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Like a Tomahawk Ribeye, these thick cut Cowboy Ribeyes make Fred Flintstone look like a vegetarian! Just over 2″ think and weighing in around 3 pounds each, they took every method of cooking that I know to make them perfect!

So let’s start with the picture above. The bone-in Cowboy Ribeyes are obvious. The smaller steaks are filets for those without the appetite to gorge down a huge hunk of meat. Everything came from Sam’s Club. Matter-in-fact, the Cowboy Ribeyes were marked down 25% because their ‘sold by’ date had arrived. For $35/steak, I had to ask if they had more! And there is nothing wrong with having beef dry age a bit.

These spent 6 days in my meat fridge. Seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder and pepper, sitting on a wire rack, and flipping after 3 days, the dry aging makes the steak more tender and bit earthy in its taste.

About 4 hours before eating, the steaks went into the smoker. One hour for the big ‘uns, 30 minutes for the filets. Smoker was set for 165F. Just enough to get some smoke flavor into the meat.

We then moved to the sous vide at 125F for 3 hours to get everything up to temp. Each steak was vacuumed sealed and a Meater temp probe on one to keep track of the internal temp. The sous vide ensured that the entire steak would be cooked through.

Now to the direct flame sear. Seasoned with Jeff Ruby steak seasoning before dropping them on a cherry red hot grill. Two minutes/side to get them nice and perty. Pulled them around 130F, rested for 10 minutes to a perfect medium rare.

Served with a smoked twice baked potato and a Red Lobster cheddar bay biscuit. I ate about a quarter of the steak at this sitting, then proceeded to slice the leftovers thin and had 2 roast beef sandwiches and steak and eggs the next morning. The Cowboy Ribeye is just the gift that keeps on giving!

Had dinner at Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse over the weekend. Daughter asked for the bacon jam as a topping for her steak. Always thought that was something served on toast, but I’m here to tell you it was the bomb! Chunks of bacon with caramelized onions and shallots, mixed up with plenty of sugar. It’s delicious on its own, or topping a steak or a burger, if you haven’t had this before, you need to try it.

Start with 1 1/2 pounds of bacon cut into 1/2″ chunks. I am partial to my own bacon here. Brown the bacon and reserve 3T of grease for sautéing.

Slice 1 white onion and 2 shallots. Sauté with the bacon grease until dark and caramelized, about 15-20 minutes. Return bacon to the pan and add 1/2C apple cider vinegar, 1/2C brown sugar, 1/2C maple syrup and 1/2C black coffee. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes.

Using homemade bacon gives this a good smokey flavor, but if you want more smoke, combine the vinegar, syrup and coffee and smoke for 30 minutes before cooking it in the pan.

Happy New Year! My wife decides to buy heart healthy nuts from Costco to promote good eating. Raw, unsalted, bland and blah. Her definition of ‘good eating’ is different than mine, so lets spice things up!

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter for each cup of nuts you use. This recipe had 3 cups. Toss the nuts in the butter, than add 1 tablespoon of seasoning salt per cup to the nuts. If you like things hot, also add 1 tablespoon of cayenne pepper to the whole mix. Mix everything evenly and either place on a screen or on a cookie sheet in a 225F smoker for an hour. Stir the nuts every 20 minutes or so. Let cool and enjoy!

During the fresh peach season, a smoked peach cobbler is the perfect sweat treat after dinner.

In a large cast iron skillet, melt 2T of butter. In a bowl, toss 3 pounds of yellow peaches, pitted and sliced, with 1/4C of smoked simple syrup. Add to the skillet.

In another bowl, mix together 2/3C flour, 1t baking powder, 1/2t cinnamon, 1/4t salt.

In yet another bowl, cream 1/2C butter with 1/2C sugar, 1 egg and 1t vanilla. Fold in the flour mixture and spoon batter on top of peaches. Sprinkle the top with raw sugar.

Preheat your grill to 350F. Cook for about 45 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. If peaches are starting to look done, but the crust isn’t there yet, just place under a broiler for a few minutes to finish. Let sit for a few minutes so you don’t burn layers of skin off your mouth.

Prepared dish before baking.

This version of mac & cheese uses 4 cheeses, including American, which gives it a unique, stringy and delicious consistency. For a heavier, main dish, substitute gnocchi for the macaroni.

