Oven Baked "Fall-off-the-Bone" Baby Back Ribs

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Ingredients:

1 Rack Baby Back Ribs

Signature Dry Rub

If you are low carbin', I recommend making your own dry rub since most pork rubs have brown sugar or some kind of sweetener. Just blend together your favorite seasonings to get the desired mix of salty, savory, & spicy flavors.  Besides, making your own dry rub will automatically give you some "street cred" among the Southern BBQ folks. Have fun with it and come up with a catchy name for your signature rub.  If you must have some sweetness, then you can blend in some sugar alcohols or artificial sweetener. Personally, I'll leave the sweet stuff to the folks in Kansas because here in Texas sweet BBQ makes less sense than a screen door on a submarine.

"Art's Country Engineered (We Ain't in Kansas Anymore) Texas Dry Rub Recipe"

1 tsp Salt

2 tsp Black Pepper

1/2 tsp Red Pepper

2 Tbsp Chili Powder

2 tsp Garlic Powder

1 tsp Fajita Seasoning

1/2 tsp Paprika

1 tsp Onion Powder

First remove the tough skin/membrane off of the back of the ribs.  Take a small knife and insert it between the skin and meat (just under the skin) in the center of the rack. Make the slit between two center ribs and cut it deep enough to fit a finger into.  Slide your finger between the skin and meat and pull the skin off of the ribs.  This should enable you to remove the entire membrane in one piece. Might take a bit of muscle, but it should come off without too much struggle. Grunt loudly and finish with a carnivorous roar as you rip off the membrane to make sure you scare your guests a little bit and live up to your newly earned "Street Cred".

Next lay the ribs on a piece of aluminum foil and coat the entire rack of ribs (top/bottom/& sides) with your signature dry rub. 

Wrap the ribs tightly and place in the oven @ 275°F for 3-1/2 to 4 hours. No need to turn them or do anything but wait patiently.

Slice and enjoy.  The meat should be extremely tender and almost falling off the bone. The only downside is you will probably wish you would have done 2 or 3 racks of ribs.

Warning-Don't let too many people know that you cooked the ribs in the oven or you might loose some of that "Street Cred" mentioned earlier.  These ribs might not have that amazing smokey flavor of ribs smoked over a mesquite fire all afternoon, but they are very simple to prepare and are sure to please.

Grilled Pork Loin Chops

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If you are trying to earn a cool nickname try serving this winning dish to your friends and maybe you will be known as "Pork Chop".  Even though it didn't work out for Costanza, it might turn out better for you.  Just make sure you don't serve them with a side of string beans or a bowl of beanie wienies.  That could backfire.

Grilled Loin Chop w/Steamed Broccoli and Sauted Spinach

Pork loin chops (To save a few bucks, buy a pork loin on sale and slice it into 3/4" chops yourself)
I have saved some dough by purchasing the entire pork loin from Sams Club which is generally about 2 to 3 feet long.  I then divide it into thirds.  One third I will make a pork loin roast, the other some sort of stuffed loin, and the last third I slice into chops.

I like to slice these loin chops thick so that they will remain juicy after cooking.  The cooking process should aid at keeping the chops moist.

Season the chops with Salt, pepper, garlic powder, red pepper or your favorite blend of spices.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place a tablespoon of oil in your cast iron pan on high heat.  Let the pan get hot then add the chops.  The goal is to sear the chops.  Let the chop sear for 1 minute, then flip and sear the other side for 1 minute.  Pull the pan off the heat and place directly into the oven for 20 minutes or until meat is cooked through.

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Zucchini Wrapped Pork Loin Chops

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I remember seeing a similar recipe in a Better Homes & Garden magazine and decided to make a few modifications and give it a try.

1 large zucchini
6 to 8 pork loin chops (To save money you can buy the whole pork loin on sale and slice it into chops yourself)
olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp basil pesto
Italian seasoning, salt, & pepper

Slice the zucchini as thin as you can.  Try to get 2 slices for each chop.  The zucchini needs to be thin so that they are pliable.  Season each pork chop with salt, pepper, & italian seasoning.  Wrap each chop with two slices of zucchini and place toothpicks in the chops to keep the zucchini in place.  Brush the zucchini and chops with the olive oil and place on a rack in a baking sheet.  Bake in the oven @350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until the pork is done.  Mix the pesto and minced garlic and serve each chop with a little pesto on the side for dipping. 

I served the pork chops with a side salad.  There is nothing that great about the salad except that instead of croutons, my wife came up with the idea to make backed cheese crisps to top the salad.  These tasted great and added an amazing texture to the salad.

Cheese Crisps:
1/2 cup grated cheese (I like to use a mexican cheese blend)
1/2 cup shredded pamasean
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Mix ingredients together. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and place a thin layer of cheese on the parchment paper.  The layer should be spread out so thin that the shreads of cheese only slightly overlap each other.  Bake at 400 until the cheese is melted and bubbling.  Set the oven to broil and toast the cheese to get it crispy.  Break the cheese into small pieces and use as a crunchy topping.