RECIPE - Gluten Free Pork Ribs & Corn Bread Muffins

I love Southern food. Now, I know what you're thinking. "Another Jersey girl that's never been to the South tries some KFC fried chicken and thinks she's on the pulse of Southern cooking". Don't worry. I've been to Tampa and to the Atlanta airport, that totally counts as the South. Also, I watch the Food Network, and they only show authentic Southern cuisine. I have standards, ya know?

Let's start with the cornbread muffins. These muffins came from my new favorite cookbook "Gluten Free Baking Classics" by Annalise Roberts. Annalise is part of The Food Philosopher group, run by Annalise and her sister Claudia Pillow. They are both highly active in the gluten free community. Annalise has written two books on gluten free cooking, and Claudia is a DOCTOR(!) and serves on the board for the Gluten Intolerance Group of North America (GIG).

This cookbook has changed my mindset about cooking, and especially about baking. Annalise talks a lot about the delicate balance between flours, liquids, baking temperature, and storage for all the goodies in the book. An over-measurement of flour or a minute or two under-baking can cause some real damage to your baked goods. So I've been trying to be as careful as I can with measurements and such (cutting down on the "BAM!"s, and it turns out that (literally) everything I've made from this cookbook has blown my mind.

The cornbread muffins are no exception. They turned out soft, moist, and with perfect texture. Here's a link to the recipe from The Food Philosopher's website.

I wanted to mimic my Grandma's recipe for cornbread, so I added some frozen (and defrosted, then squeezed out) corn kernels. If I really wanted to follow my Grandma's recipe, I would also add a gallon of cream cheese and a pound of grated cheddar cheese, but I'm saving that for the next batch. The corn was a fabulous addition.

Now, onto the ribs. I cannot take any credit for this recipe. The only thing I can take credit for is choosing the perfect barbecue sauce to complement the spicy rub. Here's the recipe, courtesy of Food Network and the Neely's. I know it seems like a lot of work, but you can make a large recipe of the rub once and use it multiple times.

For the barbecue sauce, I ONLY use Sweet Baby Ray's. You can't do any better. I once tried using their Hickory & Brown Sugar version for the ribs, but it was too sweet because there was brown sugar in the rub and the sauce. I like using the Original recipe for this because it's not too sweet. The combination of the spicy rub and this sweet and tangy sauce is ridiculous. Everyone that's tried these ribs spends about 20 minutes shaking their heads in disbelief. They're that good.

Even though it's still pretty cold out, you should definitely be preparing for the summer months. You'll want to make these gluten free cornbread muffins and pork ribs for every BBQ you attend, so try these recipes out now!


PS. For another southern recipe, check out this recipe I posted in the fall for gluten free buttermilk fried chicken.

RECIPE - Gluten Free Buttermilk Fried Chicken

I know what you're thinking... "No clucking way!!". But yes, it's true, you can make amazing fried chicken gluten free. Dare I say better than the original?? You'll have to try it for yourself.

Ingredients:

For the marinade:
2 - 2 1/2 lbs chicken pieces
1 quart buttermilk
1 tbsp Thyme
1 tbsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp hot sauce (ex: Franks, Louisiana)
black pepper

For the dredge:
3 cups GF All Purpose Flour (I used Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour)
2 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp cayenne pepper (yes, 1 tablespoon)
salt and black pepper

For frying:
A lot of vegetable oil

Directions:
1. Pour the buttermilk into a non-metal bowl or ziploc bag big enough to hold chicken. Add spices and hot sauce mix together.
2. Add in chicken pieces. Stir to make sure each piece is coated with buttermilk.
3. Let sit in the refrigerador overnight.
4. Heat oil in a deep fryer or large pan over medium-high heat.
5. In a ziploc bag, mix GF flour and spices together.
6. Remove chicken pieces (1 or 2 at a time), shake off excess buttermilk, and dredge in flour mixture. Shake off excess flour, and slowly drop into oil. Be sure not to overcrowd the fryer/pan.
7. Cook chicken for approximately 11-12min for thighs, 9-10min for drumsticks, 7-8 minutes for wings, and 9-11min for breasts. This will vary depending on how big your chicken pieces are, and how hot your oil is. Make sure that between batches you let the oil reheat.
8. Once cooked, remove chicken and place on paper towels. Sprinkle with a little more salt and pepper.