Friday, July 31, 2009

My favorite ribs recipe

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This has been adapted from a "BBQ with Bobby Flay" recipe called "Mike Mill's Beef Ribs." I use it on pork and beef ribs.

Dry Rub

1/2 cup paprika
1/4 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup powdered mustard
1/4 cup chili powder
1/4 cup ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
1/4 cup granulated garlic
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients and store in a tightly covered container. The last batch that I made has lasted me 3 months and 3+ batches of ribs.

Sauce

1 cup ketchup
2/3 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup apple juice
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce (may sub Worcestershire)
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 of a medium granny smith apple, grated or finely chopped
1/4 of a medium onion, grated or finely chopped
1/4 of a green bell pepper, grated or finely chopped.
1-2 T honey


Combine the ketchup, rice vinegar, apple juice, cider vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, mustard, garlic powder, white pepper, cayenne in a medium pot. Boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the apple, onion, and bell pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes or until it thickens slightly. Stir in honey, and add salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation

1.Several hours up to the night before, rub the ribs generously with the dry run. Refrigerate until ready to prepare.

2. In a 250-300 degree oven, bake the ribs covered until tender. This will take 2-3 hrs.

3. Coat ribs liberally with sauce.

4. On a screaming hot grill or under the broiler, cook until desired charring occurs. Brush with more sauce for serving.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Free Kindle Books

Grrr, gave up on posting this list on Twitter because I couldn't get the urls to shorten. I basically download any remotely interesting free Kindle book. Some of these sound quite promising, while others are likely pure trash. In no particular order: 

Dancing in the Moonlight by RaeAnne Thayne
Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

Irresistible Forces by Brenda Jackson

My Soul to Lose by Rachel Vincent
Haley's Cabin by Anne Rainey

Paranoia by Joseph Finder

Thorn Queen (Dark Swan, Book 2) by Richelle Mead 


Venetian Night on the Lake

Venetian Night was a great excuse to picnic along the lake on Saturday. Touted as a boat parade of 35 boats, I'm fairly certain that there were only a couple dozen at most. Nonetheless, the boats were festive (Hollywood was the theme) featuring music, dancing folks, and even a Michael Jackson tribute. Afterwards came fireworks! Lots of families with little monsters, but other than the ones that kept tumbling down the hill into us, we all played nicely.

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Playing Scrabble, waiting for the boats.

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The theme of this Venetian Night was Hollywood, so while I did not recognize many of the numbers, I became super excited when this Gilligan's Island one came around. The "Skipper" was singing, which wasn't too hot, but the boat was extremely nifty nonetheless.

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Of course, there was the nod to the Chicago Olympic bid--this boat received both cheers and boos.

Next came the fireworks.
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These guys are my favorites.
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Saturday, July 25, 2009

Seattle candids

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7057

My final day in Seattle

Since I was on my own Monday, I decided to do all the touristy things.

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First stop was the Space Needle.

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Next to it is the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame.

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There was a Jim Henson exhibit, which was feely (think pink shag rugs on the wall)!

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And a tower of guitars.


The next stop on my sightseeing tour was of the Underground, which consisted of tunnels underneath Pioneer Square in downtown Seattle. In 1889, the Great Seattle Fire ran destroyed 25 city blocks, mostly of wooden buildings. The merchants wanted to rebuild as quickly as possible and did so. However, the city official took their sweet time only to come up with a plan a few years later to raise the streets out of the much. Thus, the first story of many buildings became basement level, but business continued to thrive in these tunnels until a rat infestation finally shut them down. Now it's a tourist trap by which tours of 300 run through each day.
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Lots of cool old stuff.
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A particularly interesting aspect of the underground was the lighting system. Hard glass like this was placed in the ceiling.
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Shown here.
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This is what it looked liked from the street.
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This was supposedly what the Seattle water system consisted of.
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The view from the street.
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Our friendly tour guide.
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This cool guy stands outside the art museum.
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Seattle Pictures - Day 2 Con't

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Pike's Place Market

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Home of the Original Starbucks, which came complete with banjo today.

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Next, we were off to the Klondike Gold Rush Historical Park, which was indoors!

Seattle, June 28, 2009
But it had real live park rangers, so I was happy!

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This was all the stuff a fella had to take with him to be allowed into Canada.

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Our final stop was "Waterfall Garden Park," which is a purty man-made waterfall and the brithplace of UPS!

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Leaving downtown Seattle, another view of Mt. Rainer.

Seattle Pictures - Day 2 - The Seattle Gay Pride Parade

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I didn't really understand this platform...but it was a really cute car.

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Doesn't he look like he's having fun?

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Here come the ladies...Please note the pasties--CBS would not approve.

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...And more colorful ladies...damn girl, those shoes are tall!

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Yummy and tasteful.

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Last, but not least...gay Vikings!