It’s been a long winter but BBQ season is finally back. Check out my calendar for some fune events that are coming up.

Where’s Dr. BBQ?

I’ll be making an appearance Monday January 26th on Fox 13 in Tampa for a little tailgating party. The Super Bowl buzz is really cranking up here so it should be fun. I’ll be on a few times between 7:00am and 9:00am and here are the recipes I’ll be cooking. They’re all from The NFL Game Day Cookbook.

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Garlic Lovers Cheese Dip

Lots of good roasted garlic in this dip.

4 ounces cream cheese, cut into cubes

8 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

½ cup beer (Whatever you’re drinking)

4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

6 cloves roasted garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon Cholula hot sauce

1 teaspoon dry mustard

½ teaspoon cayenne

2 green onions, sliced

Put the 2 cheeses in a glass bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes. Add the beer and mix well. Heat for about another 2 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Mix until well blended. Add the bacon, garlic, hot sauce, dry mustard, and cayenne. Mix until well blended. Microwave for 1 more minute. Stir well and transfer to a serving bowl or crock. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Garnish with the green onions and serve with crackers.

Makes 1 1/2 cups

Bloody Mary Chicken Wings

I had this idea in the middle of the night. It’s a hit with the game-day crowd.

15 whole, fresh chicken wings

Bloody Mary Rub:

2 tablespoons celery salt

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon granulated onion

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

1 teaspoon brown sugar

½ teaspoon cayenne

Bloody Mary Sauce:

1 1/2 cups V-8 juice

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

3 tablespoons Tabasco Garlic Sauce

1 lemon, juiced

1 teaspoon salt

Prepared horseradish (optional)

Russian vodka

Celery sticks

With a sharp knife, cut the tips off the chicken wings and save the tips for stock. Slash the inside of the wing joint to help them cook more evenly, but don’t cut them all the way through.

In a small bowl, mix together the rub ingredients. Sprinkle over the chicken wings, coating them evenly.

Prepare the grill for cooking over direct medium heat. Grill the wings, turning often, for 30 minutes, or until the wings are crispy and golden.

Meanwhile, mix the sauce ingredients together and set aside. Put the vodka in the freezer.

Transfer the wings to an aluminum-foil pan. Pour the sauce over the wings, tossing to coat. Put the pan on the grill. Cover the grill and cook for another 30 minutes, tossing the wings after 15 minutes to coat. If the pan goes dry, add a small amount of beer to keep it from burning. Remove the wings to a plate, and drizzle with the sauce if there is any left. Serve with celery sticks and shots of ice-cold vodka.

Makes 15 servings

Peachy Baby Back Ribs

Everybody loves sweet, sticky barbecued ribs. These are a little different and served without barbecue sauce, but feel free to add some if you like.

½ cup of your favorite barbecue rub

1/4 cup turbinado sugar (Sugar in the Raw)

3 full slabs (about 2 pounds each) baby back ribs, back membrane removed

1 ½ cups peach preserves

6 tablespoons packed brown sugar

¾ cup apple juice

Mix the rub and sugar together and sprinkle it on the ribs. Use about 2/3 on the meaty side and 1/3 on the boney side.

Prepare the grill for cooking over indirect low heat(300°F), using peach wood or a combination of cherry and hickory for flavor.

Cook the ribs until they are nicely caramelized and looking great. This should take about 2 hours. Remove the ribs to a platter or sheet pan. Lay out 3 double-thick layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil, each big enough to wrap a whole slab. Transfer each slab of ribs to a piece of foil. Top each slab with ½ cup of the preserves. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of brown sugar over each slab. As you fold each foil into a packet, pour ¼ cup of the juice in under the ribs. Seal the packets snugly, being careful not to puncture the foil with the rib bones. Return them to the grill for 45 minutes.

At this point, you could let the ribs cool down to finish later. This is a great way to take the ribs to a game-day party at a friend’s house or at the game. To finish, transfer the cooked ribs to a direct medium-hot grill. Cook and flip them for a just a few minutes, until they are warm and caramelized. Cut each slab into 3 pieces and serve.

