For the last month, I've pretty much lived on pizza and take out.  I remember squeezing a day of ribs and a test brisket recipe in, but it has definitely some time since I really cooked.  This weekend, I was in desperate need of some food therapy.  My hands are raw from all of the dishes that I have washed, but my stomach is definitely full and happy!

From left to right: BBQ Beer Can Chicken, Leftover BBQ Chicken Nachos, Farm Eggs with Peppered Bacon and Strawberry Orange Juice, Smoked Pulled Pork Shoulder, Cherries Jubilee Ice Cream, Grilled Tomahawk Steak.

Saturday Night:  BBQ Beer Can Chicken

Saturday started with a beer can chicken recipe inspired by Malcom Reed. The chicken was incredibly moist and layered with a smoky, tangy flavor that comes from the combination of the butter, spice rub, cooking liquid, and BBQ sauce.  I feel like the most important step was the spritzing of the chicken every 20 minutes.  Don't skip this step; it is worth being tied to your kitchen timer while this bird cooks!

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, 3-4 pounds
• Spice rub mix (see below)
• 8 oz apple juice
• 2 bottles of your favorite beer (I used Modelo Especial)
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
• Canola oil
• Worcestershire sauce
• BBQ sauce (pick your favorite, but I'll describe my "combo" below)

Special equipment:

• Vertical roaster (you can substitute a beer can, just pour half for yourself and leave half for your chicken!)
• Spray bottle

For the spice rub mix, mix two tablespoons each of light brown sugar, sweet paprika, dry mustard, garlic powder, and ancho chile powder.  Add one tablespoon each of kosher salt and ground black pepper and about 3/4 tablespoon of cayenne.  

For the BBQ sauce, I combined equal parts of Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ sauce and Famous Dave's Rich and Sassy BBQ sauce.  I added a shot of bourbon and a half shot of water, then heated up the sauce over medium heat for about 30 minutes.  

Start by rubbing the softened butter underneath the skin of the breast.  Then rub a small amount of canola oil over the entire chicken.  Follow with the rub, both on the outside of the chicken and inside the cavity.  

Next, you need to prepare your vertical roaster.  Use a full bottle of beer, 4 oz of apple juice, and a about a tablespoon of the worcestershire sauce.  Create the same mixture in your spray bottle.

Place the chicken on the vertical roaster, then place the chicken on the grill over indirect heat and cook at 250 degrees for two hours.  Every 20 minutes, open the grill and spritz the chicken with the beer, apple juice, and worcestershire mixture.

At the end of the cooking time, the internal temperature of the breast should be 165 degrees and the internal temperature of the thigh should be 175 degrees.  This took me exactly two hours to achieve using the Green Egg with the plate setter.  Right before you reach temperature, baste the chicken with the BBQ sauce.  I actually basted this right at the two hour mark, let the chicken sit for 5 more minutes on the grill, then removed the chicken and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving. You can serve the BBQ sauce on the side, but I promise you that you won't need it. Between the rub, the "spritz," and the little bit of basting sauce, you will achieve an amazing BBQ flavor without all of that sticky sauce.

Sunday Night: Smoked Pulled Pork and Cherries Jubilee Ice Cream

I used Malcolm Reed's Smoked Pork Butt for Pulled Pork recipe on his HowtoBBQRight website.  I used an 8 pound pork shoulder, coated the pork with just under two tablespoons of dijon mustard (because that is all I have left), then covered the pork in Reed's The AP Rub before using The BBQ Rub.  I used the Green Egg with the plate setter, added a few apple wood chips, and maintained a constant temperature of 250 degrees for the entire cook time.  Before placing the pork in aluminum foil, I spritzed the pork every 40 minutes with the left over beer, apple juice, and worcestershire sauce mixture that I made the day before.  

I followed Reed's advice about only shredding enough meet for a single meal.  I served this Sunday as is; no BBQ sauce.  The meat was super tender and had a robust, smoky BBQ flavor.  I'm planning on doing BBQ pork sliders later in the week and then probably pork nachos. If you are lucky, you might see a tupperware container of pork appear on your desk or at your front door later this week.  Eight pounds of pork is a lot of pork!

For the cherries jubilee ice cream, I used my standard ice cream recipe (see my previous posts), then, brought two cups of chopped, fresh, organic cherries, two tablespoons of sugar, and about a half shot of shot of brandy to a strong simmer.  Once the mixture cools, add it to the ice cream base before putting it into the refrigerator to chill.  

Monday Afternoon:  Leftover BBQ Chicken Nachos

This one is easy!  Just tear apart your leftover chicken (remove the skin) and toss it on top of your favorite nacho chips and add some queso cheese.  Bake the nachos for about 7 minutes in a 400 degree oven.  When the nachos come out, add some chopped green onions and any other of your favorite toppings.

My new favorite nacho chips are the Standard Market brand chips.  I won't call them "home made" but whatever they do to them is perfect; just enough salt and oil and a nice crunch! My go to queso is still Tostitos Medium Salsa Con Queso and I used 3/4 of a large jar.  I love cheese, so what can I say?

Monday Night:  Grilled Tomahawk Steak

I'm giving Malcolm Reed full credit for this one too.  I bought a great tomahawk steak from Sages Meat Market and followed Reed's Reverse Seared Tomahawk Ribeye recipe.  I used the Green Egg for the entire cook time, first with the plate setter and a temperature of 250 degrees.  When the steak came up to 115 degrees internal temperature, I took the steak and the plate setter off, then let the Green Egg come up to 600 degrees and seared the steak for two minutes each side.  Let the steak rest about 7 minutes before digging in!

Tuesday Morning: Scrambled Eggs with Peppered Bacon and Strawberry Orange Juice

You are on your own with this one, but do yourself a favor and give Rustic Road Farm in Elburn a try.  You can't beat the fresh eggs and veggies there.  Plus, their pork is delicious!  Try the cottage bacon and use The Bacon Method to cook it.  This bacon is my favorite!

Tuesday Night:  Keeping it Simple...kind of

I'm grilling up some Limoncello Chicken Wings and Italian sausage for dinner tonight while my husband finishes up a batch of gravy (red sauce to the American readers out there)! Also decided to mix up a batch of peach raspberry ice cream for later this week.  I told you I needed some food therapy!

Happy Fourth of July!