A Simple Day of Experimenting

Today's objective: Create a delicious dinner of spare ribs, smashed potatoes and braised finocchio (fennel).

I have made ribs several times, but for some reason they always cook really weird and exude some weird kind of what I think is marrow and while the pork always tastes great, it looks really unappetizing. This time however, I followed the directions that my sister Diane gave me and they turned out great. I still had that weird gelatinous stuff, but the meat was great, tender, fell off the bone and very well saturated with bbq sauce. They were delicious, they went into the oven at 9:00 a.m. this morning and we at at 4:30 p.m. this afternoon.

Diane's directions:
Put the spare ribs in a pan and season with Adobo, salt, pepper and garlic. Then fill the pan about 1/2 way up the side of the ribs with water. Cover the ribs very tightly with aluminum foil and place in a 250 degree oven. Cook them long enough so that they aren't pink anymore, drain most of the water/broth off and slathered them with bbq sauce. Put them back in the oven until about an hour before dinner, then uncover and turn the oven up to 350 degrees. This is the easiest most delicious way to make ribs at home. Thanks Diane!!!!

I also made Giada DeLaurentis' Braised Fennel recipe, I've never made fennel before, I only remember fennel as a dipping vegetable that was eaten on Christmas Eve. My dad would cut it into slices and dip it in an olive oil/herb mixture. I have to tell you, I could eat this every day. I loved it. Fennel is very anise in flavor when raw, but baked like this the anise flavor sort of disappeared and was replaced by a rich buttery flavor that I am sure I am not describing suffiently...needless to say, it is my new favorite vegetable.

I, however, only made only a 1/4 of the recipe because I was not sure everyone would like it. I was right in my assumption, my daughter wasn't thrilled and my husband's reaction wasn't much more positive. Please note, my family would walk a mile out of their way to avoid vegetables if they could. So please do not use their opinions when deciding to make this.







Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 fennel bulbs, cut horizontally into 1/3-inch thick slices, fronds reserved
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup freshly shredded Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Lightly oil the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Arrange the fennel in the dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then with the Parmesan. Drizzle with the oil. Bake until the fennel is fork-tender and the top is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Chop enough fennel fronds to equal 2 teaspoons, then sprinkle over the roasted fennel and serve.

Last but not least, I also made Giada's smashed potatoes. They were an enormous hit and crazy simple to make. Take about 2 lbs. of fingerling or new potatoes (I used red and white new potatoes). Wash them thoroughly and boil in salted water until fork tender. Drain and let dry for a few minutes.

While potatoes dry saute 4-5 cloves of garlic in about 1/4 cup of olive oil. When potatoes are dry, place on your cooking surface (cutting board, counter etc.) and smash gently with the heal of your hand. Try not to mash too much or they will fall apart. Place potatoes in hot oil and brown gently on both sides. Remove from oil with a slotted spoon to a serving platter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, then stand back before you get trampled as your family descends on the platter. :O)

So that is today...come back tomorrow when I am going to teach my daughter and almost daughter how to make home made pasta for lasagna. I am certain we will have a great time.

hugs,
dina