Barbecue ribs a cross-seasonal delight

Though spring is here, the fruits of winter are still with us. That doesn't mean we can't enjoy an early taste of the cookouts we will all soon have. It just means that now is the time to make ribs in a different way.

Despite the headliner of the dish, the true star of this bill is a vegetable hash made with a mirepoix, sweet potato and Brussels sprouts -- all of which make this dish a cross-seasonal delight. The mirepoix does double duty in helping to flavor the ribs and filling out a hash that will hit all of your taste buds.

I may be a smoked rib purist most of the time, but these roasted ribs are quite delicious.

They will still hold up, not "fall of the bone" as though they are steamed, and by finishing them in the broiler you can get a good final crust on the meat.

All told, you will have a nice barbecue supper that's loaded with flavor, fiber and vitamins. What could be better than that?

Alex and Eleta Morrison live in Macon and write a food blog, Bungalow Kitchen. Visit their blog at bungalowkitchen.wordpress.com or contact them at bungalowkitchenmacon@gmail.com.

BUNGALOW KITCHEN RECIPE

Bungalow Ribs

1/2 rack ribs

2 tablespoon brown mustard

2 stalks celery

2 medium carrots

1 large sweet onion

2 tablespoons lard

5 cloves garlic, divided

4 sprigs rosemary, plus more for garnish

1 large sweet potato

1/2 pound Brussels sprouts

Barbecue sauce of choice

Plenty of salt and black pepper

Coat the ribs in the brown mustard and then coat with salt and black pepper. Set aside.

Dice the celery, carrot and onion. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat and add the lard (you can substitute bacon fat or canola oil). Toss the vegetables in the lard and allow to cook about 10 minutes, until the vegetables soften.

Mince 4 cloves garlic and rosemary and add to vegetables. Cook one minute. Place the seasoned ribs atop the vegetable mix. Cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for 1 1/2 hours or until fork is easily inserted and removed. Remove ribs.

Dice the sweet potato and halve the sprouts. Add to cooked-down vegetable mix along with 1 clove garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 15 minutes.

Heat oven to broil. Coat the ribs with the barbecue sauce and place under broiler, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and cut into individual ribs.

Heat a frying pan over medium high heat. Coat with olive oil and add the vegetable hash. Cook two minutes and stir. Heat another two minutes before plating.

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 9:07 PM with the headline "Barbecue ribs a cross-seasonal delight ."