A Murder in Mohair (34 page)

To Whom This May Concern,

Never thought I'd give away this deep, dark family secret, but stranger things have happened to the Steibers this summer, I'll tell you that much. Between the TV news, the local newspaper, and the gossip all over town, I bet everyone reading this note knows exactly what I'm talking about. So I won't even go there. Some dark times, no question. But we'll pull through. We Steibers always do.

It does serve to remind me that I'm definitely not getting any younger. So, I've decided to give in to the pleading and begging I hear every time I serve my finger-licking, lip-smacking, barbeque ribs.

Here it is. Not quite the very last of my secrets, but close to it. Right up here on Maggie's bulletin board—my recipe for Fourth of July Barbeque Ribs. Easy as . . . well . . . pie, I guess.

Just for good measure, here's the recipe for the Schooner's Summertime-Only Strawberry-Raspberry Pie. Perfect follow-up to the ribs. Along with some vanilla ice cream, of course.

You enjoy it. That's an order. Life's too darned short, if you ask me. Heck, have dessert first.

Very truly yours,

Edie Steiber

P.S. I will tell you right up front; one BIG secret to my ribs is that you don't barbeque those suckers much at all. You slow cook ‘em, in the oven. So don't wait for the Fourth of July to start.

Before I get into the particulars, people always ask, “Edie, what is the difference between spareribs, also called St. Louis ribs, and baby back?” The long and short of it is—excuse the pun—St. Louis ribs are bigger. They have more meat and more fat, but can be a little chewy. Baby back are leaner and cook to that tender, fall-off-the bone texture you crave. A little more expensive, but worth it.

Regarding barbeque sauce, it's simple to make your own. But if you don't have time, some quality store-bought does the trick. My favorite is Sweet Baby Ray's, which is what I say to use here.

This recipe serves 6 normal people (and about 3 Steibers)

4 pounds of pork ribs

¹
/
₂
cup light brown sugar

1 teaspoon hickory smoke salt (smoke flavor optional)

1 Tablespoon paprika

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

1 to 2 teaspoons cumin

1 to 2 teaspoons chili powder

¹
/
₂
teaspoon ground red pepper (optional) and/or about 10 turns of the black pepper grinder, depending on how spicy you like it

1 teaspoon oregano

2 cups of your favorite barbecue sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray's)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil.

Combine all of the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Prepare the meat by removing the membrane from the back of the ribs. It is best to work this skin away from the meat with the back of a spoon, slipping it along underneath.

Sprinkle about half of the dry rub on the bottom of the ribs and rub it in. Set the ribs on the baking pan with the seasoned side down, and sprinkle the remaining rub on the top.

Bake uncovered at 250 degrees F for 2 hours.

After the ribs have cooked for 2 hours, remove them and pour some barbeque sauce on the top. Using a spatula or brush, spread the sauce all over the ribs. Cover the entire pan tightly with aluminum foil and return to the oven, baking for an additional 2 hours. Or test a bit earlier for doneness. If the meat is tender and pulls away from the bone, you're in business.

You can spread a little more sauce on the bony side of the ribs and finish them under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes.

Or finish on the barbeque grill—cut them into serving size portions, 2 to 3 ribs per serving. Put some sauce on the bony side and lay them on the grill 1 to 2 minutes. Total cooking time: 4 hours.

Ingredients for pie filling:

16 ounces of fresh, ripe strawberries (3 cups), washed, hulled, and sliced in half

6 to 8 ounces of fresh raspberries (about 1 to 1
¹
/
₃
cups), rinsed and set out in a single layer on a towel until air dried

¹
/
₃
cups granulated sugar (add more to your taste)

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2 to 3 Tablespoons cornstarch (or white flour)

1 egg yolk, beaten with 1 Tablespoon of water

For pie crust:

One recipe Schooner No-Fail Pie Crust, see below. Or use two sheets of premade pie dough found in the refrigerated section of the supermarket, or one package premade, frozen pie crust, with extra crust for top.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

If you are making the dough for pie crust, best to work on this first and refrigerate for about one hour so it's cold when you roll it out. Otherwise, read directions on store bought crust and proceed.

To make filling:

In a large bowl, combine all the berries, sugar, and vanilla. Add cornstarch or flour and mix gently until everything is blended. Be careful not to break raspberries.

To assemble pie:

Roll out one ball of pie dough on a flat, smooth surface using a rolling pin and a little extra flour. Roll it in a circle as large as a pie plate or tin. You can measure by placing the tin over dough and making sure there will be some overhang for the crust.

Place the circle of pie dough on the ungreased pie plate or tin. Press to form and fill with berry mixture. (Or fill premade frozen crust with berry mixture.)

Roll out a second pie crust. (Or roll out premade dough or frozen crust for top of pie.)

Cut dough into about 10 strips,
³
/
₄
inches wide, with a sharp knife or pizza wheel.

Arrange half across filling horizontally, pinching edges to crust. Arrange the other half vertically, to form a cross-hatch pattern, pinching edges to crust.

Trim ends of strips and fold over. Flute the edge of the crust with fingertips. Brush the beaten egg yolk over the crust and place on the center rack of the oven. (This pie is juicy and will spill over, so best to cover lower rack with a sheet of foil to avoid a tough cleanup.)

Bake 45 to 50 minutes until filling is bubbling and crust is golden. Cool for 2 hours.

2
¹
/
₂
cups flour

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1
¹
/
₂
sticks (
³
/
₄
cups) unsalted butter, very cold

2 Tablespoons shortening, chilled

¹
/
₃
cup ice water

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl or a food processor. Mix through by hand with a fork or wire whisk (or pulse in a food processor to mix). Add butter and shortening.

Mix by hand with pastry tool, or fork, until butter is in small bits—you should still see pieces about raisin-size (or pulse in a food processor to mix). Do not overmix. This dough is better to be lumpy and undermixed.

Add water and continue to mix until dough just begins to make a ball. Pour out on floured board and shape into 2 balls of equal size. Chill for 1 hour in refrigerator before use.

AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH BY KATE VIBBERT

ANNE CANADEO
is the bestselling author of more than thirty books, including her popular Black Sheep Knitting Mystery series and the Cape Light series, written as Katherine Spencer. She lives in Northport, New York. You can contact her at
[email protected]
or visit her on Facebook.

FOR MORE ON THIS AUTHOR:
authors.simonandschuster.com/Anne-Canadeo

MEET THE AUTHORS, WATCH VIDEOS AND MORE AT

SimonandSchuster.com

Facebook.com/GalleryBooks
@GalleryBooks