BBQ Baby Back Beef Ribs, Oh My!

The day before Chris and Mom visited, I made 3 long slabs of Beef Baby Back Ribs. I love having our own Beef in the freezer and tend to store up these cuts for special occasions.

I figured putting up with the cold was a good enough occasion!

So here is how I made these fork-tender, exceptionally seasoned,  finger-lickin’ ribs.

  1. Season the whole slab on the meaty side with Cavender’s Greek Seasoning and Lawry’s Seasoning Salt. Pat it down with your hands so the seasoning stays on.
  2. Cut the ribs in between the bones to get single pieces
  3. Sear the ribs in a skillet, meaty side down, until golden
  4. Add them to a tall stock pot after seared
  5. Fill the pot with water so all the ribs are covered
  6. Add a Tablespoon of salt, a good dash of pepper, plenty of liquid smoke, and a sliced onion.
  7. Bring to a full boil (you will keep it uncovered the whole time)
  8. Turn down to low, just so it’s barely bubbling, and let it simmer all afternoon (Add water, if needed, to keep the ribs covered)
  9. Before heading out for chores I turned it off so it could cool.
  10. When I got back in I turned the oven on to 350 degrees
  11. Drain off all of the water and dispose of it (Do not put this down your sink!)
  12. Cover a sheet pan with foil and spray it with cooking spray
  13. Place the ribs on the sheet pan
  14. Squirt a line of Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce down each rib
  15. With the back of a spoon, spread the BBQ sauce over the whole top of the rib
  16. Bake 20 to 30 minutes until heated through and the BBQ has set
  17. Enjoy!
Beef Ribs
I’m not sure this picture does them justice, but boy were they good!

I happened to have a couple left when Mom and Chris stopped by so naturally, I had to get mom’s opinion…

Mom gave me good reviews as she easily pulled them apart with her fork
Mom gave good reviews as they easily pulled apart with her fork! “Mmmm… Tender!”

This is the kind of meal you wish you could have more often, but as my husband says…

“They take some time to make, but they sure are good!”

Surprise Visitors!

Now getting visitors around here is nothing new.

But, having family members stop is super special!

We were just getting started on chores the other night when I got a phone call from my Mom. She and my sister weren’t too far from our place, attending a party at a friend’s house, and wanted to stop over.

I was totally excited! It’s not everyday they come to visit us! Usually we stop and visit them on our way to volleyball, but rarely are we on the way anywhere for them.

We hurried up and got most everything done before they pulled in the yard. Reed, who had been napping in the milk house, hopped up and stumbled towards the house after hearing that Grandma Martha and Aunt Chrissy were here 🙂

My sister Chris… aka “Aunt Chrissy”

After we all got in and got the rundown of their afternoon trip, I asked Mom if she wanted to play a game of cards.

Now, there’s only one game my mom and I ever play, so she didn’t even need to ask what I had in mind.

Pinochle.

A game our family has played and cussed for years. The first round always consists of a refresher in scoring and card order, as Ace is high, then Ten, King, Queen, Jack and a Nine. And the first one to 150 wins!

Weird, I know. But fun!

I’ll try to give you just the highlights of how our game went…

The first hand I actually bid! (Mom was shocked, as I’m usually a chicken at bidding, especially the first hand) After her shock, she (of course) outbid me… Crap! This should have been a sign!

The way the cards fell in her favor, she easily made it. And I was kinda glad she outbid me, even though I had initially thought my cards would clean up!

The next hand I dealt. Boyyyyyyy was it a crappy hand! She bid 28 and I let her have it. She picked up the 3-card Kitty to see what was in it… and guess what it gave her? The 4th leg of a

A DOUBLE Pinochle! and 30 points!

DOUBLE Pinochle! and 30 points!

Double Crap!

Her melt totaled 42 points! 42!!! And then she took 17 out of the 25 points during that round! (I really should’ve just thrown in my cards then, ha ha!)

In the next 3 hands, I only got the bid once. I used the phrase “Piggy” an awful lot too (which is a family tradition, might I say!) as she took pointer after pointer each trick.

See? Even if you don’t play Pinochle, the numbers below don’t lie…

Pinochle Score

Yep. I got skunked in just FIVE hands! And Mom just giggles and says “Well, you were the one who wanted to play!” 🙂

My Mom… I just love her! The thrill she got out of getting that Double Pinochle was priceless.

Tonight I made some memories with Mom I will never forget.

It’s the little things in life, right?