Before the summer is over and it starts snowing you should make TI 52818’s  simple baby-back ribs!

Thank you Andrew for submitting, these look so good!

Simple Baby-Back Ribs Recipe

You Will Need:

• 1 rack of pork baby back ribs.
• 4 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• Barbecue Sauce (your choice)
• Baking Sheet
• Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil
• Small mixing bowl
• Paper towels

Preparation:

1. Thoroughly mix the brown sugar, kosher salt, black pepper, and chili powder in the small mixing bowl. This will be your dry rub. Set aside for now.
2. Remove ribs from their packaging. Pat dry with paper towels.
3. There is a very thin, very tough membrane on the back (ribs side) of the rib rack. Remove this membrane. I use a knife to pry up a corner of the membrane, then pull it down the length of the ribs. You may need to use a paper towel to grip the end of the membrane. If the membrane tears or doesn’t come off in one piece, repeat until you get it all off.
4. Put the dry rub all over the ribs (both sides) and rub in. The meat will take on the color of the rub and turn dark reddish brown.
5. Wrap ribs securely in heavy-duty aluminum foil and put in refrigerator for several hours to chill. I prep them first thing in the morning, then let them sit in the fridge until 3 hours before dinner time. You can also refrigerate overnight. I put the ribs on the baking sheet before putting them in the ribs just in case any meat juice leaks out. That way it will leak onto the baking sheet and not get all over my fridge.

Cooking:

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Place ribs (still on baking sheet) in center of the oven, ribs-side down. Note that the baking sheet is still optional, however it will catch anything that leaks out of the foil and will keep your oven for getting messed up.
3. Cook for 2.5 hours.
4. Remove ribs from oven and set oven temperature to 350 degrees.
5. Open foil. (NOTE: FOIL WILL BE HOT! Use oven mits or a utensil to open the foil so you don’t burn yourself!) Brush approximately 1-2 tablespoons of barbecue sauce (depending on the size of the ribs and your preference) across the top of the ribs. I use the back of a metal teaspoon to brush/spread the sauce. This will be your glaze. I prefer a thin, fine glaze, so I use less, however if you prefer a thicker glaze, use more.
6. Place ribs back in the oven with the foil left open. NOTE: you don’t have to wait for the oven to reach 350 before putting them back in.
7. Cook for another ½ hour.
8. Remove from the oven and let stand for a few minutes.

Serve and eat! Goes really well with macaroni & cheese and a sweet potato (or sweet potato fries!)

Submitted by: TI 52818 Andrew Milbourne

Guacamole

Ingredients:

• Avocados mashed (I usually do 2 per person)
• Half an onion diced (purple or yellow)
• Peppers diced (green, red, orange – any color is good)
• Lemon juice – just a small splash (Optional: Lime juice)
• Salt to taste (I personally think that the salt from the chips is enough but some people like more)

Directions:

Throw everything into a bowl, mix it up, and enjoy!

Erminegard – AKA Kielbasa with Roast potatoes and cabbage

This is a family recipe that my sister named Erminegard as we were tired of saying “kielbasa with potatoes, onions, carrots, and cabbage” It is very much a thrown together let it bake sort of meal that is less science and more “oh that smells amazing”. It also reheats well if you make enough for leftovers.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 Polish Kielbasa
• 8-10 medium to small potatoes (or enough to put a solid layer in your pan)
• 1 large onion
• 1-2 large carrots
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 1 small head cabbage
• 1 stick butter
• Salt and pepper

Determine desired cook time and preheat oven

• 1hr preheat to 375*
• 30-45 min preheat to 425*
• 20-30 min preheat to 475*

Directions

Cut unpeeled potatoes into bite sized pieces, chop onion and carrots, mince garlic. Place in 9×13 baking dish. Cut butter into 5 or 6 pats and place evenly on top of the veg. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the lot and bake until potatoes are tender and the whole kitchen smells amazing.

Chop cabbage and steam or boil  with salt and pepper until tender.

Slice kielbasa and either pan cook or place in second baking dish and bake alongside potatoes until hot and slightly browned. (kielbasa can also be cooked in the same dish as the potatoes if desired)

Serve with fresh bread and plenty of butter.

Helpful tips:

Lining the baking dishes with foil will make for significantly easier clean up, and if baking for the longer time cover the potatoes with foil.

Our Commanding Officer, Greg Ochaba, has submitted the several recipes and we’re excited to share them all with you. First up is this Chicken and Smoked Sausage Jambalaya which will be perfect for the cold nights coming up this winter.

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb boneless chicken breasts, cut in cubes
• 1 lb smoked sausage, thinly sliced
• 1 large green pepper, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper spice, up to ½ tsp
• 2 cups uncooked Uncle Ben’s rice
• 4 cups Chicken broth, or water with 1 ½ tablespoon soup base
• Canola or olive oil for frying

Directions:

In a hot pan with small amount of oil, brown sausage. After browning, put the smoked sausage in a large roasting pan. Next, cook chicken, in the same pan, until done and browned, add to the sausage. Next, saute vegetables and garlic until almost cooked and add to the meat. Add red peppers and broth (according to directions on the box for the amount of rice being cooked), plus ½ cup broth per cup of rice and rice to the meat and veggies. Stir and cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

This is family favorite and is perfect for the summertime. It’s super simple to make and is always a hit. 

Ingredients:

• 1 box (1lb) Penne pasta (or other tube shaped pasta)
• 16oz mozzarella cheese, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
• 2 large tomatoes, diced or 1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 pkg Good Seasons Italian salad dressing
• 3 tbs olive oil
• 3 tbs balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, cut up

Directions:

1. Boil pasta till al dente, according to package instructions and drain.
2. While pasta is cooking, in a large bowl, whisk the dressing, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
3. Add the pasta, cheese, tomatoes and basil to the dressing and stir to combine. Serve immediately or at room temp.