Happy Monday to you!  I hope you had a fantastic weekend.  Let’s just say mine was action packed to say the least. From blog consulting, soccer registration, grocery shopping, house cleaning, deck designing, watching Masters Golf and of course eating some yummy food – the weekend was gone super fast.

On Friday, I had to work late into the night on a very big blog transformation.  I have to say it was quite exciting and maybe one of the biggest changes I have worked on recently. Choosing Raw was the blog and Gena was going for a more professional look to incorporate her counseling practice as well as her blog.  I have been working on the design and layout for quite some time and because of her “ONE” year blogiversary - she was ready for the switch.

Before Transformation

After Transformation

Friday Night Sunset

As I was sitting on the couch, I looked out the windows and noticed a pretty view of the sunset.

Masters Golf and Zesty In Law Delivers

OK, let’s be honest… the masters final round was exciting.  From great shots to missed putts – it was close until the last couple of holes.  Tiger woods struggled with the flat stick and Phil Mickelson seemed to make everything in sight.  Phil played great and really did deserve the “green jacket”.  Let’s rewind for a second to Saturday night.  As I was sitting on the couch watching the FOOD Network and eating some potato chips, the phone rang.  It was zesty in law inviting the family over to watch the golf and have some snacks.  I immediately signed up with a “Hell” yes and was excited to see what tomorrow would bring.  The mention of “ribs and stuff” on the phone was enough to get me itching to get there.   Did I mention I love ribs?

When you think of snacks and ribs – you think of small finger foods that are somewhat generic.  Well lets just say this extravaganza was not generic.  Here is a quick glance at the menu.

1. Spicy Thai Shrimp
2. Smokey BBQ Ribs with Molasses and Hoisin
3. Pasta with Cream and Bacon
4. Israel Couscous with Braised Lamb

There were other courses planned but everyone was so full.  The food was amazing.  The shrimp was so flavorful.  The coconut milk balanced with the hot chilies was superb.  I could have devoured this whole plate.

The ribs – well they are RIBS!!  Super flavor and great texture.

The pasta was really nice.  Can you really go wrong with cream and bacon?  I think not.  I took an extra large helping because I love this combination so much.  The fresh herbs included parsley and basil as well as a little dry thyme.  Delicious!

The final dish, I have to be honest I was excited to try as I have never tried Israel couscous and of course I adore lamb.  After testing it, I was thrilled.  Cleaned off the plate and kept smiling.

As you have already noticed, this post was not a traditional zesty post but I just felt  that it was necessary to recap some exciting things from the weekend just past.  Feel free to let me know your thoughts and comments.

Have a great Monday and I will see you all on Wednesday.

Take care

zesty

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Happy Monday! Did anyone watch the super bowl? What did you think of it? I thought it was a pretty good game as far as entertainment went. I didn’t really have a favorite team playing so I was somewhat non biased as to who I was hoping to win. The only thing I was really hoping for is the “FOOD“.

Let’s just say that Zesty In-law delivers yet again.  It seems like time after time zesty in law delivers amazing food and it really doesn’t even matter if the TV is on for me.  Lats night’s line up was no different.  You can sum this up as MAN FOOD night.  Boy was it good.  Around 11:00 pm when I left to come home I could barely waddle my way out to the car.

Menu

• Pulled Pork Sliders on homemade rolls
• Fresh baked beans
• Pork Side Ribs from the Grill
• Beef Ribs with Brandy, Molasses and Coffee ( Check out the size of these things )

I was so excited to see what was on the menu and I knew I would not be disappointed.  The flavors of the food was amazing.  You cannot beat the grill no matter if it is snowing out or not.  I was really impressed with the pulled pork…. delicious and I am pretty sure I could have had 10 little sandwiches.  I stopped at 3 just so I would not look like a total PIG.

I have a couple of big announcements to make this week so stay tuned as one of them may be related to Valentine’s day.  Have a great Monday and be safe.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

It’s Friday again!  Thursday was somewhat of a different day where I was completely snowed in.  It has been snowing for about 30 hours with wind gusts of over 60 MPH.  Needless to say, it would be entertaining to show you the snow drifts in front of the house but I was not able to get out to do that.  Stay tuned for those pictures!

For our New Year’s Eve gathering I tried a new recipe for some pork ribs.  As you all know by now, ribs are one of my favorite things to eat.  I love them!  Although this recipe did take a long time to prepare, it was well worth the wait.  These were fall off the bone and the flavor was amazing.

Ingredients

• 2 Racks of Pork Ribs
• 1/3 Cup Molasses
• 1/2 Cup Hoisin Sauce
• 2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce
• 2 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
• 1/8 Cup Water
• 1/8 Cup Apple Juice
• Cracked Black Pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 250 Degrees.



2. Prepare ribs by cleaning the silver skin on the back if visible
3. Season with Cracked Black Pepper



4. Place ribs in a roasting pan.
5. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix together.
6. Pour sauce over the ribs and cover.  Cook for 3 hours.



7. Remove lid, baste ribs and cook for 40 minutes without lid



8. Let sit for 15 minutes, cut ribs.





9. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: To ensure tender ribs regardless of the method of cooking, cook them slowly.  Ribs are very fibrous so you need the slow temperature cooking to break the meat down.  In addition, always check the back of the ribs for the silver skin.  If visible make a small cut in the skin and pull it off with your hand.

The flavor of these ribs were very rich and dynamic.  They were not too sweet despite all the sugar in the sauce.  By cooking them for the last 40 minutes with no lid – the crust formed on the outside paired with the juicy tender inside was a match made in heaven.

I hope you have a great Friday!  Any big plans for the weekend? It looks like I will be shoveling for a while.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty