Enjoy dinner in the garden with food writer Libby Kimber’s roundup of recipes perfect for a summer barbecue.
Smoky barbecue spare ribs
The Barbecue Guide, New Holland Publishers, $24.99. Available from all good book retailers or online: newhollandpublishers.com
Serves: 6-8
- 2 x 1kg racks ribs
- 120ml olive oil
Rum and barbecue sauce
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely grated
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 240ml tomato sauce
- 20ml soy sauce
- 1 tsp mustard powder
- 60g brown sugar
- 120ml spiced rum
For the sauce, add the oil, onion and garlic to a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until the onion is transparent. Add all the remaining ingredients, except the rum, and bring to the boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, then add the rum and stir. Allow to cool. Note : Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.
Place the ribs in a large, non-metallic dish. Thoroughly combine the rum and barbecue sauce and the oil and liberally brush onto the ribs. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight, turning occasionally.
Take 2 large sheets of heavy-duty foil and place on a work surface. Place a rack of ribs on each. Generously cover both sides of ribs with extra marinade. Wrap into a double-folded parcel, making sure all joins are well sealed to prevent leakage. Carefully place the parcel onto a tray, taking care not to tear the foil. Refrigerate if not cooking immediately.
Prepare the barbecue for direct-heat cooking. Place a wire cake rack on the grill bars to stand 2.5cm above the grill. Place the foil parcels on the rack and cook for 10 minutes on each side, a total of 20 minutes. Move the parcel to a plate. Open the foil and discard. Lift the ribs onto the rack. Continue cooking and brush with extra relish, turning until ribs are well browned and crisp, this should take about 10 minutes.
Cut between the ribs to separate, pile onto a platter and serve immediately. You must eat these as soon as they are cooked otherwise they will become dry and tough.
Caramelised pumpkin, walnut and goat’s cheese salad
Recipe by Accredited Practising Dietitian Georgia Houston from GH Nutrition
ghnutrition.com.au | @ghnutrition
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 30 mins
Serves: 4-6 as a side salad
- ½ Kent (Jap) pumpkin, cut into wedges
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp ground paprika
- ½ cup fresh sage leaves
- 100g spinach leaves, rinsed
- ½ cup walnuts, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup pepitas, lightly toasted
- 100g goat’s cheese, crumbled
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup
Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper and arrange pumpkin in a single layer on the tray. Drizzle pumpkin with 1 tbsp olive oil and paprika. Season with salt and pepper and bake for 30 minutes in the oven, or until tender.
When there are 5 minutes left for the pumpkin, sprinkle over the sage leaves and roast for a further 5 minutes or until sage is crisp and the pumpkin is ready. While pumpkin is cooking, prepare a serving plate with the spinach leaves, walnuts, pepitas and goats cheese.
For the dressing, combine the remaining olive oil and maple syrup in a small bowl. Top salad with pumpkin and drizzle over dressing.
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