Kick off summer with a Canada Day celebration featuring Olive’s finger lickin’ Kansas City-style Barbeque Chicken. We used to steer away from barbeque sauce and chicken – a combo that left the poor bird burnt on the outside and flavourless on the inside. But over the years I have researched, tested tips, tweaked my method, and ended up with a recipe that we love (scroll to the bottom).  Hope you will too.

Finish off your barbeque with the quintessential Canadian dessert: the all-Canadian butter tart. I overheard some American tourists wondering why we Canadians love these gooey, runny tarts so much (they don’t have them in the US). I suggested they head straight to Kate’s Town Talk Bakery for the answer. Small batch, baked from scratch, using a tried and true recipe passed down from Kate’s Grandma Doris. A tasty crust that doesn’t collapse and spill filling all over you. Filling that isn’t all drippy nor cloyingly sweet, but caramelizes around the edges into chewy, toffee bliss. Now that’s my idea of a great butter tart! Available plain or with raisins or pecans; mini or regular sized.

Olive’s Kansas City-style Barbeque Chicken

Serves 4 (2 small pieces of chicken each – recipe easily doubled)

Part of my method comes from a recipe clipping that I think appeared in one of my favourite cooking magazines, Cuisine At Home, a few years ago (Root Beer Barbeque Chicken). The chicken is fully roasted in the oven first and then dipped in the barbeque sauce to absorb the flavours, and then grilled immediately.

I pour my Kansas City-style Barbeque Sauce recipe over the hot roasted chicken, put it in the fridge for several hours to marinate and chill the meat, then grill it cold out of the fridge, dipping it back into the sauce each time I turn it on the grill, building up a caramelized crust while I warm the meat. Most of the work is done ahead; it just takes a few minutes on the grill. The end result is flavourful meat with a lovely caramelized crust. The perfect barbeque party chicken.

If you want to serve my Kansas City-style Barbeque Chicken with my Kansas City-style Barbeque Ribs, make my Big Batch Kansas City-style Barbeque Sauce and prepare the ribs in the oven the day before. The next morning roast the chicken and chill it in the sauce. Just before serving, take the ribs and chicken out of the fridge and put them straight on the grill for a few moments, as directed.

Ingredients:

4-5 chicken drumsticks (bone-in, skin-on)
4 chicken thighs (bone-in, skin-on)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups Olive’s Big Batch Kansas City-style Barbeque Sauce (see August 2013 post)

Directions:
Two to six hours before grilling:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Arrange chicken pieces on a parchment-lined, rimmed baking sheet. Brush oil on chicken to coat evenly. Season well with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast chicken at 375°F until juices run clear and skin is golden brown, about 40 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over low heat, heat the barbeque sauce gently, stirring occasionally.
3. As soon as chicken is cooked, put the hot chicken in a heat-proof casserole dish; immediately pour warm barbeque sauce over hot chicken to coat evenly (use all of the sauce). Cover. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours but preferably up to 6 hours.

Just before serving:

1. Preheat grill to medium-high. When ready to grill, place chicken in sauce next to grill. Remove each piece with tongs, let excess sauce drip off, and place directly on a clean, well-oiled grill (keep tray of sauce beside grill to dip again). Grill for a few minutes.
2. Remove each piece from grill and dip in sauce again. Return chicken to grill, turn over, and grill for a few minutes. Grill just until sauce has caramelized, skin is slightly charred, and chicken is hot throughout, about 5 to 10 minutes (dip chicken back into sauce each time you turn it on grill). Serve immediately.

The banner is hanging proudly over Queen Street, the rides are almost set up, and Streetsville is buzzing. Not just because this will be Hazel’s last year leading the parade as mayor (she inspires a standing ovation from me at every parade). But also because two of Toronto’s top ten gourmet food trucks will be rockin’ the Streetsville Bread and Honey Festival again this year, to gastronomical proportions.

These food trucks serve some seriously good eats and have a huge following. Toronto’s original mobile barbeque smokehouse, Hogtown Smoke, serves it up slow-cooked and smokin’ good using an on-board smoker.

How about sinking your teeth into the Brisket-Infused Burger: an organic Angus beef burger infused with brisket, topped with pulled pork, caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, Jack Daniels and BBQ sauce, three cheeses, bacon, lettuce, and tomato on a Cobb fresh-daily bun? Can you say that five times fast?

