Oven Baked Ribs

I actually thought I had already written this post. Could have sworn I had written it. But I haven't. I've been meaning to, since we ate these ribs for Sunday dinner at least a week ago. They were so good. I served them with scalloped potatoes (that were only average) and corn bread (which was fantastic, as usual). I dry rubbed them and sauced them. They made the house smell like a warm Southern Sunday afternoon. While they were cooking I listened to Dan Mangan over and over again. It was a good day.

Patio Ribs

We had our Sunday dinner on the patio this week. It was a no-brainer - perfect weather and ribs on the menu. It was a good dinner. David found Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce at the grocery store for the ribs. I made cornbread, garlic mashed potatoes and creamy coleslaw to round out the plate. There were brownies for dessert, left over from Saturday.

It felt so much like Summer vacation I felt bad about waking the boys up Monday morning for school, but the reality is we still have a month to go and Daniel is knee deep in EQAO testing this week. So I sent him off to school with a tummy full of buttermilk pancakes. Because it's never too soon to start eating emotionally, right?

Pulled Pork with Ginger-Bourbon Sauce

Sounds good doesn't it? I've made various versions of pulled pork, usually in the Summer. In a bid to transition from Winter to Spring meals I thought Pulled Pork with Ginger-Bourbon Sauce, from the March 2011 issue of Chatelaine, would make for a nice Sunday dinner. It's made in a slow cooker and is relatively fuss-free, which is nice when you are juggling a bajillion other things on the weekend. The pork smelled wonderful through the day, simmering on low with only some sliced onions and a can of ginger-ale to keep it company. I really liked this method of cooking pork for pulled pork sandwiches. The meat was falling apart by the time we took it out and combined it with the promised Ginger-Bourbon Sauce.

Maple Mustard Pork Chops

The weekends before Christmas are so busy! We're not quite out of November so why does it feel like December is already over? The next few Sundays I need to do some baking since we have lots of people in our lives in need of holiday cheer. I've been making note of cookie recipes the last few weeks trying to narrow down what to make this year....

Our Sunday dinner last week was a recipe I've made before, Maple Mustard Pork Chops. I find that I tend to shy away from spicy sauces when cooking for the family. The kids aren't so adventerous and D. doesn't really like too much heat. Sweet sauces, however, go over well with my crew. This particular sauce is made with maple syrup, which means when I'm selling the dish to the boys I can say 'It's like pancakes'. Actually, my older son also loves mustard, so no wonder he didn't balk at all when it came to this particular dinner. He isn't a green bean lover, that's a nod to P's palate, but he got a substitution of carrots so all was well.

December typically promises some good eats around our house. We have lots o' birthdays to celebrate and I am oh so excited because we're going to The Only for dinner on my birthday. I had one of the best meals of my life at The Only last year and have been wanting to go back for ages. The menu changes with the seasons (and often week to week) and makes the most of what is fresh and local. Last time out I had the Chef's tasting menu, which turned out to be quite an adventerous choice. I'm torn between trying the tasting menu again or ordering off the menu. Either way I doubt I will be disappointed!