Smoking Hot Spicy Spare Ribs - Now And Award Winner

This recipe is an easy one that I used to enter the county fair. 
It makes for a tasty sauce with a slow kick that builds in the back of your mouth the more you eat. That allows you to control the amount of fire you get as you eat.

 
Ingredients

 2 racks of St. Louis Style Pork Ribs (approximately 2 1/2 pounds each)

1/4 C Sriracha  sauce

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon powdered garlic

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon cumin

1/2 small onion, grated

2 garlic cloves, minced

1  cup ketchup

1 tbsp cocoa powder

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Salt and Pepper

Directions

Prepare grill for offset cooking (we used a gas grill). Rub dried ribs with half the butter plus garlic powder, cayenne and chili flakes.

Wrap ribs in aluminum foil; wrap tightly. Place in closed grill with wood chips. Cook until meat is fork-tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

To make the rib sauce:

In a medium saucepan, pour coffee over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic powders, season with salt and pepper. Add hot sauce, ketchup, cocoa powder, Worcestershire, and chili powders. Bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thick, about 5 minutes.

Remove ribs from grill. Brush ribs generously with sauce and place back on the grill without foil until browned (about 3 minutes per side). Serve with additional sauce for dipping.

Here's a fun note - so as not to waste all of that great smoke and extra sauce, I threw in some country-style boneless pork ribs. They worked great when prepared the same way. Some members in our family don't care for fussing with the bones of bone-in ribs.

Twisted Cheese Sticks Recipe

Here's a recipe I am entering in the "day of" cheese competition at the county fair:

Ingredients

2 cups flour, plus more for dusting

1 teaspoon  salt

¼ teaspoon chili powder

¼ teaspoon smoked paprika

2 tablespoons water

¼ pound sharp California cheddar cheese, grated and warmed to room temperature

¼ pound California mozzarella cheese, grated and warmed to room temperature

6 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, shredded

1 stick of butter + 3 tablespoons, warmed to room temperature

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon powdered garlic

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

Grate cheeses in separate containers (do not mix) and set aside.

Mix together cheddar cheese, 1 tablespoon water and half the butter and set aside.

Mix together mozzarella cheese, 1 tablespoon water and half the butter and set aside.

Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl until well combined.  Divide dry ingredients in half. In the first half, add in the cheddar cheese/butter mixture and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine the second half of dry ingredients with the mozzarella/butter mixture.

On a lightly floured surface roll out the cheddar cheese dough into a rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick.

Melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and mix in olive oil and powered garlic. Divide in half. With a pastry brush, brush the top of the cheddar cheese dough with half of the olive oil spread.

On another lightly floured surface roll out the mozzarella cheese dough into a rectangle of about the same size and thickness and place over cheddar cheese rectangle.

With a greased pizza cutter, cut the dough into 1 inch strips. Twist each strip and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Brush lightly with remaining olive oil spread. Top with parmesan cheese.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the edges just barely begin to brown.