• 3C coarsely grated cheddar cheese
• 2C shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1C finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 2C (7oz) shredded American cheese
• 2.5C whole milk
• 1t salt
• 1t paprika
• 1t mustard powder
• 1/2t chili powder
• 1/2t ground nutmeg
• 1/2t garlic powder
• 1# any dry pasta. I used cavetappi in the picture, or 32oz fresh gnocchi
• 1/2C heavy cream
• Minced chives or parsley for serving

If using a dry pasta, prepare according to the package directions.

Mix together the cheddar, mozz and Parmesan, set aside.

In a large cast iron skillet, bring the milk to a simmer over medium heat. Add the salt, paprika, mustard powder, chili powder, nutmeg and garlic powder. Whisk and cook for about 2 muinutes.

Add in the cooked pasta or fresh gnocchi. Stir to coat and cook for about 2 minutes

Add the American cheese, stirring until it melts and slightly thickens the sauce. Add the heavy cream and half of the shredded cheese mixture. Stir until all the cheese melts.

Move the whole dish to your smoker set for the lowest setting. Smoke for 60 minutes, stirring every 15-20 minutes to effectively blend the smoke flavor throughout.

Top the dish with the remaining cheese and place under a broiler until the cheese is golden brown and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Let cool for a couple of minutes, garnish and serve.

The above picture was taken during the smoking stage, before topping with the additional cheese and broiling the top.

When my daughter-in-law proclaims “This is one of the best things you’ve ever made!” and my wife eats the whole dish without feeding the dogs, this recipe becomes a keeper!

The original concept came out of a Costco Connections magazine where they featured Firefighter’s Recipes. I loved the presentation, so I had to give it a try. Improvised a bit, and didn’t smoke a darn thing, but it was really, really good.

Here’s what you’ll need to make these show stopping babies:

• 2 whole pineapples
• 1 bunch chopped cilantro
• 3 plumb tomatoes, chopped
• 2 mangoes, chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 jalapeños, minced
• 2 limes
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2C soy sauce
• 2T water
• 1t sesame oil
• 1/2C brown sugar
• 1/2C rice wine vinegar
• 2t ginger
• 8 garlic cloves, minced
• 2t flour
• 4T bourbon
• 2# boneless chicken breast
• 2C uncooked jasmine rice
• Sesame sees & green onions, for garnish

For the Grilled Garlic & Herb Shrimp Skewers

• 4t paprika
• 4T minced garlic
• 4t Italian seasoning
• 4T lemon juice
• 1/2C olive oil
• 1t black pepper
• 4t dried basil
• 2T brown sugar
• 2# large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 12 skewers

Start with the shrimp. Wisk together all the ingredients above until thoroughly blended. Drop the shrimp in a gallon Ziploc bac and pour in the mixture. Seal the bag and toss to evenly coat the shrimp with the marinade. Refrigerate at least 2 hours, tossing every 30 minutes.

Next make the Pineapple/Mango salsa. Cut each pineapple in half lengthwise, including the leafy top. I used an electric knife, which was still tough to get through the green. May try my Sawzall next time. Cut and scoop out the pineapple, leaving 4 hollowed-out pineapple boats. Chop the removed pineapple and set the boats aside. Mix the chopped pineapple, cilantro, tomatoes, mangoes, red onion and jalapeño. Squeeze the juice of one lime over the mixture and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate to let the flavors meld. I prepared the salsa about 2 hours before we planned to eat, wrapping the boats in plastic wrap and refrigerating as well.

Prepare the rice according to the package. For the jasmine rice I had, I used 2 cups of dry rice with 4 cups of water. Brought it to a boil uncovered, then reduced the heat to a low simmer and covered for 20 minutes, after which I removed from the heat and let rest for 10 minutes before fluffing and serving.

While the rice is cooking, preheat your BBQ grill. Season the chicken breasts with whatever your heart desires. Grill for about 8 minutes/side, until the bird gets to 165F. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the Bourbon sauce mixture. Wisk together the soy sauce, water, sesame oil, brown sugar, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, flour and Bourbon. When the chicken is done, chop into one inch chunks, and place in a cast iron frying pan or skillet. Over high heat, add the Bourbon sauce mix and simmer, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens, about 10-15 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, skewer 4-6 shrimp together. When the chicken is about done in the pan, grill the shrimp for 2-3 minutes/side.