Or a Jacked Up Pulled Pork Grilled Cheese Sandwich:  Jack Daniels-infused pulled pork, orange and white cheddar, Monterey Jack cheese, beer braised onions, and red pepper on Cobb fresh-daily bread?  Want to see more? Check out Hogtown Smoke on YouTube or follow them on Facebook or Twitter.

A whole lotta love will be roamin’ into the festival on this truck. Mississauga’s own Rome’N Chariot serves classic Italian comfort food inspired by Nona’s recipes from Molise, Italy which have been passed down through generations.

How about Chicken Parmesan served on a soft Italian kaiser, smothered in homemade marinara sauce, sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan, and topped with mozzarella, sautéed sweet peppers, and caramelized onions?

Or Toasted Ravioli stuffed with ricotta and spinach, finished with Parmesan and served with a side of marinara sauce? Big on comfort, big on flavour….mamma mia! Want to see more? Check out Rome’N Chariot on YouTube, or follow them on Facebook or Twitter.

Check out the Bread and Honey website for a list of all the good eats at the festival this year…and don’t forget your slice of free bread and honey! Mmm, sweet!

The Streetsville Founders’ Bread and Honey Festival

Located at Streetsville Memorial Park/Vic Johnston Community Centre. Click here for map and information.

Friday June 6th, 2014 from 4:00 pm to 11:00 pm
Saturday June 7th from 10:00 am to 11:00 pm (Queen Street parade: 10:00 am to 12:00 pm)
Sunday June 8th from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm

UPDATE: Crawford’s Village Bakery is closing November 30, 2014.

When I’ve had my fill of winter I start to crave a little taste of the tropics, especially if I can’t actually make it there. Crawford’s Luscious Lime Pie is just the ticket. It’s Crawford’s version of Key Lime Pie but without eggs. Cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk are the rich and creamy foil  for a burst of tangy lime juice and lime oil; the filling is set on a lovely graham cracker crumb crust and piped with whipped cream.

Crawford’s Luscious Lime Pie is a sumptuous smack of sunshine. Can’t you just feel your taste buds tingling with a luscious lick of lime?

Like all of Crawford’s pies, it is made from scratch using quality ingredients. While Crawford’s regularly available pies are baked fresh seven days a week, their specialty pies – like Luscious Lime Pie – are baked fresh on specific weekends throughout the year.

Hurry, Luscious Lime Pie is only available for three more weekends until mid March. Katie makes them as fast as she can but it is hard to keep up with the demand so be sure to call ahead to order.

Stay tuned to my Facebook page or Crawford’s Facebook page for updates on when Crawford’s will launch their Easter Egg Pie and other specialty and seasonal pies throughout the year.

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If you can’t make it out to Canada’s Largest Ribfest this weekend (August 30th to September 2^nd in Burlington’s Spencer Smith Park), here’s a recipe you can enjoy in your own backyard. Sure to put the smile back on any last-day-of-summer sad face, my Kansas City-style Barbeque Ribs are a great way to end summer vacation.

There are a few easy steps involved but most of the work is done ahead of time, making these ribs perfect for special occasions. My ribs are steam-baked in homemade barbeque sauce and a slow oven the day before, chilled in the fridge overnight, and then finished on the grill for 15 minutes to impart a smoky flavour and a caramelized crust. The end result: tender ribs in a lip-smackin’, finger-lickin’ homemade sauce that is dead-on delicious. And you don’t have to worry about a grill for hours.

My barbeque sauce recipe is Kansas City-style: tangy, sweet and a bit spicy – just the way olive it! Make the barbeque sauce at least one day ahead – the flavours deepen overnight. I make a big batch and freeze it in smaller portions. The acidity of the vinegar in the sauce will be mellowed by the richness of the meat – both setting each other off perfectly, I think – so don’t judge the sauce until you taste it on the finished ribs.

