Beef Ribs.  For me, the very mention of this wonderful finger food immediately conjures up memories of the massive wood fired pits I became accustomed to in Texas.  Those BBQ places that actually had ribs on the menu were few and far between, but they were invariably my favorite places to eat.  Brisket is great, but for me ribs are far more succulent and I was there for the grease-covered jaw gloriousness of the affair.

Sure, you can be completely civil and eat ribs with a knife and a fork, but where’s the fun in that?  Part of the experience with bone-in foods is the sheer joy of foregoing the flatware and getting down and dirty with your meal.  It’s just fun!  The kids love it too, and there’s always room for a few chuckles and good-natured ribbing (pardon the pun) about messy faces and lack of manners.

While I usually smoke or grill my ribs, this particular version was made in the oven with a balsamic dressing.  The flavors are amazing, the meat it fall-off-the-bone tender, juicy and absolutely sumptuous.  I don’t think I could have done better in my smoker, and the flavor that the balsamic vinaigrette adds to the beef is both subtle and stunning at the same time. This is a definite keeper.

Are you a fan of the K.C. Style, sauce covered ribs or, spicier Louisiana style?  If you’re like me, sauce just covers the flavor, but we’ve all got different tastes. What are yours?

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Well folks, this week is starting out on an incredibly high note.  I just got word that my wife has pushed her mid-tour visit up and will be home by the weekend!

I can’t tell you all how much this means to both myself and for my kids.  Life as a military family can be stressful, and those stresses exist here as well as in any other household separated by time, distance and duty.  The last 9 months have been difficult to say the least.

But we get her back for three weeks!

Expect a lot of gushing from me on twitter and Facebook, and most likely a slew of posts and pics here that have to do as much with food as they do with just her in general…  There may even end up being a few pictures of me thrown in for good measure, since there will be someone else around with a camera for a bit.

My wife is coming home.  At least for a little while.  Color me ecstatic.

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There’s a lot of talk lately by food celebs and parents about tezching kids the fine art of cooking.  I couldn’t agree with this more and while I can only take a small amount of credit for my oldest daughters interest in the culnary arts, I recently had a conversation with her about whether or not a pomegranate juice reduction would or would not be bitter when completed.  Things like this make a parent’s heart swell, especially when he’s a foodie.

If you’ve thought of getting your kids involved in your familys meal planning, I applaud you.  I also want you to take a moment to visit spatulatta.com, where kids teach kids to cook through video recipes.  Think of it as the Internet answer to the Food network for kids.   The site is completely geared for children, which may help to foster an interest of food and cooking in your young ones.

These are sills they will need later in life, especially if you dread the thought of your kids living on microwaved ramen, take-out pizza and the odd McSchmedley’s meal in college.  If a young person knows how to cook, they’re going to do so.  it eases stress and allows for a bit of control over their diet.  I don’t think Pappa Murphey’s can claim that. (Though I don’t mind a good pizza every now and again and to be honest, I don’t always feel like making my own.)

This one gets accolades from mywife, who introduced me to the site, from myself, who urges you to visit. It also gets the full thumbs up from my alter ego the Food Snob, who thinks all kids should know how to cook; if for no other reason than to save themselves from the mass produced, fat inducing swill that American fast food wants them to eat.

Go take a look at Spatulatta.  You’ll be glad you did.

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