When you BBQ or smoke meats flavoring the meat before cooking is key. The best way to flavor meat is by using a dry rub. Here is a fantastic recipe to create a dry rub that you can use for BBQ or smoking your own meats at home.
Ingredients: 1/4 cup paprika 2 TBS brown sugar 2 TBS kosher salt 2 TBS garlic powder 1 TBS black pepper 1 TBS chili powder 1 TBS cayenne pepper 1 TBS onion powder 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin 1 1/2 tsp mustard powder
Directions:
Mix all the ingredients in a bowl until well mixed together.
Store in an airtight container up to six months.
Apply to meats one hour to 24 hours prior to cooking. The dry rub can be applied directly to a meat, or a binding agent such as mustard or honey can be applied to the meat before the dry rub.
Charleston South Carolina has been blessed with a plethora of natural beauties. Indeed, mother nature has been quite kind to the Charleston area. Two of the greatest re-occurring beauties are our amazing sunrises and sunsets. The glorious hues that paint the Charleston skyline contain some of the most amazing orange, pink, and purple highlights that you have ever seen. Here are seven of the best places I have found around Charleston to see a sunrise or a sunset.
Sunrise at Shem creek. Take a walk down the boardwalks of the Shem Creek park. There is an area where the boardwalk from the park meets the boardwalk next to the creek. If you stop right there and turn and face the sunrise you will catch the most beautiful sunrise coming up over the creek.
Sunrise at Shem Creek
Sunset at Sullivan’s Island. To find the perfect spot to view the sunset come out to Sullivan’s Island and go to the Station 10 beach access. Once you enter the Station 10 area head down to the beach and turn up the beach towards the Ravenel Bridge. Walk down the beach until the sand ends and you are surrounded by marsh. The sunset views from this area are beautiful with amazing views of the Charleston peninsula skyline and the Ravenel Bridge.
Sunset from Sullivan’s Island
Sunrise from the Ravenel Bridge. The Arthur Ravenel Bridge has become a staple for those who love taking a brisk walk over the Cooper river, it also is somewhere that you can see fabulous sunrises. Drive over to the Mount Pleasant side of the bridge and park your car in Waterfront Park. From there you can walk up or ride your bike using the pedestrian lanes of the bridge. The walk from one side of the bridge and back is 5 miles. Along the bridge there are two areas that jut out with sitting areas and offer great views of Charleston and Patriots Point. Either one of these areas is great to catch a view of the sunrise, just turn and face east.
Sunrise from the Ravenel Bridge
Sunset from the Pitt Street Bridge. Take a stroll down the Pitt Street Bridge in the old village of Mount Pleasant. When the sun sets over downtown Charleston you are treated to a beautiful silhouette of the Charleston skyline.
Sunset from the Pitt Street Bridge
Sunrise from Folly Beach. Come into the town of Folly Beach on Center Street and head down to the stoplight at Arctic Avenue. Turn left on Arctic Avenue and head down past the pier. The best areas of the beach with the least amount of people begin at the beach entrances starting on 6th street. There are parking lots on the corner of Arctic and 6th, Arctic and 9th, and Arctic and 10th street. Park at any of these lots or on a side street and head down one of these boardwalks to the beach to witness a beautiful sunrise, in which you can see the sun rise up from “out of the sea” in a brilliant ball of fire.
Sunrise at Folly Beach
Sunset at Bohicket Marina on Seabrook Island. Enjoy a fabulous sunset as the sun goes down over Bohicket Marina. What better way to enjoy the sunset than by having dinner on the outdoor patio of the Salty Dog café while the sun goes down. On many nights you may even be treated to a visit by dolphins taking an evening swim around the marina.
Sunset from Bohicket Marina on Seabrook Island
Sunset from the Pelican’s Nest on Seabrook Island. A true treat is to have dinner at the outside restaurant on Seabrook Island called the Pelican’s Nest. The tables are nestled up against the edge of the water and offer fantastic views of beach, ocean and the sunset.
Sunset from the dining area of the Pelican’s Nest on Seabrook Island.
My family loves anything that is ranch flavored. From ranch flavoring on chicken, to chips, roasted chick peas, ranch dressing and ranch dips. We always keep basic ranch powder on hand to mix into recipes and to make our own ranch salad dressing and ranch dips. Today, I am going to share our recipe with you so that you can have ranch flavored powder, ranch salad dressing and ranch dip anytime you want.
1 package active dry yeast (2 ¼ tsp of yeast from the bottle)
1 cup of warm water (divided)
3 cups all purpose flour
3 tbsp olive oil
1 egg
½ tsp salt
½ cup melted butter
½ garlic salt
¼ parmesan cheese
Directions:
1.In a bowl mix ½ cup warm water (95 degrees) with yeast and 1 ½ tsp sugar. Let dissolve and sit and proof for 5-10 minutes.
2.Add in flour, remaining sugar, oil, egg, remaining water.
3.Mix in a mixer and then kneed for 3-5 minutes until the dough is smooth and stretchy.
4.Place the dough in a bowl with olive oil. Cover all the outside of dough all over the dough to prevent the dough from drying out while rising. Cover with a damp kitchen cloth and let sit for 40 minutes to double in size.
5.Pound the air out of the dough and place on a floured work area, flatten and cut into approximately 12 pieces.
6.Roll the pieces into long sticks, place on a pan lined with parchment paper and then cover back up to sit and rise for 25 mins.
7.Remove towel and place in oven at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
8.While breadsticks cook add garlic salt to the melted butter and set aside.
9.After breadsticks are done cooking add the garlic butter to the tops of the breadsticks and then sprinkle on the parmesan cheese.
Whenever I go to the Olive Garden my favorite meal there is the unlimited soup and bread sticks. The very best soup they have is Zuppa Toscana. This Tuscan style soup is delicious and easy to make. Join us as we show you how.
Ingredients:
6 slices of thick bacon chopped up
1 pound Italian sausage (preferably hot sausage)
6 cloves of garlic
1 medium onion
8 cups of chicken broth
4 russet potatoes
1 cup of kale
1 cup of whipping cream (or heavy cream)
Directions:
1.Dice up the onion, set diced onions aside in a bowl.
2. Chop up the garlic cloves and add to the onions.
3. Dice up the bacon and add to the onions.
4. Sauté the onion and bacon mixture in a pot over low heat until the bacon is cooked and the onions are translucent. Once done removed from pot and set aside.
5. Using the same pot, add your Italian sausage and chop up into small spoonful size pieces and cook until brown.
6. While sausage cooks, wash potatoes and cut in half long ways, then slice into half circles, leaving the skin on the potatoes.
7. Add the onions and bacon mixture to the cooked sausage, add the chicken broth and potatoes. Simmer for 30 minutes, then remove from heat to cool for 5 minutes.
In my household we love anything that is ranch flavored, and one of my go to snacks is homemade roasted chick peas that are ranch flavored. This is one of the easiest recipes ever. You literally need only 3 indredients!
Ingredients:
1 can of chick peas (15 ounces) – drained
1 tbsp olive oil
ranch seasoning mix
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 370 degrees. You can use a conventional oven, or a Ninja Foodi Grill in the bake mode.
Open you can of chick peas and drain them.
Place chick peas in your oven, or Foodi grill and cook for 30 minutes. Check after 15 minutes to stir to make sure they are heated evenly and don’t burn on one side.
After the 15 minute mark check your chick peas approximately every 5 minutes to see if they have reached your desired crispiness. My chick peas cooked for 27 minutes in my Ninja Foodi Grill.
Remove baked chick peas and coat with olive oil.
Add tbsp of ranch powder mix. You can use store bought mix or a homemade mix.