Olive’s Big Batch Kansas City-style Barbeque Sauce

Delicious on ribs or chicken. Make one day in advance.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 cup water

3 cups tomato ketchup

1 cup apple cider vinegar

⅔ cup Worcestershire sauce

½ cup prepared yellow mustard

1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

1 cup honey

½ cup hoisin sauce

2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (Tabasco)

2 teaspoons salt

Directions:

1. In a large heavy saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat; add garlic and sauté, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
2. Remove the pan from the heat, so the garlic doesn’t burn; add the remaining ingredients to the pot and stir thoroughly with a whisk.
3. Set the pot back over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently; immediately reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
4. Store overnight in the refrigerator to allow the flavours to deepen, or freeze for longer storage. Freeze in 2 cup portions. One 2-cup portion is enough for 2 racks of ribs.

The method I use to cook the ribs (that I learned from a Trish Magwood Party Dish recipe – Sticky Barbeque Ribs) infuses the meat with barbeque sauce. The key is to seal the ribs very tightly in foil and then slow roast them in the oven for two hours until they are fully cooked – you will be rewarded with tender ribs that just need finishing on the grill.

Another key to success is to chill the ribs to firm the meat before grilling them – so after I bake my ribs in the oven, I chill them in the fridge overnight and then put them on the grill cold (straight from the fridge) to finish them. I learned this tip from a cooking show long ago; it has always worked, I didn’t ask why….but then I thought my readers deserved to know the science behind it. So, I went to The Food Lab and asked part-scientist/part-chef Kenji López-Alt (Chief Creative Officer, Serious Eats) for his expert opinion and am grateful to have received his prompt answer which he has allowed me to share with you:

“…chilling increases the viscosity of internal juices which makes them a little firmer so they don’t fall apart. It also lets you char the exterior without drying them out.”

Kenji Lopez-Alt’s weekly column The Food Lab on Seriouseats.com explores the science of home cooking. Click here to read his column, follow him on Twitter or Facebook or send him an e-mail. Thank you Mr. López-Alt!

Ribs should be cooked until they come cleanly off the bone when you bite in but are not falling off the bone when you pick them up to eat them. If you follow my recipe, that’s how your ribs will turn out.

Olive’s Kansas City-style Barbeque Ribs

Serves 4 (half rack portions)

A great make-ahead dish for a summer barbeque party. Prepare these ribs one day prior to grilling them.

Ingredients:

2 racks baby back pork ribs (back membrane removed – ask your butcher or do yourself)

2 cups Olive’s Big Batch Kansas City-style Barbeque Sauce

4 17”-square pieces of heavy-duty aluminum foil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 275ºF. Cut each rib rack in half.
2. Measure ½ cup of barbeque sauce into a separate container to brush on the raw ribs; do not contaminate the remaining barbeque sauce – refrigerate it for basting the pre-baked ribs on the grill and for serving on the table the next day.
3. Brush both sides of the ribs with the ½ cup of barbeque sauce, dividing it evenly among the 4 sections.
4. See instructional photos below. Place one rib section, meaty side up, on the centre of each piece of foil. Fold the sides of the foil up towards the ceiling. Leaving an air pocket on top of the ribs, bring the foil edges together at the top and fold down about ¾”; crimp tightly all along the edge with your fingers to make an airtight package; fold down two more times the same way. Repeat the same process to seal both ends of the packet. Take care not to puncture the foil during this process.
5. Carefully transfer wrapped ribs to a rimmed baking sheet; place tray on the middle oven rack of a 275ºF degree oven; bake for 2 hours.
6. After 2 hours, remove ribs from the oven but don’t open the packets; let cool, sealed in their packets, at room temperature for 15 minutes.
7. Carefully open hot foil packets. Remove ribs from foil and place in a baking dish; discard remaining juices and foil. Cover dish with plastic wrap. Chill ribs in the fridge overnight. Do not remove from the fridge until you are ready to grill – the meat should be chilled thoroughly when you put the ribs on the grill.
8. When ready to serve the next day, preheat grill to medium heat. Remove the cold ribs from the baking dish and place the ribs directly on a clean, well-oiled grill; immediately baste with barbeque sauce and grill for 5 minutes. Flip and baste again with barbeque sauce; grill for another 5 minutes. Flip and baste with sauce two more times, grilling for about 5 more minutes or until sauce is caramelized, lightly charred, and the meat is hot.  In total, you should have basted 4 times total and grilled for about 15 minutes or so.
9. Serve remaining ½ cup sauce in a bowl on the table for those who want to brush more sauce on their ribs.

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