this, oil it well).  Remove chicken from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes.  Remove chicken from marinade and discard marinade.

Grill chicken for 10-15 minutes, until cooked through and turning often.

Serve with Tabasco ranch sauce and celery sticks.

July 5, 2013   Sunrise 3:22 am  Sunset 12:29 am  Temp H 71/ L 51 ºF

Salmon with Orange and Radish Salad

The joy of mid summer.  I can't begin to explain how wonderful Fairbanks can be in the summer. The sun shines all the time, right now it get into the 80s every day, so far there is no smoke from the forest fires, I have Fridays off...the list is long and lovely.

One problem with summer is I run out of fish.  I cooked my last pkg. of fish from last summer.  I'm hoping someone refills my freezer for me, otherwise I'll be fishing at my local grocery store.  I'm always successful fishing at Fred Meyer,  but it does cost a pretty penny!

So I saved my last pack of fish for my folks (because I'm kind like that).  They drove up to spend the summer.  They used to live in Fairbanks, now share time between here and Tucson.  They arrived Sunday afternoon and we had salmon, these ribs, cole slaw and Grandma's beans.  It was a delicious dinner and good to catch up with my folks.

I pulled radishes from the garden box, cut some oranges and let them marinate for a couple of hours.  I squeezed some fresh orange juice over the fish, Dave grilled it and I'm lucky to have left-overs for my lunch.

How ever you get your fish, enjoy it this way.

Yes, it is the same picture, I was too busy eating to take more than one picture.

Salmon with Orange and Radish Salad
for fish
Salmon Fillet, deboned
1 orange, juiced
salt and pepper to taste

for salad
12 radishes
2 oranges
2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
mint, optional ( I was going to add it, but forgot!)

Trim tops and bottoms off radishes, cut in half then in thin half moons.  Cut ends off oranges, then  trim the peel off oranges with a knife, following the contour of the orange.  Section oranges and add to radishes.  Squeeze juice from the remaining membranes and add to radishes and oranges.  Add olive oil, sal and pepper, and mint, if using.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 to 4 hours.

Heat grill.  Pull bones from salmon, see here how to do that.  Juice oranges and pour over meat side of salmon, salt and pepper.  Let sit for 15-30 minutes.  Grill over med. heat for 6-10 minutes, depending on thickness of fillets and desired doneness.

Cut into serving size pieces and top with salad.  Enjoy!

June 26, 2013    Sunrise 3:02 am  Sunset 12:45 am  Temp. H 91/ L 64°F

Barbeque Ribs and a Big Surprise

The plan was simple, Joe would tell his dad he was coming over for breakfast and to watch football.  Joe would pick up the blond boy and the DIL from the airport at 1:30 a.m., bring them to our house in the next morning, and Dave would be surprised.  It was a good plan, and then Dave got in the way.

I have been planning with the blond boy and the DIL since July to bring them home over the holidays.  Because of work schedules, they couldn't come home over Christmas, but they could over Thanksgiving.  We set the plan in motion and I worked very hard not to give it away.

The arrival morning finally arrived.  The blond boy and I were texting each other, Dave had come downstairs to build a fire and was dozing on the sofa.  It was a quiet, lazy morning.  But then it was getting close to the time the kids would walk in.  I wanted Dave awake so I started with, "Can I get you some coffee?" I think I asked that about 19 times, hoping he would sit up and start to wake up.  That didn't work.

Then I tried, "The fire needs more wood." nothing, then "which packages are the moose breakfast sausage and which are the Italian sausage?" (I wanted sausage for the kids for breakfast, he had pulled out ham the night before).  He told me which was which when I told him we were going to have spaghetti for dinner, and I went out and grabbed the breakfast sausage for the kids and plopped it in a bowl of warm water in the sink to start to thaw.  After I unloaded the dishwasher REALLY LOUDLY, he finally got up to get a cup of coffee.  I was in the other room texting the blond boy.

"Toni, you got the wrong sausage, this is breakfast sausage." he grumbled.
"Oh, O.K., I'll switch it out." I replied, hurrying to the kitchen and hiding my phone.
"I've got it." he said half way to the freezer in the garage.

And then he wasn't coming back.

