Sunday Family Dinner

My husband and I don't cook family dinner together often; with our crazy schedules, it's usually one of us throwing together a meal, which is preplanned over the weekend. So tonight was pretty special and enjoyable as Mike & I made slow baked pork ribs, caesar salad, quinoa and my mom's baked beans.

Mike's ribs were fall off the bone, juicy, fabulous! I wish I could share the recipe with you, but my fireman is famous for opening my spice drawer and just creating. He couldn't remember what he made for the life of him. Same with the quinoa; he goes in the refrigerator and cupboards to see what I have on hand and then throws it together to create some amazing dish. Needless to say, I am totally jealous of him! I will tell you that he bakes his ribs for 2 hours, at 300º in a roasting pan covered with foil. Once done, he brushes them with barbeque sauce and throws them on the grill for 5-10 minutes each side to caramelize the sauce.

My contribution that I am sharing with you is my homemade caesar salad recipe and my Mom's barbeque beans recipe. I first learned how to make caesar salad in a cooking class, then found an awesome recipe in Williams-Sonoma; the problem is that I loved it, but my family thought it was too spicy. So using that recipe as a base, I make my own, which my family loves! The bean recipe is one that my Mom gave me and Mike loves - I never wrote the recipe down and used to call my mom when I needed to make it. Now that she is gone, I'm posting it not only to share with all of you (because it is that easy and good), but so I can come here to pull it up...I hope you all enjoy the recipes!

Caesar Salad

1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper (or more to taste)
2 tsp red wine vinegar
2 dashes Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup olive oil
1 head romaine lettuce - rinsed and chopped
1/4 shredded Parmesan cheese
Croutons (optional)

In the bottom of a large salad bowl, add garlic, salt pepper, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Whisk ingredients together so fully blended. While still whisking, slowly drizzle olive oil into bowl. Dressing should thicken while whisking. Whisk until olive oil has been completely added and dressing is thick. Add salad, cheese and croutons; toss salad until dressing has thoroughly covered the salad.


Mom's Barbeque Beans

1 28 oz can baked beans
1 16oz can kidney beans, drained
1 bottle barbeque sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbs honey
1 red or orange bell, seeded and chopped
1/2 white onion, chopped
2 hot links (I use Evergood), diced

Combine all ingredients in a 3 quart pot and simmer until thoroughly heated.