Now’s the time to experiment

March 10, 2010

Frank Kourt Register Columnist The Richmond Register Wed Mar 10, 2010, 11:01 AM EST

RICHMOND — Here we are in the depths of the March doldrums … not quite spring, yet not quite out of winter.

Holiday entertainment is past, and we’re not really ready to give up on our kitchen creations and go back to the same old things we used to do.

I recently spent a weekend with a very good friend who told me he could make a really great rib dish on top of the stove. Being a purist, I told him in no uncertain terms, that good barbecue ribs could only be made on a grill … Period!

Well, folks, I’m here to tell you, I couldn’t have been more wrong!

My good friend Donny taught me something, and I’m going to share it with you. We’re talking “fall off the bone, tender, melt-in-your mouth” ribs. Mine tend to be of the more conventional variety, done on the grill, but I can’t say mine are any better!

Great ribs can, indeed, be made on top of the stove! Yes, of course, I’ll let you know how he did it … see Donny’s recipe below.

Donny also taught me a great cheesecake recipe, and it’s included here, as well.

Just as I learned something from Donny, perhaps we can all sit back and take a look at our traditional recipes and consider how we might cook things a bit differently … things we can add or subtract to make things a bit more unconventional, and make them different, or even better.

After all, it’s about what you like! You need to please yourself first.

Frank’s Ribs On The Grill

Ingredients:

4 lbs. country or western ribs

Garlic salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 bottle KC Masterpiece sauce

Preparation:

Place the ribs on a hot grill. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper. Close cover and grill for one-half hour. Turn the ribs, sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper. Close grill for another half hour. Baste with KC Masterpiece sauce, turn. When the sauce begins to brown, turn. Add more sauce, turn for about seven minutes. Take off grill and serve.

Donny’s Ribs — Stove-Top Method

Ingredients:

4 lbs. country or western ribs

Garlic salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1-2 bottles of your favorite barbecue sauce

Preparation:

Sprinkle the ribs with garlic salt and pepper; brown the ribs on both sides in a cast iron skillet. When ribs are brown, pour in the barbecue sauce to cover. Cover the pan and simmer for 30 minutes, turning, occasionally. Simmer an additional 30 minutes, or until the meat is falling off the bones. Add water as needed.

Truly terrific!

Donny’s No-Bake Cheese Cake

Ingredients:

1 package lemon Jello

1 1/4 cups hot water

3/4 cups sugar

3 T lemon juice

8 oz. cream cheese

1 large can Pet milk, chilled, then whipped

Preparation:

To make the crust, line the bottom of a 9 inch pie shell with the crust mixture. Pour the cream cheese mixture on top. Top with more graham cracker crumbs. Chill.

Here are a few of my own suggestions:

Frank’s Fettuccine Alfredo

Ingredients:

1 lb. fettuccine, cooked al dente

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup fresh grated Romano cheese

1/3 cup cream or half and half

1/2 tsp. salt

Ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

Melt the butter and place in the bottom of a large pasta bowl. Add the cheese, cream and salt. Drain, but do not rinse the hot pasta. Toss the pasta in the cheese mixture until well coated. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Chicken Scaloppini

Ingredients:

Four boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved.

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 tsp. coarse ground pepper

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. parsley

1 tsp. salt

1 cup cream sherry

olive oil for cooking

Preparation:

Cut the chicken breasts in half. Between two sheets of waxed paper, pound each halved breast with a wooden kitchen mallet until thin. Dip each chicken cutlet into the lightly beaten eggs, then into the flour that has been seasoned with the oregano, parsley, salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a fry pan and sauté each cutlet until golden on each side. Transfer to a platter and keep warm in a low oven until ready to serve. When all chicken is done, pour off excess fat from pan, add sherry and bring to boil. Add cutlets and allow each to be well coated with the wine. Let the wine bubble until nearly evaporated. Serve immediately.

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