April in Tucson.... what better time to be outside.... and Katie and Denis are taking it back Sesame Street Style with a Letter "B" Backyard BBQ!

 

Beverages:  Heather & Eric

What Better Beverage than a Beer cooler full of Boont, Black Butte Porter, Barrel IPA and Blue Moon!

 A truly Beautiful Display:

And if Beer isn't your thing... not to worry, we had a Befitting selection of Bourbon, Berneroy Brandy, or a Bergerac wine from Château Belingard in Comte de Bosredon!



Thanks Heather & Eric!





Basil Balsamic Bruschetta on a French Baguette:  Ryan & MJ

What a perfect Balance of flavors.... MJ drizzles just a Bit of Balsamic for the finishing touch!

It was so good we had to count pieces to make sure we all got the same much!

Recipe:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/balsamic-bruschetta/

Bourbon BBQ Beef Brisket Sliders, Brussels Sprout Salad, and Baked Mac 'n Cheese:  Katie & Denis

 Katie & Denis demonstrate how to serve their Bountiful Buffet... Yum Yum Yum!!!

The homemade Bourbon BBQ sauce was a hit!

A Perfect Backyard BBQ!

3rd Place Winner:  Culinary Couples Year One - Best Dinner!








Recipes:

Bourbon BBQ Sauce: 

½ onion, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

¾ cup bourbon

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

½ tablespoon salt

2 cups ketchup

¼ cup tomato paste

1/3 cup cider vinegar

2 tablespoons liquid smoke

¼ cup Worcestershire sauce

½ cup brown sugar, packed

1/3 teaspoon hot sauce or to taste (Tabasco).

Over medium heat, add onion garlic and whiskey to a large pan and simmer for 10 minutes or until onions are cooked.  Add in black pepper, salt, ketchup, tomato paste, vinegar, liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar and hot sauce.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes (careful it will bubble and spatter everywhere!).  Run sauce through strainer and then let it sit in the refrigerator overnight before use.  Leftovers lasted in our fridge for the next week - probably would've kept longer if we had been able to resist eating it all!

Beef Brisket Sliders:

1 beef brisket – about 5 lbs

Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon paprika

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

BBQ Sauce – about 2-3 cups depending on taste

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Generously sprinkle brisket with salt and pepper.  Then mix onion powder, paprika, garlic powder, cumin and cayenne pepper together.  Then dry rub both sides of the brisket with the spice mix.

In the slow cooker, add about a cup of Bourbon BBQ sauce to the bottom and then place the brisket on top with the fatty side up.  Put more BBQ sauce on top of the brisket.  Set the slow cooker to low and leave for about 9 hours or until the meat starts to fall apart.

When cooked, remove meat and place on cutting board.  Slice the fat cap off the top and discard.  Then slice meat against the grain into chunks – it will likely just fall apart.  Pour the juice/sauce from the slow cooker into a bowl and skim off the fat.  Add cornstarch to the juice and stir until thickened.

Add meat, then some juice and more BBQ sauce back to slow cooker (add sauce and juice slowly so that it is the consistency you want).  Cook on low for about another hour until it is all combined and the sauce is bubbling and thickened.  Serve on buns with additional BBQ sauce. 

Brussels Sprout Salad: 

1-2 lbs Brussels sprouts, outer leaves only

3-4 cups arugula

Freshly shaved parmesan cheese

Olive oil

Fresh lemon juice

Salt and Pepper

Remove outer leaves from Brussels sprouts by cutting off base and peeling off leaves (the rest can be reserved for cooked Brussels sprouts another time).  This process does take some time, so be patient.

Once all leaves are removed, blanche them in boiling water for one minute.  After one minute, remove leaves with a slotted spoon and submerge then in an ice water bath.  This will cook them slightly, but still leave the bright green color and crunch to them.  

Dry off leaves and add to salad bowl.  Toss in arugula.  Then dress with a fresh drizzles of olive oil and squeezes of lemon juice – adjust amounts to your liking.  Toss with salt and pepper.  Add shaved parmesan and serve.

Baked Mac 'n Cheese 

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus extra for buttering the dish

1 cup cream

5 cups milk

½ cup flour

2 teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

4 ½ cups grated sharp cheddar (I used regular because that was all I could find, but recipe calls for white cheddar which would have been even better)

2 cups grated gruyere cheese

1 ¼ cups grated pecorino romano cheese

1-2 lb macaroni

Bread crumbs for topping

Begin by heating milk and cream in a saucepan.  In a separate pan, melt 6 tablespoons of butter, once melted add in flour and cook for 1 minute, continually stirring.  Then pour in hot milk/cream mixture while whisking.  Continue to cook and whisk until the mixture thickens and bubbles.

Remove the pan from heat and stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper and ¾ of all cheeses (about 3 cups of cheddar, 1.5 cups of gruyere and 1 cup of pecorino).  Stir until cheese is melted into sauce.

Cook macaroni until just slightly underdone (about 1-2 minutes less than the package instructions).  Drain and then stir macaroni into the cheese sauce.  (If using more macaroni, add slowly until the cheesy level is to your liking - I thought that one pound would’ve been too little for all that cheese sauce, which is why I added more pasta).

Finally, pour mixture into a buttered casserole dish.  Top with remaining cheese and then scatter with breadcrumbs.  Bake in a 375 degree oven until browned on top, about 30 minutes.  Serve and enjoy the cheesy, baked goodness.

Blanton's Bourbon Banana Bundt Cake with Brown Butter Bourbon Frosting served with Blue Bell Banilla Ice Cream:  Ann & Jason

See that Bottle of Blanton's in the Background?  Let's just say it was significantly fuller Before Jason made his own adaptation to the the Brown Butter Frosting!

And in case you were wondering Banilla is a close relative of Vanilla :)

Recipe:
http://www.sweettarteblog.com/2013/03/bourbon-banana-bundt-cake-with-brown.html

Feel free to add as much bourbon as you'd like!  We "drenched" the cake in bourbon after it came out of the oven.  Don't listen to the instructions to add more water to the icing to make it more of a glaze, instead add.... you guessed it..... BOURBON!!!