Makes 9 servings

Snickers-Stuffed Baked Apples

I needed a special recipe for a competition among grill companies in 2006, so I came up with these. I cooked them on the Big Green Egg and won the contest that day. I think those judges are still talking about them.

8 large Jonagold or other cooking apples

1/4 cup (2 ounces) butter, at room temperature

¼ cup packed brown sugar

8 mini Snickers bars

8 large marshmallows

8 pecan halves

Zest of 1 lemon

Preheat the oven to 350°F or prepare a grill for cooking over indirect medium heat.

With the large end of a melon baller, remove the stem and core of the apples, leaving the bottoms intact. Hollow the apples out so a Snickers bar and a marshmallow will fit inside each one. With a razor knife, score the skin of the apple from top to bottom every 1/2 inch. Now score a ring around the bottom of the apple to connect all of the top to bottom cuts. Rub the outsides of the apples with the butter and sprinkle with the brown sugar.

Place the apples in a greased pan. Place a Snickers bar in the cavity of each apple. Bake for 25 minutes. Add a marshmallow to the cavity of each apple. Bake for another 20 minutes, or until the apples are tender. Remove from the oven and top each apple with a pecan half and a little of the lemon zest.

Makes 8 servings

I’ll be on The BBQ Central Show tonight with Greg Rempe. Should be fun.

The show starts at 9pm EST and can be heard at www.latalkradio.com

Call in to join us at 216-220-0966 or email questions to bbqcentralradio@gmail.com

I’m doing a tailgating promotion with The Pork Board this fall and it will all end up with a big party at The Fiesta Bowl January 5th, 2009. They’ve been great to work with so I expect the trip to Glendale, Arizona to be a real treat for me and the winners. Sign up at www.theotherwhitemeat.com and maybe you can be there with me.

With bacon! I did my first book signing yesterday at The Rolling Pin in Brandon, Florida and Chef Dave made a batch of the Macaroni and Cheese Soup for the shoppers to sample. They sure seemed to like it and the book was a big hit. I really like that recipe and I think I’ll make that in most of the cities that I go to on the book tour. It was a great way to kick things off for me and the book.
I just got an email from Matthew in Wisconsin telling that he liked the book so much it has inspired him and his buddies to enter a BBQ cookoff. Be careful Matthew, BBQ cookoffs are an addicting hobby.

More soon from the road,

Ray

Buy it here

Thanks to all the great folks here at The Greenbrier. I just finished up my second session here and it has been amazing. Ken Hess, Sue Moats, and April Pusey run the program and they make our lives very easy. Thanks to Chris Lilly and Myron Mixon for being great partners on this adventure.

For the students, here are a few links for the items I mentioned. Anything I forgot feel free to email me or leave a comment here. Thanks for attending. I hope you had as much fun as we did.

Lots of sauces and rubs and gadgets at www.hawgeyesbbq.com

High speed thermometer Thermapen

The BBQ Guru

Buy my new NFL Gameday Cookbook

Gotta go, my room service has arrived. Life is good here!

I’ve been wanting to attend the World Championship Steak Cookoff ever since I first saw it on the Food Network. It’s always the same weekend as Memphis in May though so it hasn’t worked out…….until this year that is. So on May 17th I showed up in Magonlia, Arkansas and cooked this steak.

It looked good and was done properly, but I marinated it a little longer than I had intended and I thought it was a little too salty. That day they awarded first through fifth place and I didn’t get called. But we had a great time and I vowed to return. Well today I learned that I actually finished 9th out of 62 teams! I’m really happy with that. I’ve cooked in a couple hundred contests in my life but this one is pretty unique and it’s always hard when you are a rookie. But I’ll be back next year with a little experience under my belt.

As part of the event I had to cook 30 steaks to pass out to the public. The guests got in line for a salad, potato, roll and a glass of sweet tea, and then they went to whatever steak stand they chose to get the main course.

It’s really a great event in a great city. The folks of Magnolia couldn’t have been nicer and I look forward to seeing them again. This event is highly recommended for everyone.