Saucy Smackdown!

For 20 years now, some close friends in California host a Fourth of July bash that is out of this world. When we are lucky enough to be in California in early July, we make sure to plan to be there. Aside from reuniting with old friends, for a foodie like myself, it's an absolute treat. For years now, I have watched this party evolve to where it has become a culinary trip of gastronomical proportions. Every year that I am able to go, I never leave without a handful of new recipes and ideas.


This particular recipe comes from a childhood friend who decided to bring a simple, yet complex BBQ sauce to put on the many varieties of meat that get smoked and grilled. When I asked my friend Greg what his secret was, I was shocked that he would reveal his much "tested" recipe with me, and equally shocked that it did not contain a drop of tomato or smoke flavoring! Coming from the land of BBQ and all things smokey, I was even more intrigued to make this sauce for myself. As I was going through the
recipe aptly named "Jack Daniels BBQ Sauce" it made me think of my husband and how he used to drink Jack, something he put on the back-shelf many years ago to explore the world of agavé. So with this in mind, I thought "What if I used the same great recipe that Greg gave me, and then do a second agavé version right along side, but change a few ingredients." And thus the "BBQ Sauce Smackdown" was created.

Now, besides being a great guy, my husband also has an affinity for tequila, so much so that he was given the nickname "Tequila Bob" many years ago. In the past ten years, he has acquired quite the taste for tequilas and is constantly on the hunt for new and tasty brands. Bob also likes spicy foods, so for my revised version of the recipe, I changed out the Tobasco for one of our favorite condiments - Sriracha. I also added agavé nectar and sorghum to counter the brown sugar. Of course, the Jack Daniels was traded out for one of Bob's favorite tequilas - Riazul Añejo. All smackdowns must have a tasting panel and I found no problem getting volunteers! Remember, this is Texas - as well as Super Bowl Sunday - so I was not hurting in the "taster category" at all.



I decided to try 3 meats to taste the sauce with - Grilled Chicken Breast, Grilled Salmon, and smoked sausage - three meats that should bring out the true flavors of the sauces. Our panel was pretty evenly split between the two sauces. Pretty much all of the tasters loved the sticky-sweet qualities of both. Bob noted the presence of the agavé in the initial aroma and the natural sweetness of both stood out. Dianne also liked both, but preferred the tequila-based sauce for it's spicy bite, while husband Chuck went with the JD version, saying if he had to pick one to buy, that would be it. Our friend Elda prefers tequila and spicy foods as a whole but said the JD sauce was really good after tasting it. But then after tasting the agavé sauce, her vote fell firmly on that side of the ledger, noting that it had a more complex and spicy flavor. Robert liked both equally, feeling that the JD sauce had a smokier flavor while the agavé was sweeter. His choice was purely dependent upon what type of meat it was on. Bob agreed, picking the JD sauce for the sausage and the agave for the chicken. On the other hand, Ryan preferred the agavé sauce mainly because the "sour" whiskey flavor of the Jack Daniels was too pronounced, reminding him of a "bad experience or two" in his past. Our 11-year-old daughter Johnee wanted to try more than a taste or two, but was a bit freaked out with the alcohol content due to recent lectures in school on liver decease - but hey, she is only 11. As for myself, I went with the JD version. I liked the tang it had on the meat and the stickiness it left on my fingers, begging me to lick every drop off.

So the votes were in and it pretty much came down to the person's drink preference, the type of meat you were eating and how spicy you like your food. All in all, it was all worth it. Hats off to my friend Greg who created an original delicious sauce and also to my Tequila Bob for inspiring me to think outside of the bottle on this one. It may have made for a long day but it sure was fun using the tasting as a way of spending time with friends - I'm jus' sayin'!



Greg's JD BBQ Sauce

1tsp. Onion Powder
1Tbs Tabasco
2 Tbs Red Wine Vinegar
1/4 C. Jack Daniel's Whiskey
2 C. Brown Sugar
4 Beef Bouillon cubes
2 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
2/3 C. White Grape Juice
1/4 C. Minced Shallots
1/3 C. Teriyaki Sauce
1 Clove of Garlic Minced

Sweat the garlic and shallots in a 1 tbs. olive oil in a deep saucepan. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, turn heat to low and simmer one hour uncovered. Let cool 30 minutes before serving on meat, shellfish or veggies.

