Bob Warden says his recipe for BBQ Beef Tips in his book “Great Food Fast,” is about as simple as barbecue gets! With such tender cuts of beef in a homemade sauce, you’d never believe it was cooked in only 15 minutes. It is best served over rice (but he says, “mashed potatoes are good, too.”). I am thinking, for those of us with venison languishing in our freezer, that perhaps that can be used in BBQ recipes to replace the more expensive beef from the grocery store. The website “theItalianchef.org” recommends using venison backstrap loin (the most tender cut of venison), tenderloin, or sirloin along with other portions of the venison to replace the sirloin steak called for in some original BBQ recipes. 

From Treasures and Pleasures cookbook, here is a recipe for Sweet and Sour Carrots contributed by Irene Ustler. It can be served either hot or cold. In case you are wondering how many carrots are in a pound, one pound of carrots is around 5 medium-sized carrots, no longer than 6 inches and no wider than an inch. 

Marvin Woods gives instructions in his book, The New Low-Country Cooking, for a very basic food that we love and use in so many of our dishes: White Rice! He says, “Cooking rice can be tricky sometimes. Since this book calls for rice often, I’ve included a basic rice recipe. This dish can be eaten quite simply as white rice, or you can prepare the rice ahead of time and use it for other dishes like Hoppin’ John.” 

In Hearty Country Cooking, Mark Sohn says, “We use the short and simple term grits for the ground hominy grits our mills make from white corn hominy. This recipe calls for old-fashioned grits that cook for twenty to thirty minutes. Old-fashioned grits are stone-ground, whole kernel grits (such as Callaway Gardens Speckled Heart Grits), are more robust, fuller, coarser, and less smooth than quick grits.”  

I will include herein for our more venturesome culinary artists a recipe I found in The Original Country Cookbook for Alice’s Pork Sausage. You really don’t need to butcher your own hog for sausage! You can buy fresh, coarsely-ground, lean pork, such as pork shoulder, from a butcher shop or special-order it from your grocery store meat market. Combine the seasonings with the ground pork, being careful to not over-mix and make mush! You might wish to use cayenne, black pepper, and (ground) sage, but also consider adding (according to your taste) Italian herb seasoning or orange zest for additional flavor. Be sure to wear rubber gloves while doing this job. 

My (maternal) Grannie’s recipe for baked rice pudding comes from her Y.W.C.A. Cooking School of New Haven, Connecticut, class daybook of recipes and procedures, (right around 1900). Because the recipe doesn’t list the oven temperature, I suggest baking this dish at around 300 to 325 degrees in our modern-day ovens. In Grannie’s era, I believe they would say “slow” or “warm” or “low” for a 300- to 325-degree F oven. When I make this pudding, I will probably double the recipe, and, since it is not prohibitively expensive, I will add about a teaspoon of Kirkland Signature Pure Vanilla Extract. Also, since I love raisins in rice pudding, I will add 1/3 to 1/2 cup raisins.If you research, you may learn that vanilla possesses anti-inflammatory properties, helps to reduce sugar intake, and may even contribute to brain health. 

BBQ BEEF TIPS 
Moist and Tender BBQ in Minutes 
Recipe from Great Food Fast by Bob Warden 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil 
1 pound sirloin steak, cubed 
1 yellow onion, diced 
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste 
1/4 cup white vinegar 
1 tablespoon yellow mustard 
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 
3 tablespoons water 
2 tablespoons light brown sugar 
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon pepper 

1) With the cooker’s lid off, heat oil on HIGH or “Brown,” until sizzling. 2) Place the steak and onion in the cooker, and cook until steak is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. 3) Add remaining ingredients and stir until combined. 4) Securely lock the pressure cooker’s lid and set for 15 minutes on HIGH. 5) Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before performing a quick release for any remaining pressure. 6) Add any additional salt and pepper to taste before serving. 

Make it Easier: This dish can also be made with 1-1/4 cups of your favorite prepared BBQ sauce and 1/4 cup water in place of all the ingredients added in step 3. 

IRENE USTLER’S SWEET AND SOUR CARROTS 
Recipe from Treasures and Pleasures cookbook 

1 pound carrots, peeled and cut diagonally 
1 medium green pepper, seeded and cut into strips 
1 8-ounce can pineapple chunks, save juice 
1 cup sugar 
1 teaspoon cornstarch 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
2 tablespoons vinegar 
2 tablespoons soy sauce 

Cook carrots, covered, in a small amount of water, until tender, about 15 minutes. Add green pepper and cook 3 minutes longer. Drain. Drain pineapple and save juice. Add water, if necessary, to make 1/3 cup liquid. Combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt in saucepan. Stir in pineapple juice, vinegar and soy sauce. Cook until thick, stirring constantly. Add sauce and pineapple to vegetables. Heat and serve either hot or cold. 

MARVIN WOODS’ WHITE RICE 
Recipe from The New Low-Country Cooking by Marvin Woods 

3-1/3 cups water 
3/4 tablespoon salt 
1-1/2 cups uncooked long-grain white rice 

In a large saucepan, bring the water to a boil over high heat. Stir in the rice and salt. Cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. Let stand, covered, for 5 minutes or until the water is completely absorbed. Fluff with a fork. 

COUNTRY BREAKFAST GRITS 
Recipe from Mark F. Sohn’s Hearty Country Cooking 

4 cups water 
1 cup old-fashioned grits 
1 tablespoon butter 
1 teaspoon salt 
Additional milk or water, as needed 
Yield: 6 servings 

In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil and whisk in the grits gradually – don’t dump them in all at once. Then add the butter and salt. Reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook, covered for 20 minutes. Add water or milk as needed. The grits should have the stiffness of mashed potatoes. To avoid sticking, stir often. 

Healthy Choice Alternative: This dish is an example of healthy old-fashioned mountain country cooking. If you need to, you may reduce the salt and butter. 

ALICE’S PORK SAUSAGE 
Recipe from Paragon Products, Inc., The Original Country Cookbook 

4 pounds lean pork 
3 tablespoons backbone fat 
2 teaspoons ground black pepper 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 
4 tablespoons leaf sage 

Grind together. Package and refrigerate. 

GRANNIE’S BAKED RICE PUDDING 
Recipe from Miss Nettie Isabel Hill’s class daybook of recipes, around 1900 
Y.W.C.A. Cooking School of New Haven, Connecticut 

2 cups milk 
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) rice 
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) sugar 
Sprinkle of salt 
Sprinkle of nutmeg or cinnamon 

1) Pick over and wash the rice and put it into a shallow earthen dish. 2) Dissolve the sugar and salt in the milk, add the spice, and pour all over the rice. 3) Bake about 2 hours or until the rice is tender. Stir often.