The blond boy and the DIL were parked at the side of the house in my brother-in-law's truck.  Dave saw the truck through the window and wondered why it was there. (My brother-in-law is in Hawaii right now)  He walked outside to see who was in the truck so the kids jumped out and said, "Surprise, Merry Christmas!"

  His actual response was, "What are you doing here?"  He wasn't quite awake yet.  We had to explain to him, several times, we were surprising him for the holiday and this was his Christmas present.  About 1 1/2 hours later and several cups of coffee, he was finally awake enough to fully appreciate what was going on. Not the tearful reunion we had been hoping for.

So after months of planning, hiding, lying, and plotting, we did surprise him.  Feel very sorry for all the people who have to work with me ( and I do apologize, I just couldn't help talking about it at work, I couldn't talk about it at home).

At one point, about two weeks ago, Dave asked if I was getting a headache I was just too quiet!  I was quiet because I had all these things to get done before the kids came and I didn't want to blurt and blow it.  Oh, it was painful.

So, they are here, it was a surprise, and we had a wonderful day visiting and ended the evening with a delicious meal and a family favorite, Barbeque Ribs.  During dinner, looking around the table at the blond boy, the DIL and two of their friends that stopped by, we did get the waterworks from Dave we were hoping for earlier in the day.

These ribs are one of the most highly requested meal from the boys.  We will be having these while the curly haired boy and the baby boy are home too.  They are baked slowly to make them tender, then finished with smoke and this homemade barbeque sauce.  Even at -20, these are worth heating up the grill.

Baby Back Ribs
I figure 1 rack of ribs per 2 people

3 racks of baby back ribs
3 Tbsp. executive chef meat seasoning, or your favorite steak rub

 Preheat oven to 300°F.
Pull the membrane off the back side of the ribs. Place the rack of ribs on a double layer of aluminum foil.  Sprinkle 1 Tbsp. steak seasoning on meat side of ribs.  Wrap tightly in foil. Repeat with all racks.
Place foil wrapped ribs on a large cookie sheet to catch any drips (this is the most important step, trust me on this).
Bake for 3 hours.
Remove foil wrapped ribs, cut into sections of 2 or 3 bones each.  Place on heated grill with smoking wood chip box if desired.  Grill for 30 minutes with smoke and layer on favorite sauce over indirect heat. Repeat saucing every 10-15 minutes while smoking.

Serves 6

November 20, 2012   Daylight 5 hours, 41 minutes, 14 seconds   Temp. H -8/L -26 °F

Barbecue Sauce

I have made this sauce for years.  Everyone would ask for it but I wouldn't share it, I was going through my stingy phase.  But, I would make batches and give as gifts.  Pretty soon everyone would ask for a batch for their special occasions.  My brother in law loved the sauce and he would request it for all kinds of meats, ribs, chicken, flank steak, then he would come over for dinner and look through the garbage can to see if he could figure out the ingredients for the sauce!
Finally, about 5 years later, I told him his retirement gift would be the sauce recipe.  On the day of his retirement picnic, he came over and I put the magazine I got the recipe from in front of him.  He just laughed and said by this time he would just come over and eat it at our house.  So, after years of hoarding this recipe I'm going to share...and ask forgiveness of all my friends who asked for the recipe and I said no.  I didn't make it up (I never said I did) and it is so good, once you try it you will make it over and over.

Barbecue Sauce
adapted from Simply Perfect grilling 2005

1 Tbsp. butter
1 Vidalia onion or other sweet onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 10 oz. jar apricot spreadable fruit
1 12 oz. jar chili sauce
1/3 cup spicy brown mustard
1/4 cup cider vinegar
3 Tbsp. molasses
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat.  Add onion; cover and cook for 13-15 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring occasionally.  Uncover; cook and stir ovr medium-igh heat for 3 to 5 minutes more until onion is golden.

Add garlic; cook and stir for 30 seconds more.  Stir in apricot spreadable fruit, chili sauce, mustard, vinegar, molasses and worcestershire sauce.  Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered about 20 minutes or until sauce reaches desired consistency, stirring frequently.  Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.  Makes about 3 cups.

Tips:
The original recipe called for peach simply fruit, I can't find that in Fairbanks so I use apricot.  Using peach jelly or jam (with all the added sugar) makes it too sweet for me.

I have thought about trying fresh peaches and cooking them down, but have never gotten around to it, so if you try it let me know how it turns out.

