LOW & SLOW RIBS

 

FALL IS COMING. soon we can make chilis & stews and slow cook & roast meats without resulting in the house becoming 80 zillion degrees. decorate with pie pumpkins & pumpkin candles (ok, i have these out all year) & more pumpkins! these ribs are the perfect dinner to make on a cozy fall or winter day spent at home. your house will smell amazing as they cook on low for hours. while i usually use bbq sauce on my ribs, essie, the creator of essiespice contacted me about trying some of her exotic spices & sauce blends. these caribbean style flavours are not a food culture i am all that familiar with, but i tried them & could not believe how good they were. oh. em. gee. they were delicious. i used the sauce to marinate chicken, sautee ground turkey for tacos & these ribs! the coco for garlic sauce makes for a great little twist on using the usual barbecue style sauces. as you can see by the photo below... not a piece of meat left in sight. they were finger lickin good! take that KFC (jk, love you).

ingredients

  • 1 rack of ribs (back or side, which ever you prefer)
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
  • 1/4 cup essie coco for garlic sauce [can substitute bbq sauce]
  • 1 onion, sliced

directions

  • preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  • rub front & back side of ribs with paprika, oregano, salt, pepper & garlic sauce [if using bbq sauce, do NOT brush it on till the end]
  • place rack on a cookie sheet & scatter the onions.
  • cover tray tightly with foil to ensure to steam gets out.
  • place in oven & cook covered for 3-3.5 hours.
  • remove from oven, brush with additional garlic sauce [if using bbq sauce add it NOW!]
  • turn oven up to 375 degrees and cook ribs for an additional 15-20 minutes.
  • base with more sauce if desired.

like what you see? get it here. french paddle | linen | sauce bowl | side bowl

ROSEMARY PLUM UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

 

with a little help from my instagram friends, i decided to make a rosemary infused upside down plum cake! that's a mouthful. by infusing the rosemary (rather then chopping fresh rosemary) into the caramel sauce, it creates a very subtle rosemary flavour. garnishing anything with rosemary is my favourite things to do, it's just such a beautiful woodsy herb. the cake produced is not overly sweet, but on the dense side. this is the first time i got to rock my portland apron company apron. it is probably the most beautiful apron i have ever owned & couldn't be more my style. now i look & feel legit.

ingredients

for the sauce

  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 4-5 red plums

for the cake

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3/4 cup raw sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup whole milk or cream

directions

  • preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • sauce: in a sauce pan over medium heat add butter, sugar, salt, rosemary, cinnamon and vanilla. bring to a boil constantly stiring and remove from heat. pull out the rosemary.
  • slice plums thinly. pour caramel sauce in an 8 or 9 inch cake pan & arrange the plum slices in a circle.
  • cake: in a mixing bowl sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
  • in the bowl of your stand mixer using the beater attachment cream butter and sugar. add eggs one at a time until light and fluffy.
  • mix in vanilla and milk until combined.
  • slowly add your flour mixture and beat until the batter is smooth.
  • carefully pour batter over the plums, ensuring you do not alter the design of the fruit.
  • bake for 20-25 minutes, until cake is cooked throughout.
  • let cool completely before flipping & serving.

ike what you see? get it here. cake stand | cake server | apron | plate | linen | bowl

CANADIAN FRIED PASTRY DOUGH

 

happy september first! as summer winds down to an end, i thought making fair/carnival food would be the perfect way to celebrate the last few days of summer (hi fall, i missed you). with the CNE taking place in toronto, fried food galore is being served including my favourite.. canadian fried pastry dough. you can check out the article i wrote for food52 on fried dough here & get the recipe below! now let's get ready to welcome pumpkin everything back into our lives again.

ingredients

for the dough

  • ¼ warm water
  • 2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup warm whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 egg
  • 2 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • vegetable oil, for deep frying

for the topping

  • ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 cup cinnamon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

directions

  • in a large mixing bowl add water, yeast and sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes to allow the yeast to activate. If your yeast does not foam start again (water could be too hot or yeast could be expired).
  • stir in whole milk, salt, vanilla, egg and oil. Mix until ingredients are well incorporated.
  • add dough one cup at a time and mix until a dough begins to form.
  • turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 8-10 minutes, adding flour as needed until the dough is no longer wet & sticky.
  • form into a ball and let rise in a covered bowl for 1 hour, or until dough as doubled in size.
  • once dough has risen begin to heat your oil to 350-375 degrees. Pot or frying pan should be high enough to allow oil to be 3-4 inches deep.
  • roll out dough to a flat oval shape that is about 1 cm thick.
  • fry dough for 2 minutes on each side, and transfer to a paper towel to drain excess oil.
  • brush with melted butter and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.
  • repeat frying one at a time until you have used up all your dough.
  • close your eyes, pretend you are surrounded by farris wheels & games and take a bite into summer.

like what you see? get it here. cake stand | linen | plate