Tequila Bob's Añejo BBQ Sauce

1 tsp. Onion Powder
1Tbs Sriracha Sauce
2 Tbs Red Wine Vinegar
1/4 C. Añejo Tequila (We used Riazul)
1 C. Brown Sugar
1/2 C. Agavé syrup
1/2 C. Sorghum (or molasses)
4 Beef Bouillon cubes
2 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
2/3 C. White Grape Juice
1/4 C. Minced Shallots
1/3 C. Teriyaki Sauce
1 Clove of Garlic Minced

Sweat the garlic and shallots in a 1 tbs. olive oil in a deep saucepan. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, turn heat to low and simmer one hour uncovered. Let cool 30 minutes before serving on meat, shellfish or veggie.

End of Meyers - Beginning of Spring?

Well sadly, as I am zesting my last Meyer and juicing my last blood orange, I feel the need to post one more entry about this amazing piece of fruit that entices my five senses like no other fruit does. OK, maybe that's a bit dramatic considering that I love all fruit, but I think the reason why Meyers hold such a dear spot in my heart is that they have this uncanny way of just brightening my day. Whether I'm squeezing the juice into my daily glasses of water or whipping up a jar of curd, it let's me know that Spring is just around the corner and soon the cold, gray, and bleak Winter will turn sunny and bright and full of new life.

I made a jar of lemon curd, thanks to one of my many favorite bloggers. She shows how incredibly easy it is. What I was not prepared for was how hard it would be to keep wanting to put a spoon in the jar and devour it. Trying to remind myself that I need to taste and not obsess over these recipes has forced me to think of another way to use this creamy dessert. I volunteer in my daughter's middle school office every Tuesday and though I know the staff there tries hard to remember my name, for some reason, the "Tuesday Baker Lady" has become my official name. Don't get me wrong, I am not offended by that at all, and find it very complimentary. I digressed a bit (sorry) so now back to that luscious lemon curd... I decided to make tartlets to take into the office this past Tuesday. I had some mini French tartlet molds I had purchased from a tag sale many years ago and they got to come out of hiding and be the star in this recipe. I made an easy pastry dough. Then I combined the lemon curd I made with a half of container of left-over (this is where you must try hard not to cringe) fat-free Cool Whip. I know, what in the world was she thinking not using real whipping cream! Trust me, it was left over from another fat-free recipe and so I used it up. Believe it or not, it proved to be a very light lemony mousse-like filling. The added little sprigs of mint I picked from my backyard were the perfect garnish to enhance these little tarts.

So while I may not have anymore lemons on my tree, I do have a fridge full of juice! And while Winter is still showing it's nasty weather outside, I love that I can defrost a cube of sunshine inside and perhaps give a new meaning to bitter-sweet endings - I'm jus' sayin'!

Meyer Tartlets

Sweet Pastry Crust

1 1/2 cups (210 grams) all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten

In a separate bowl, sift or whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside. Place the butter in your mixer and beat until softened. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Gradually add the beaten egg, beating just until incorporated. Don't over mix or the butter will separate and lighten in color. Add flour mixture all at once and mix just until it forms a ball. Don't overwork or pastry will be hard when baked.

Flatten dough into disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes or until firm.

Have ready an 8 - 9 inch (20 - 23 cm) tart pan with removable bottom. (Or 12 mini tart shells) On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry into an 11 - 12 inch (28 - 30 cm) circle that is about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. To prevent the pastry from sticking to the counter and to ensure uniform thickness, keep lifting up and turning the pastry a quarter turn as you roll (always roll from the center of the pastry outwards to get uniform thickness). To make sure it is the right size, take your tart pan, flip it over, and place it on the rolled out pastry. The pastry should be about an inch larger than pan.

When the pastry is rolled to the desired size, lightly roll pastry around your rolling pin, dusting off any excess flour as you roll. Unroll onto top of tart pan. Never pull pastry or you will get shrinkage (shrinkage is caused by too much pulling of the pastry when placing it in the pan). Gently lay in pan and with a small floured piece of pastry, lightly press pastry into bottom and up sides of pan. Roll your rolling pin over top of pan to get rid of excess pastry. With a thumb up movement, again press dough into pan. Roll rolling pin over top again to get rid of any extra pastry. Prick bottom of dough (this will prevent the dough from puffing up as it bakes). Cover and refrigerate for about 20 minutes to chill the butter and to rest the gluten in the flour.

Filling
Take 1 cup of Lemon Curd
1 1/2 Cups of non dairy whipped topping
Mix together until light and mousse like.
Place in a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip and refrigerate while tart shells are cooling.

When shells and filling have properly chilled, then pipe each tart with filling. ** If you are making these in advance and you do not want the filling to create a soggy mess I suggest that you melt some white chocolate and lightly paint a coating in the pie shell and then chill until hard and then pipe your filling in. This will create a barrier so no moisture will make crust soggy.

Garnish tart with fresh mint sprigs or very thin slices of Meyer Lemons