I have put this on everything from beef, pork, chicken, and salmon.  I didn't like it on salmon though.

I often make a double batch and freeze half of it so I always have some on hand.  We seldom buy barbecue sauce from the store (unless I've been lazy).

July 20, 2012

Grandma's Beans

I was pretty selfish about sharing good recipes for a while.  I wasn't always that way, I used to always share but then...
My grandma Stejer was a wonderful cook, I have many delicious memories from her kitchen.  One of the dishes she always made was this bean dish.  We loved it, the sweet and sour sauce with the salty bacon and sweet onion and all those different beans.  Grandma would make a double batch and often that is all I would eat, I love them so much.
Everyone that ate them would ask for the recipe and when we were invited to dinner the request would always be, "Will you bring Grandma's beans?"
I would bring the beans and the recipe, good food is meant to be shared.
One day, I received one of my favorite cooking magazines.  I had a cup of coffee and was happily reading through it when I came across my grandma's bean recipe and the person who submitted it said, "I got this from a friend in Alaska."  Well, it pissed me off kind of made me a little angry.  She had not mentioned the fact that this dish came from my grandma, that my grandma lovingly made this for us all the time, and my "friend" had her name attached to the recipe for all the world to see.  Why this made me so angry, I don't know, but it did.  I think credit needs to go where credit is due and it was my grandma that should have gotten the credit (even thought I'm sure she got the recipe from someone else anyway).  Well, my thought process is never completely logical, jut ask my husband, and from then on I was very stingy with my recipes.
So, here is the recipe for Grandma's beans.  I got the recipe from my Grandma Stejer (her picture is here) and they are delicious.  All summer I made them for cook-outs and in the winter I make them to serve with warm bread from the oven and it is the perfect meal.

Grandma's Beans
from Grandma Stejer


8 bacon slices, fried until crisp, drained and crumbled
4 large onions, peeled and cut into half rings
1/2 to 1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 (15 oz) cans butter beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can green lima beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (1 lb. 11 oz.) can New England Style baked beans - undrained

Place onions in skillet, add sugar, mustard, garlic, salt and vinegar.  Cook 20 minutes, covered.  Place rinsed and drained beans in a dutch oven or roaster pan, top with undrained New England Style beans. Add onion mixture to beans, stir well.  Add crumbled bacon and bake at 350ºF for one hour.

Tips:
Start with 1/2 cup brown sugar and go up to your taste.  I love sweet and I use 1/2 cup.

Any type of baked beans will work if you can't find the New England Style.  I can't in Fairbanks and I use a country "grilling" type can of beans.  Just use something you would like, although I've never used a spicy kind.

When baking I usually bake for 30 minutes covered then 30 minutes uncovered.  It keeps a lot of the sauce but reduces it some so it is a little thicker.

In the winter, I mix this up and put it in my crock pot on low.  Add a loaf of crusty bread and dinner is ready when I get home.

July 18, 2012

Grilled Thai Beef Salad

I am a mouth out of control.
 Dave bought two bags of potato chips, Ruffles, my favorite.  He left them in the house with me, alone.  O.K. I know you see where this is going.  Two days later he asked where the chips were.  The conversation went something like this...
D: hey honey, where are those chips I bought?
Me: what chips?
D: you know, those two bags of chips I bought at Sam's, for the picnic we are going to Saturday.
Me: I dunno.
D: Did you eat them?
Me: I dunno.
D: You ate them?  Both bags?
Me:  They were small, and they jumped in my mouth and the Nutella was open and begging for chips to be dipped in it, and I was alone in the house with those chips and the Nutella.  It's all your fault, you brought those chips home.

So you can see, it is not my fault and I am on salad from now until forever...Dave had to buy more chips for Saturday and then he had to hide the chips from me too.  I'm mad at him, it's all his fault, he bought the chips in the first place.

Flank steak, soy, butter lettuce and shallots.  This won't take the place of potato chips, but boy is it good.  It is one salad dinner Dave won't complain about.

