According to The Free Dictionary, the expression “stick to one’s ribs” refers to food that will “last long and fortify one well”. The example sentence they give is “I don’t want just a salad! I want something that will stick to my ribs.”- something I agree with very often. In a perfect world, all meals will fortify you well.

These barbecued ribs are such a meal. Yes, they’re mostly bone, but as any rib-aficionado knows, it’s the meat next to those bones that are stunningly delicious. Moist, succulent, and tasty.

Stick to Your Ribs Barbecued Ribs

Ingredients
6 lbs pork spareribs (or pork babyback ribs)
1 28-oz can chunky tomato sauce (or you can use some tomato sauce and a can of good chopped tomatoes)
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce (I’ve used either chinese or japanese- they’re both good)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder (may be substituted with 3 crushed cloves)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix all the ingredients (except the ribs, naturally) together in a large bowl. Slather over the ribs. Now, depending on how you want to cook this, you can either:
- Put it into a crock-pot, cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or HIGH for 3 to 4 hours, OR
- Fire up the grill, and barbecue these babies.

Note that there isn’t anything ladylike about this dish- enjoying it requires a good amount of paper napkins, after all- but if you want ladylike, have a salad.

Once in a while, though, I just want something good and sweet and quick, something that’ll make the house smell like cinnamon, and be heavenly with a cup of coffee. These churros are just that. Fried batter rolled in sugar- how much simpler can you get?

Yes, you have to deep-fry them. If you have a deep fryer, all the better, but I’ve never needed one, and I swear that these churros are easy to make- as long as you’re careful, and take the usual precautions when deep frying.

Cinnamon Churros

A cup of water
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 whole eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

First, mix the white sugar and cinnamon in a dish. Set this aside. Then, start your oil: in a deep frying pan, heat about two inches of oil to 375 degrees.

In a separate pan, mix together the water, brown sugar, salt and butter, and bring to a boil- you want everything melted, but watch it, you’re not making caramel here. Turn off the heat, and add the flour, stirring it well into the mixture. Add the eggs and vanilla, making sure not to cook the eggs (add them slowly), and stirring well until good and blended.

Prepare a piping bag with a large star tip (or a sturdy freezer bag with one of the corners cut off). This is how you’ll pipe your churros- place your batter into it now. When your oil is hot enough, pipe some of the dough into it, around four to five inches long. Be careful not to burn yourself.

Now work quickly. You should be able to do four or five churros at once- they only need around two minutes in the oil… remove them when they’re golden brown to a plate covered with paper towels. While they’re still warm, roll them in the cinnamon sugar mixture until well coated.

Serve immediately with some good hot chocolate (the thicker the better), or a cup of dark-roast coffee.

Since I’m obviously on a Mexican-food kick, I thought I’d post about one of the most necessary Mexican food ingredients: beans.

Pinto Beans, which have a mottled look to them (much like a pinto horse), are the most common variety in Mexico. For that reason, there’s a good chance that the refried beans you had in your last burrito were made with pintos. They’re also the most commonly used beans in chili.

Black Beans, or frijol negro and Kidney Beans are other varieties I’ve used as substitutes many times in my Mexican cooking. The black beans are particularly good for vegetarian dishes, as they have a nice meaty flavor and texture to them.

Which brings me to today’s recipe: homemade refried beans. Once you’ve made these, you’ll never want to go back to canned refried beans again, I promise.

Homemade Refried Beans

500 grams (about a pound) dried pinto beans
3 quarts water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup water
salt to taste

First you want to rinse the beans very well, making sure to get rid of any “bad” ones. Fill a deep saucepan with water, add the beans in, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, and cook- covered- for about three hours, or until the beans are soft. Strain.

In a large frying pan (this is why they’re called “refried”!), add olive oil over medium heat. Once the pan in warm, add the strained beans, with 1/4 cup of water. Mash the beans in the pan using a potato masher. Taste the beans, and season with salt if necessary.

Serve with your favorite Mexican dish, and resolve never to buy canned again.

Tomatillos are related to tomatoes. They’re called tomate verde in Mexico (literally, green tomato) and- here’s where they differ enormously from tomatoes- they have husks. You know, like corn husks. Only not. For this reason, they’re also called husk tomatoes.

These babies have a sweet slash tart flavor, and are a bit fruity. They’re particularly awesome in sauces and salsas- you’ll be surprised at what a difference they make from using regular tomatoes- but are also wonderful just grilled or roasted, sprinkled with a few drops of extra virgin olive oil and some sea salt.

Finally, let me leave you with a quick recipe for delicious Tomatillo Salsa:

Crush two cloves of garlic with a teaspoon of kosher salt. To this, add a coarsely chopped yellow onion, some chopped serrano chiles to taste (if you want it mild, remove the seeds before chopping), and around four to six large tomatillos which have been roughly chopped. Mix in some chopped cilantro to taste, and cubes of avocado if you wish.

The Husband’s Spicy Chili Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 large white or yellow onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 (16 oz) can red kidney beans, undrained
1 (16 oz) can white beans, undrained
1 (16 oz) can tomato puree
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons spanish paprika
2 large fresh tomatoes, chopped

First, brown the beef lightly in some olive oil, making sure to stir so it crumbles. Drain about half the fat of this away, but not all of it. Yummy, yummy fat.

Add bell pepper, onion, celery, kidney beans, white beans, tomato puree, black pepper, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, mustard, oregano, paprika and tomatoes.

Simmer for 25 minutes. Do not overcook… you want the celery to stay a bit crisp.

Sometimes, when he’s feeling particularly spicy, he throws in some dried red chilis (those small, hot ones). It’s all a question of whether you like it hot- or whether you can handle it.

I like to sprinkle mine with a healthy serving of grated Monterey Jack cheese…. mmm.