To assemble, layer a base of rice in each pineapple boat. Add a helping of chicken on one end and the pineapple/mango salsa on the other. Garnish with a slice of lime, green onions and sesame seeds. Lay 2 or 3 shrimp skewers across each and enjoy!

NOTE: the limiting factor in this dish is the size of the pineapple. you can only get so much in each boat. I ended up with enough rice, chicken and shrimp for another 1-2 meals, and enough pineapple/mango salsa for a week! That’s a good thing!

Incredibly easy to make, and tasty as all get out! Just take a boneless pork butt and cube it into 1″ pieces. Season and coat well with your favorite pork rub. I used Traeger Pork & Poultry rub. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight if you are that organized.

When ready to cook, skewer the cubes onto individual sticks. The pictures above represent 6oz of meat on each stick. Smoke at the lowest setting on your grill (165F is what I use) for 2 hours. Turn the heat up to 250 and cook until IT gets to 190F (about another 60-90 minutes). Sear over high direct heat for 1 minute/side. After the 4 minute sear, brush with your favorite BBQ sauce or two, and return to the smoker for another 10-15 minutes to tighten up the sauce.

Review from my son: “Crispy and tasty on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside!” These can be served as an appetizer, or as your main dish. They are surprisingly good!

Two serving plates for 2 different sauces.

Went fishing on Lake Michigan in Traverse City last summer. Caught our limit in under 2 hours. Now what the heck do you do with all this Trout? Smoke it and make a dip!

Start with about 2# of skin on Trout fillets. Brine overnight with 1/4C kosher salt, 1/2C brown sugar, 2T soy sauce, 1T black pepper.

Smoke at 165 for 4 hours. Turn grill up to 225 and cook another 30 minutes or until you get to 140F internal. Remove skin from fillets and mix in with 8oz sour cream, 8oz cream cheese, 2 garlic cloves, 1T fresh parsley, 2T fresh dill, 1T fresh chives, salt & pepper to taste. I actually took the cream cheese and seasoned it with garlic powder, onion powder, salt & pepper and smoked on it’s foil for the last hour with the trout.

Refrigerate and let the flavors meld. Will be best the second day.

Much leaner than pork and beef ribs, yet still plenty of juice, the Bison Back Rib was a huge hit at dinner with both young and old!

I started with 3 racks of ribs purchased from Blackwing Meats outside of Chicago (yes, a lot of Bison must roam the streets of Chicago). Here’s a link to their site as of November, 2024 https://www.blackwing.com/bison-back-ribs-1-pkg-of-2-slabs.html

Peeling off the silver skin on the back of the ribs was super easy. Got it started between ribs and grabbed it with a paper towel. Peeled off in one long sheet. Seasoned one rack with Traeger Prime Rib Rub, the other with a mix of salt, pepper and garlic. Both were very good and not noticeably different in taste. The Traeger rub gave the rack a bit more color.

Since these are leaner than pork ribs, they don’t take quite as long on the grill. A tweak to the 3-2-1 method works great. Smoked at 225F for 2 hours.

Wrapped in foil with squeezable Parkay (4T), honey(2T) and Worcestershire sauce(2T).

Finished on the grill for about an hour, until the IT got to 200F.

With a nice combination of zing and sweet, this barbecue sauce is outstanding!

• 1C Hogsbreath BBQ Sauce, or your favorite BBQ Sauce
• 3/4C Mango Juice
• 4 Habanero Peppers
• 1 Mango

Peel and chop the mango. Place in sauce pan with your favorite BBQ sauce and mango juice. Clean and seed Habanero Peppers. No need to chop up, just add to the sauce pan.

Bring mix to a simmer and let cook for about an hour, or until the mango is soft. Move mixture to blender and puree until reasonably smooth. Return to the stove and simmer another 30 minutes to meld flavors.

Mango Brined Chicken

Mix 64oz (less 3/4C for above) of Mango juice with 1/2C Kosher salt. Soak chicken in brine for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Season chicken with your favorite rub, smoke for 30 minutes, finish over direct heat. Sauce in the last 2 minutes, 1 minute/side.