Thai Beef Salad
Ellie Krieger, 2007
1 pound top-round London broil or flank steak, about 1 to 1 1/2-inches thick
3 tablespoons lime juice, divided
3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons minced ginger
1 1/4 teaspoons red curry paste or chili-garlic sauce
1/2 head red-leaf lettuce, torn (about 6 cups)
3 shallots, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup), divided, for garnish
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, rinsed and dried
1 cup basil leaves, sliced into ribbons
Directions

Rinse and pat the meat dry. Place in a sealable plastic bag or small glass dish. In a medium bowl combine 1 tablespoon of the lime juice, soy sauce, olive oil, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and red curry paste. Pour half the mixture into the bag with the meat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons lime juice to the bag. Seal tightly, and marinate meat in refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight, turning occasionally. Reserve the rest of the mixture refrigerated, to dress the salad.

Spray grill or grill pan with cooking spray and preheat. Grill steak until medium-rare, about 5 minutes per side, depending on desired doneness. Let rest until room temperature then slice thinly against the grain.
Combine lettuce, sliced shallot, cilantro, basil and beef in a salad bowl, reserving a few shallots for garnish. Add the reserved dressing and toss to coat. Divide salad among 4 plates and garnish with reserved sliced shallots.

June 26, 2012     Daylight  21 hours,  42 minutes     Current Temp. 63 ºF

Pizza on the grill

I thinks summer is really here.  We are having beautiful sunny days, and then as soon as I walk out of my office, it starts to rain.  We always joked that if you don't like the weather in Fairbanks, wait 15 minutes and it will change.
We've been waiting to try pizza on the grill for a clear night.  We finally gave up and made these pizzas in the rain.  Pizza is one of my favorite foods.  I believe you should be able to live off ice cream and pizza, and for a few years I think I did!
I made the dough, Dave and I shaped it, he did a better job than I did, and then put the crust on the grill.  Cooked the first side, turned it over, added toppings and finished cooking the whole thing.  I really meant to take pictures of the plain crust on the grill, but it was raining and I am made of sugar (I didn't want to melt).

Dave kept the middle burners on and the side burners low and we cooked the pizza over indirect heat.  Can you tell which two are mine (my crusts were thinner and crisp, the way I like.  At least that's my story).  This was easy and fun.  We are going to have a backyard party and have everyone create their own pizzas.  I'll have the dough ready, they can shape their own crust, Dave will cook and then each person can add toppings from a topping bar.  I think it will be fun.  As long as it isn't raining.

Pizza on the Grill

Crust

1 1/2 cup flour plus more for kneading

1 tablespoon yeast

11/2 teaspoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup warm water

3 tablespoons oil

Toppings

pizza sauce, store bought or homemade

cheese

meat and veggie toppings of your choice (living with a meat lover we had moose sausage and pepperoni)

Preheat grill, once heated turn off half the burners.

Combine 1 cup flour, east, sugar and salt in a large bowl.  Add water and oil.  Mix together until well blended.  

Add 1/2 cup flour until soft dough ball forms, it may be slightly sticky.   Add additional flour as needed to form dough ball.  

Kneed on floured surface adding additional flour until a smooth elastic ball is formed (about 4 minutes).    Cut dough into 4 equal pieces (I weighed my dough to get equal amounts).  Shape dough into circles (or odd oblong shapes if you like that).  Place dough on grill over indirect heat and cook until crust is browned nicely and has good grill marks (about 4 minutes depending on the thickness of your crust), turn crusts over using tongs.  Top crusts with pizza sauce, cheese and your choice of toppings.  Cook until crust is browned on bottom and cheese is melted.

Honey bees and lady bugs in the flowering tree in my yard.  It really is summer.

June 18, 2012     Daylight  21 hours, 49 minutes     Temp.  70ºF

Bar-B-Que Chicken Salad with Bacon and Cornbread Crutons

I flew to San Antonio last week for a conference.  It was so nice to be in the "real world" as we call it at my house.  It was 90 degrees above and we had a real lightning and thunder storm (something we don't get in Fairbanks).  I had some great Tex-Mex and some fabulous barbeque.  I was in heaven.
Then the end of the conference came, I flew home (14 hours and three time zones) and my husband looked to me for dinner.  Luckily, I am a planner and I had dinner at the ready.  A fresh bag of lettuce (yes, sometimes you have to buy the bag), some shredded chicken and cornbread from the freezer, and some bottled barbeque sauce and you have Bar-B-Que Chicken salad with Bacon Cornbread Croutons.
It is the salad time of year, and I still had a hankering for that smoky barbeque flavor.  I love it when I think ahead and have something ready to throw together from the freezer.

