Big Holiday Barbecue Begs for Baked Beans

My husband, it can be stated without hesitation, is a guy who knows what he wants. For his birthday, which happens to fall on Memorial Day weekend this year, he was given the choice of what to do over the long weekend to celebrate his special day. No restrictions…anything he wants, I'll do my best to accomodate.

No "trip to Paris" crossed his lips, no "dinner at _________" restaurant. Without hesitation, he answered, "Brisket."

Dave's brisket.

You see, Dave is a guy who loves his smoke. The last brisket he made (left) used a method called the "Texas crutch" where the meat is first smoked for several hours, then wrapped in butcher paper and returned to the smoker. After a few more hours, it goes into a cooler to rest and break down any remaining collagen that has withstood the battering of heat, smoke and time. At the end of which emerged the most succulent, tender and delicious hunk of meat he'd ever made.

Ayers Creek Farm borlotto beans.

The pressure to come up with appropriate sides then lands on me. My fallback is always my mother's potato salad, a family favorite that pairs perfectly with smoky protein. I was struggling with what else would be appropriate when I remembered a baked bean dish I'd made a couple of years ago that had the slightest bite of vinegar, an Italian-inflected version based on a recipe from contributor Jim Dixon.

So the menu is set, and if you want updates I'll be posting photos of the results to my social media feeds (Twitter, Instagram and Facebook). But if you're simply want to make the baked beans for yourself this weekend, you can find the instructions below.

Baked Beans Italian Style

2 c. dried beans (I'm using borlotti beans from Ayers Creek Farm)
Water
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 bay leaves
1/4 lb. bacon
1 large onion, chopped fine
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. red wine vinegar
1/4 c. sage leaves, chopped fine

Put dried beans in a pot and add water to cover by at least 2”. Cover and soak overnight on the counter.

Preheat oven to 250°.

Drain water from beans and add fresh water to cover by 1”. Add bacon, bay leaves, salt and olive oil. Cover, place in oven and bake 5 to 7 hours until beans are tender (a slow cooker would work well, too).

One hour before the end of the cooking time for the beans, combine the onions, honey, vinegar and sage in a small saucepan and simmer for 1 hour. When beans are tender, add onion mixture to them and combine, then bake for an additional hour. Remove the bay leaves. Remove the piece of bacon and slice it into pieces or shred it, then stir it back into the beans. Taste for salt and adjust as desired. This is great served right out of the oven but is also spectacular made a day ahead for dinner or a picnic the next day.

* My last batch had quite a bit of liquid left after cooking, so I simmered it on the stovetop for several hours, uncovered, to evaporate the liquid, stirring it occasionally to keep the beans from sticking. It worked like a charm, and the liquid turned into a luscious, beany sauce.

Potato Salad and the Other "F" Word

I've heard it mentioned more than once now, the four letter word starting with F that gets bandied about this time of year. You know the one: fall, aka autumn, the precursor to winter.

I mean, we're still looking at temperatures in the 90s this week, for Pete's sake. Yes, I know, school's starting soon, August is giving way to September, blah, blah, blah. But we live in the Northwest, where the rains can hold off until October or November in a good year. And with Indian summer there's the possibility of camping, picnics and outdoor gatherings for another several weeks.

So I'm putting my hands over my ears, living in denial and ignoring pooh-poohers who want to harsh my summer mellow. I'll be wearing my Keens and capris, eating as many tomatoes as I can stuff into my face, enjoying whatever Dave pours out of his cocktail shaker or pulls out of the smoker (like the 11-hour brisket, above), plus making my mom's classic potato salad that makes any time of year feel like the height of summer. So there!

Mom's Potato Salad

Dressing:
2 c. mayonnaise
1/2 c. ketchup
2 tsp. worchestershire
2 tsp. basil
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. celery salt
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/3 c. pickle juice
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Salad:
8 med. russet potatoes
1 yellow onion
10 eggs
6 med. dill pickles

Put unpeeled potatoes in a large saucepan or Dutch oven and cover with water. Place on stove and bring to a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender but not mushy. Drain and cool (can be made ahead).

