Happy National Barbecue Month

Ah, the month of May when the minds of all native Hoosiers turn to warmer weather, planting time, outdoor activities, and the opening of the Speedway. And with the roar of race cars will come the lovely fragrance of victuals sizzling over hot coals. Yes, May is National Barbecue Month, a time to contemplate that ancient sport of burning meat over some sort of open fire.

A couple of years ago I went in for a nice gas grill so that I could start smoking pulled pork on the deck. I know, I already hear the cries of blasphemy from the hot coal and smoker contingents, but give me a break I'm only a part time plein air chef! It's hard enough to find time to fire up the gas grill, let alone stoke up a smoker or spend a few hours tending hardwood charcoal. I do spend 8 or more hours minding my pulled pork and keeping the hickory chips in the smoke-box from bursting into flame. I figure that's good for an amateur.

Back when I started my quest for good, homemade pulled pork, I think I promised I'd report on the recipe I developed and (after two years of trial and error) I've come up with my personal recipe. The following recipe comes from a base I found online that I tuned up to match my preferences. I recommend that you look through what's available out there (and there's a lot of variations) and then make changes to suit your taste. The important point is that there is no one "right" way to do this thing. Pulled pork is a food of poverty, therefore one that is meant to take advantage of whatever spices and herbs the chef has on hand.

1T Garlic Powder
1T Onion Powder
1T Chili Powder
2T Cayenne Pepper
1T Kosher Salt
1T Ground Black Pepper
1T Paprika
.5C Dark Brown Sugar

You can probably tell that I like sweet-hot barbecue from the ingredient list! Put your dry ingredients in a zip-lock bag, zip it up, and shake well to mix. Then sprinkle your pork butt liberally on all sides, massaging the spices into the meat. I put the whole thing in a sealed container and let it sit in the fridge over night before beginning cooking.

Whether you smoke the pork (preferred) or cook it in an oven, the key is low and slow. You will want a temperature of 225°F and use a probe thermometer to check the internal temperature of the meat. When you hit 200°F in the center of the roast you're done. Remove the roast from the heat, cover with foil, and let it rest a couple of hours before getting to shredding.

My current favorite way to eat pulled pork is to imitate a dish from Squealers, one of my favorite Indy BBQ joints (pay the west side location a visit, they're the best). Pulled pork nachos! This year I think I'll start working on making my own BBQ sauce to see what I can come up with. As always, I'll (eventually) give you a report!

Poem for May

The Merry Month of May
~ by Thomas Dekker

O the month of May, the merry month of May,
So frolic, so gay, and so green, so green, so green!
O, and then did I unto my true love say,
Sweet Peg, thou shalt be my Summer's Queen.

Now the nightingale, the pretty nightingale,
The sweetest singer in all the forest quire,
Entreats thee, sweet Peggy, to hear thy true love's tale:
Lo, yonder she sitteth, her breast against a brier.

But O, I spy the cuckoo, the cuckoo, the cuckoo;
See where she sitteth; come away, my joy:
Come away, I prithee, I do not like the cuckoo
Should sing where my Peggy and I kiss and toy.

O, the month of May, the merry month of May,
So frolic, so gay, and so green, so green, so green;
And then did I unto my true love say,
Sweet Peg, thou shalt be my Summer's Queen.

Quote for May

The world's favorite season is the spring. All things seem possible in May.

~ Edwin Way Teale

The Funnies - The 30 Per Cent Tax Bracket (1922)

Conscientious Burglar: I regret to say, sir, that I shall have to ask you to take back a hundred of this; a cent more would boost my income into the 30 per cent tax class.

Life Magazine, January 5, 1922

The Lyrids are Coming...

Over the next two nights you might be able to catch a few shooting stars. The Lyrids are said to be an average shower, but they're also known for meteors with bright, lasting tails as well as the occasional window-shaking sonic boom and they peak on April 22nd and 23rd this year. The Lyrids are born of dust from a long-period comet with the catchy name C/1861 G1 Thatcher. So, button up your coat and spend some time in the dark, weather permitting you might get a good show.

For fun I thought I'd add a piece of sheet music art. Falling Star was part of the Ziegfeld Review Follies of 1909. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find a recording of the song, but the artwork is really lovely. It features a beautiful, Gibson Girl-esque woman embodying a meteorite, streaking to Earth, trailing fire. In this cover, we revisit a couple that I first referenced in my Full Corn Moon blog post some time ago, Nora Bayes and Jack Norworth.

Nora Bayes (born Elanor "Dora" Goldberg) was a popular American singer, comedienne and actress from Joliet, Illinois. She started her career in Chicago's vaudeville at the age of 18, becoming a vaudeville circuit (and eventually Broadway) star after a cross-country tour that started in San Francisco, California and ended in New York City, New York. In 1908 she married composer, lyricist, and fellow vaudeville performer Jack Norworth who had written the lyric for Take Me Out to the Ballgame that same year. The pair were together for a short five years before divorcing, but in that time they collaborated not only the 1908 and 1909 productions of Ziegfeld's Follies, but also the immensely popular Shine On Harvest Moon. The two would divorce in 1913.

After parting with Jack, Nora put her efforts behind the war effort (World War I), recording two of the best known songs from that conflict: Over There and How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down on the Farm (After They've Seen Paree)? Jack's compositions include Meet Me in Apple Blossom Time, Sing an Irish Song, and the sequel to Shine On Harvest Moon, Turn Off Your Light Mr. Moon Man. Nora would pass in 1928 after an unsuccessful operation for cancer and would wind up buried in an unmarked grave in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx. Jack would die of a heart attack in Laguna Beach, California in 1959.

The Funnies - Intimate Glimpses of American Generals of Industry (1922)

Intimate Glimpses of American Generals of Industry

No. 18. A burglar inadvertently enters the Colt residence

Life Magazine, January 5 1922

Happy National Grilled Cheese Day

Happy National Grilled Cheese Day, a day that's practically the definition of a festival of cheese! This 1955 ad for the American Dairy Association from Life Magazine presents the post-war wasp with the staples of banal mid-century American life: processed loaf cheddar, cheddar slices, and cottage cheese. The photos are pure fifties food-tastrophe, over-ripe looking plastic with ominous side dishes and awkward staging.  In the "Slice It" frame, what exactly is the moldy-looking log in bondage? In the "Melt It" frame, notice the eye-of-Sauron on liver pate appetizers and the Frodo's missing finger fondue? And in the "Glamorize It" frame, check out the phlegm and Pepto-Bismol aspic with toast points. Okay, so maybe this wasn't the ad for grilled cheese day.

Unlike many ads of the era, the copy actually explains what the mystery dishes in the photos are supposed to be. Interesting difference between '55 and now, cream cheese apparently was a dish until itself. Hardly anyone would just eat cream cheese now, but then they'd cube it and put it on a tray. Still, I'm not sure how they got chili sauce and mayo to turn cheese dip pink...