Chicken and cornbread from the freezer

Bar-B-Que Chicken Salad with Bacon and Cornbread Croutons
makes 2 salads

 2 strips bacon
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup cornbread cut in cubes
4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
 1/2 cup frozen or canned corn (thawed and/or rinsed)
1/2 cup black beans
1/2 avocado diced
2 cups shredded chicken
1/2-1 cup favorite barbeque sauce
blue cheese dressing

Preheat broiler.
Dice bacon and fry in skillet.  Drain all but about 1 Tbsp. of fat. Add butter to the same pan and melt.  Add cornbread and stir to coat all sides.  Place cornbread on broiler safe pan and toast under broiler about 2-3 minutes, turn and toast all sides, being careful not to let it burn.  Set aside and cool slightly
Divide lettuce between two plates.  Top each with half of the corn, beans, and avacado.  Heat chicken in saucepan with desired amount of barbeque sauce.  Divide between plates, top with bacon bits and cornbread croutons.  Serve with blue cheese dressing.

May 15, 2012     Daylight  18 hours,  45 minutes,  50 seconds     Current Temp 52 ºF

Barbeque and Bird Feeders

My neighbor has homing pigeons.  The only problem is they like my home, or to be more specific, my bird feeder more than they like their own home. They have taken over my bird feeder.  My husband, Dave, decided we wouldn't fill the feeder and the pigeons would go away.  He was concerned about the cost of the shelled sunflower seed hearts I like to put out for the wild birds.  I, on the other hand, love watching the wild birds come and go and the cost of some seed wasn't going to stop me.
I wanted a bird feeder for a couple of years, I even bought one and it sat in the pantry for about 6 months.  One day my brother-in-law screwed it to the fence for me. Dave was not too happy, who knows why, something about a mess on the fence I had him put in a couple of years ago.
I love watching the birds come and go.  We get Black Capped Chickadees and Red Poles and now pigeons.  I am not happy.  The pigeons make a mess all over that fence Dave worked so hard to put in, they eat all the seed and scare the little birds away.  Dave was ready to take the feeder down when my brilliant friend, Nancy, suggested he build a cage around the feeder so the little birds can get to it, but the big birds could not.  Dave was ecstatic he had, yet another, project!  Now, had I suggested this, he would have ignored me, but because Nancy suggested it, he built it.  He built a frame from 1x1s and then stapled garden fencing around it and on the bottom.  The top opens up with hinges so I can refill the feeder.  It works like a charm!

 

The pigeons can't get in, but the little birds can come and go as they please!

As a reward I made pulled pork.  A little taste of summer for us at -30ºF.  It is such an easy recipe, everything goes into the crockpot, you turn it on low and leave it for 8 to 10 hours.  Dave was pretty happy when he got home.  It warmed him up enough to carry in wood for the woodstove  while I thought of the next project...

Memphis-Style BBQ Pork Shoulder

adapted from  Sandra Lee Semi-homemade, Grilling 2006

3.5 lbs. pork shoulder roast

1/4 cup steak rub

1 Tablespoon dry mustard

1 cup apple cider 

1/2 cup whiskey

Mix steak rub and dry mustard, rub all over pork roast and let cure in refrigerator 1 hour.  Place meat in slow cooker, pour apple cider and whiskey over pork.  Cook on low 8 to 10 hours.

Remove meat from slow cooker, on cutting board placed on top of a cookie sheet, shred meat, removing extra fat.  Place on buns or Texas style toast and top with sauce.

BBQ Sauce

2 cups bottled barbeque sauce

1 cup Pepsi

1/2 cup yellow mustard

1/2 cup steak sauce

Mix together and warm in saucepan.  Serve extra sauce on the side.

O.K., so I'm going to tell on myself.  I made this for Dave, it was very good.  I was copying down the recipe on the blog and I came to the ingredient of 1 cup apple cider.  When I made the pork roast I added 1 cup apple cider VINEGAR.  Why I thought I read vinegar I'll never know.  So this last time I made it I cooked it in 1 cup vinegar and 1/2 cup whiskey!  It was still good, but one of those things I'll never forget (or do again) and one of those things I'll never live down.

December 4, 2011   Daylight 4  hours,  28 minutes,  55 seconds     Current Temp. 38ºF