While potatoes cook, make dressing. Put all ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.

Peel potatoes (optional), then slice cooled potatoes into 1" square and 1/8" wide pieces (or bite-sized). Chop onion and pickles fine. Chop eggs. Put them all in a large bowl, pour dressing over top and fold it in until thoroughly combined (don't stir or the potatoes will break up too much). Place bowl in refrigerator and let sit for a couple of hours so flavors have a chance to mingle.

Serves 10-12. This recipe makes a huge batch, so feel free to halve it, though it tastes even better the next day and will last for a week in the fridge.

Spring Salad Features Potatoes, Green Garlic

Green garlic (above) is found in abundance at farmers' markets this time of year. Contributor Jim Dixon of Real Good Food shares a recipe that takes advantage of this fleeting spring pleasure.

I often use the word "Pantesco" to describe the combination of Pantellerian capers and oregano with anchovy and garlic, and many of the island’s residents have potatoes in their gardens, so it's possible you could eat something like this salad on the rocky isle off Sicily.

Spring Potato Salad with Green Garlic

I got freshly dug potatoes from Groundwork Organics at the Portland Farmers Market, but any small spuds or fingerlings would be fine. Green garlic, also called spring garlic, is the scallion phase of the plant’s life cycle; it looks like a small leek or big green onion, but with a distinctively garlic flavor and smell. I use the whole thing, white and green. Or substitute a clove of garlic and a couple of green onions.

Pick small potatoes and cut any that are much bigger so they cook evenly. Boil in salted water until tender, about 15 minutes, then drain and cool. Peel if you want, but when cool slice the smaller potatoes in half as you add them to a large bowl. Toss with a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and a splash of Katz Viognier Honey vinegar (or try an Asian rice vinegar, which is sweet) while they’re warm.

Split the green garlic lengthwise, then slice crosswise thinly; add to the potatoes. Rinse the salt from a couple of tablespoons of Pantellerian capers (or use regular capers), chop coarsely, and add. Toss in a diced anchovy or two; add a few good pinches of Pantellerian oregano (again, regular dried or fresh oregano is a good substitute). Grind in some black pepper and taste for salt. Best if allowed to sit for at least an hour; eat at room temperature.

Our Fourth? Smokin'!

I'm a Yankee Doodle dandy
A Yankee Doodle, do or die.
A real live nephew of my Uncle Sam'sBorn on the Fourth of July…

- George M. Cohan, circa 1904

When Dave gets a bee in his bonnet, there's nothing to do but stand back and stay out of his way. It was like that when he decided to build a work bench so he could pursue his woodworking dream, or getting a Mini Clubman (which arrives next Friday…woo hoo!).

Removing the membrane from the ribs.

So when he told me he was going to smoke some ribs for the Fourth of July, all I said was, "Tell me what kind and how many and I'll go to Gartner's."

Two days before the holiday (read about what it's like on July 3 and you'll see why I went early) found me heading in the door to find a moderate and friendly crowd, so I took a number and waited my turn. Dave had decided to take advantage of both grills on the smoker, so I walked out with four racks of baby backs and a six pound brisket, the equivalent of about 12 pounds of meat.

Nearly done (you can just see the brisket on the rack beneath them).

In his research he'd run across a website that suggested rolling the racks into cylinders and securing them with a skewer, so he was able to get all four racks on one grill, leaving the lower grill for the brisket. Which, conveniently, also meant that all the juicy goodness that dripped off the ribs would fall directly onto the brisket, bathing it in fatty, smoky deliciousness.

He was going for a long, slow smoke this time, keeping the temperature between 200° and 225° for at least eight hours on the brisket to try to get it to the point of dissolving, with the ribs coming off an hour beforehand.

The result? Some of the most delicious ribs we've had anywhere, completely moist and tender. The brisket was very close to (but not quite) falling apart, indicating that there will be another attempt to achieve perfection, but it was amazingly tender and flavorful. Paired with a bean salad and my mom's potato salad, and with raspberry and blueberry shortcake for dessert, it was about as traditional a Fourth as it gets. Yankee Doodle, indeed!

