Independence Day Barbecue

Independence Day Barbecue

That being said, I am going to throw a couple of other
recipes on here. There may be a couple you want to try,
especially if you plan on making a day of it, with the
Grand Finale being the Boston Butt - it wouldn't hurt to
have a couple of very good different dishes to make
along the way.

Independence Day, 4th of July, whatever your
preference for naming of this most American of holidays,
it is a GREAT time for a barbecue!

Start it early with a biscuit breakfast and a good cup of
coffee, and finish it late with BBQ and fireworks!

You can keep the grill, the smoker and the egg busy all
day on this one if you want, especially if your fireworks
are local and don't involve too much advance attendance,
or waiting in traffic when they're over.

There is so much you could barbecue this day, from ribs
to Boston butt to - you name it, you can hardly go wrong!

But since I listed the ribs on the Memorial Day page - I
am going to go with the anchor of July 4th dinner as the
Boston Butt. I lean this way because typically this is one
of my biggest barbeques of the year, with a lot of friends
and family in attendance, and, well, it gets expensive to
make ribs for that many people, and the everyone loves
the Boston Butt just about as much, so there it is!

So go for the Butt - buy one, and go to the "Q Techniques"
section of the site for the all-important cooking methods.

A true patriot!

Crab Dip

I love seafood in the summer, and this one is not hard to put together, but packs good flavor,
one that will contrast nicely with the barbecue meat that comes later...

11 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 small onion, finely chopped
5 tablespoons mayonnaise, or sour cream
2 (6 ounce) cans crabmeat, drained and flaked
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
1 (1 pound) loaf round, crusty Italian bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, onion, mayonnaise, crabmeat, garlic powder,
cayenne, salt and pepper. Spread mixture into a 1 quart baking dish.

Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven. While the dip is baking, cut a circle in the top of
the bread, and scoop out the inside to create a bread bowl. Tear the removed bread into
pieces for dipping.

Remove baked crab dip from the oven, and stir well. Spoon the mixture into the hollowed out
loaf. Place bread bowl and chunks of bread on a medium baking sheet, and bake for an
additional 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Jambalaya

This one is a little more involved, but if you are making a day (or weekend!) of it, and need a
good lunch...

3 gallon pot with lid for cooking
5lb boneless skinless chicken breast - chopped
4lb Conecuh sausage links (spicy if you prefer) - chopped
Bacon to grease the pot with, (not much needed)
2 green bell peppers - chopped
2 white onions – chopped
5 stalks celery - chopped
4 cloves garlic - chopped
2 habanera peppers - chopped
150 oz chicken broth
60 oz rice (standard grain)
2 cans Rotel tomatos with chilis - medium
1 can golden mushroom soup
1 stick butter
Tony Chachere's creole seasoning
Salt and pepper
Using bacon grease the pot by heating it up and letting the fat cook out of the meat. A little less
than a 8th of an inch or less, do not burn the grease.
Take the bacon out, leaving the grease, put the chopped chicken in lowering your heat and
letting it steam with the lid on. Check this about every 2-3 minutes, stirring while you check.
Once the chicken has produced a nice broth or has turned white put the sausage in. Repeat
with the sausage.
Season lightly with salt
Season generously with pepper
Season generously with Tony's seasoning.
Let it cook until sausage starts to curl on cut edges or until it has made it's own broth.
Put the stick of butter in and melt
Put all of the vegetables in. Stir into the meat and let simmer for 25 min. on low heat. Stir about
every 3 min.
Lightly season with Tony's and stir
Add the Rotel tomatoes and golden mushroom, let it cook down, 10min
Add the chicken broth and let it cook for about 35 minutes at a low boil. Check for taste, make
sure you get the sausage and chicken in while tasting. Add more Tony's if needed, if not, add ½
beer and let cook for 5 more min.
Add the rice and lower the heat. Do not let the rice sit, keep stirring every 60 seconds. It will stick
to the bottom of the pot. If jambalaya gets too thick and rice is not cooked add additional chicken
broth to help rice cook or turn off heat completely and let the rice steam with the lid on.
Use Tabasco for additional heat and have plenty of friends to share this with, serves up to 12!

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Chess Pie is a Southern favorite.

Back before people in the South had
refrigerators, baked goods were placed in
wooden cupboards designated as chests.
Some pies could hold up in them without
refrigeration, and this type of pie was one
that did so very well, earning the name
"Chest Pie", which eventually became
"Chess Pie".

It is rich and creamy, incredibly good!

I came across this recipe in a newspaper
and was completely pleased with the
result. It is easy to make and has a great
balance of flavor, sort of like a custard, but
perhaps a bit sweeter - Enjoy!

Lou Cox's Chess Pie

4 lg        eggs
1 cup        sugar, granulated
2 TBLSP        Buttermilk
2 TBLSP        Cornmeal, plain
1/2 cup        Butter, unsalted, melted
1 tsp        Vanilla extract, pure
1 pinch        Salt
1 (9-inch)        Pie Crust, deep dish,
unbaked

Heat oven to 350`F. In a medium bowl
whisk eggs until smooth. Add sugar,
buttermilk and cornmeal, beating after
each addition. Add butter, vanilla and salt.
Stir to combine. Pour into unbaked pie
shell and transfer to oven. Bake until
nicely browned, about 1 hour. Remove to
rack to cool.

A golden brown
treat, chess pie is
a long standing
southern favorite!