Sticky Cherry Barbecue Ribs

We've got guests for Memorial Day! We had a lonely two days without out of town company, but now we are back in business. Thus begins our busy summer season. When you live somewhere gorgeous and warm, with the added benefit of my parent's resort style backyard just a couple of doors down, we soak more company than we do summer sun. And we absolutely love it. Would you like to come for a visit? Our door is always open. But call ahead since the rooms fill fast. So with all this company, I'm rolling up my sleeves and heading to my lovely kitchen. The Quiet Man bought a few nice racks or ribs and I thought I'd tinker around with a sweet cherry barbecue sauce. I'm mighty glad that I did, because we've got a new overwhelming favorite. Even the non-meat eaters lapped up the cherry barbecue sauce on homemade onion rings (onion ring recipe coming soon). The carnivores ruled the day with these sticky-sweet-smoky and slightly spicy ribs, so tender they could fall right off the bone. I made a variation on my homemade barbecue sauce with a bit of reduced cherry cola, ketchup, mustard, oh, and a bit of this and that. After boiling, I added in some cherry snow cone syrup to give it a fresh pop of cherry flavor. You could also use cherry grenadine, or some pureed cherry preserves. It's the perfect way to say hello to summer days. And if you've got Memorial Day company, they may never want to leave. So plan accordingly.

Cherry Barbecue Sauce (Makes about 3 cups)
Estimated Cost: $4.00
1 12 ounce can cherry cola
2 cups ketchup
1 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup mustard
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup chili powder
1/3 cup cherry snow cone syrup, cherry grenadine syrup, or pureed cherry preserves thinned with water
Boil cherry cola in medium saucepan to reduce by half, about 20 minutes. Add remaining ingredients EXCEPT the cherry snow cone syrup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Boil sauce for twenty minutes. Add syrup and boil one minute.

For the Ribs (8 servings)
Estimated Cost: (You should be able to get ribs for about $3.00 a lb over the holiday weekend. Shop the sales! I got mine for $1.99/lb) $8.00 -$12.00 for 4 lbs.
4 lbs country style ribs
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons paprika
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
THE NIGHT BEFORE. Pat ribs dry and place ribs in large roasting pan. Rub ribs all over with garlic powder, chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Cover with foil and refrigerate over night. THE MORNING OF: Bake ribs at 300, covered in foil, for 3 hours, turning once. (Store in fridge if you aren't going to be eating right away.) 30 MINUTES BEFORE SERVING: Grill ribs on medium hot grill, basting with plenty of cherry barbecue sauce. The ribs are already cooked through, so you will only grill them to give them the smoky flavor and to allow the sauce to carmelize on the ribs.

Next Up:
Onion Rings with the same Cherry Barbecue Sauce