Dave's Amazing Rib Rub and Barbecue Sauce

For the rib rub:
Adapted from Soaked, Slathered & Seasoned by Elizabeth Klarmel2 Tbsp. Kosher salt
3 shakes Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1 tsp. cayenne
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

For the mop:
Adapted from The Barbecue Bible by Steven Raichlen
1 1/2 c. cider vinegar
1 c. water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. hot red pepper flakes
1 dried ancho chile, seeded
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

For the dipping sauce:
3/4 c. ketchup
1/4 c. molasses
1/4 c. Bubbies pickle juice (or brine from jar of pickles)
1 tsp. hot red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
3 shakes Worcestershire sauce

Take ribs out of refrigerator and set on counter for one hour to come up to room temperature. Remove the thin white membrane on the bone side to allow rub to penetrate both sides of racks. Combine all ingredients for the rub in a small mixing bowl. Smear ribs with rub, roll them up and place them in zip-lock plastic bags in the refrigerator overnight.

To make the mop sauce, combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process till finely chopped and combined. Pour into non-reactive mixing bowl or in an aluminum foil pan that will go in the smoker.

Remove ribs from zip-lock bags and roll up, securing them with skewers. Place in smoker with mop sauce. Brush with mop sauce after two hours and then every hour and a half after that. Maintain temperature of smoker between 200° and 225°. Ribs are done when meat starts pulling away from the bone.

While ribs cook, prepare the dipping sauce. Combine all ingredients in bowl of food processor and process till smooth. Pour into saucepan and simmer briefly but don't allow it to come to a boil. Remove from heat, cool and serve in a bowl on the side.

A Bite of Family History

My mother was not a great cook, but did a decent job of feeding her family of five staples like Spanish rice, tuna casserole and goulash. Her own mother was a terrible cook, and growing up in North Powder, Oregon, a teeny Eastern Oregon town of 400, hadn't provided much in the way of adventurous dining. She did occasionally venture into unknown territory, which brought exotic foods like tacos, made with store-bought packets of Taco Mix and greasy fried tortillas, to our dinner table.

There were recipes of hers I made sure to copy down before I left home. Her pineapple carrot cake, favorite holiday cookie recipes and, probably her pièce de resistance, a fabulous all-American summer favorite, potato salad.

The other day I needed to contribute a side dish for my brother's birthday dinner, and had mentioned bringing a rocking quinoa salad that Susana had made, or maybe Luan's terrific farro salad with pecorino and cherry tomatoes. But when I brought up Mom's potato salad, his eyes lit up and the deal was sealed.

Now, everyone has their own definitive version of potato salad, with accompanying debates about the merits of mayo versus salad dressing, celery or not. My mother's called for russets (no Yukon golds for her, mister), pickle juice as the dressing's secret ingredient and it had a slightly pink tinge from what we refer to as God's own condiment, ketchup.

And there's nothing that reminds me of her more than when I dig into a pile of this.

Mom's Potato Salad

Dressing:
2 c. mayonnaise
1/2 c. ketchup
2 tsp. worchestershire
2 tsp. basil
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. celery salt
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/3 c. pickle juice
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Salad:
8 med. russet potatoes
1 yellow onion
10 eggs
6 med. pickles

Put unpeeled potatoes in a large saucepan or Dutch oven and cover with water. Place on stove and bring to a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender but not mushy. Drain and cool (can be made ahead).

While potatoes cook, make dressing. Put all ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.

Slice cooled potatoes into 1" square and 1/8" wide pieces (or bite-sized). Chop onion and pickles fine. Chop eggs. Put in a large bowl, pour dressing over top and fold it in (don't stir or the potatoes will break up too much) until thoroughly combined. Place bowl in refrigerator and let sit for a couple of hours so flavors have a change to mingle.

Serves 10-12. This recipe makes a huge batch, so you may want to halve it.