chilliwi's Full Review: Ray Lampe - Dr. BBQ's "Barbecue All Year Long!: Co...
Barbecue All Year Long is the second cookbook from Ray Lampe, a.k.a. Dr. BBQ. Lampe believes that great barbecue should be enjoyed year round in all parts of the United States (or world, for that matter), and in every month of the year! This cookbook includes recipes appropriate for every holiday and every season.
About Ray Lampe, a.k.a. Dr. BBQ
Ray Lampe is an award-winning barbecue chef that has won many cooking competitions nationwide. He is the author of for barbecue cookbooks: Dr. BBQ’s Big Time Cookbook, Barbecue All Year Long, Dr. BBQ’s Road Trip, and his latest, NFL Game Day Cookbook.
Writing Style
Like his previous cookbook, Dr. BBQ’s Big Time Cookbook, this is a fun book to read. Ray Lampe gives a (usually) funny explanation or story about the origin of his recipes. Even if you never cook a single recipe from the book, you will be entertained with Dr. BBQ’s engaging and humorous stories and antidotes.
Book Organization and Layout
Overall, this book is well organized and easy to navigate. As you may have guessed, this cookbook is organized by season. It begins with winter, and it starts off with recipes for the Winter Solstice followed by Christmas, for no better reason, according to Lampe, than he thinks of winter as the beginning of the year. Each season or holiday includes a complete menu complete with a dessert. Not every menu item is a barbecue item, but each item complements the main course, which is generally one that is prepared on the grill. Most (not all) of the side dishes and desserts are prepared indoors.
There is generally one recipe per one or two pages, often with a brief (and amusing) story about the origin of the recipe. The book is printed in two colors, meaning that the pages are printed in shades of black and in this case, a golden brown. There is a small photo section separate from the recipes with full-color photos of a few of the featured dishes (nice photography, too, I might add). This book is 320 pages and paperback, so it doesn’t lay flat too easily--my only complaint. It might be nice if it were spiral bound to keep me from losing my page and getting side tracked--I start daydreaming about when I will try all of the other mouth watering recipes every time my page flips away from the one I am cooking!
A Sampling of the Contents
Most of Dr. BBQ’s recipes center around barbecue or grilled fare of some sort. Of course you would expect recipes for traditional “eating” holidays to be included in a cookbook like St. Patrick’s Day and Easter, and barbecue holidays like July 4th and Labor Day, but Dr. BBQ includes a few of his own. In Fall, he pays homage to Jack Daniels’ birthday with whiskey laden fare that includes Whiskey Pork Chops, Tennessee Hoe Cakes, and Chocolate Whiskey Balls (a variation on classic Rum balls). He also includes menu items for April Fools day with meatless barbecue items, (that actually don’t sound too bad) like Scammin’ Fajitas, Too Faux Burgers, and Sugarless Cupcakes (made with Splenda).
National BBQ Day (Dr. BBQ’s birthday) is also featured in this book, although he doesn’t give an exact date for the occasion. For this event, the menu features The Happy Doctor (3 oz. Jack Daniels Old No. 7 Whiskey, 12 oz. Coke, tall glass filled with ice), Shrimp de Jonghe (a simple shrimp dish made in a skillet), Smoked Turkey (the Perfect Breasts, according to Dr.. BBQ), the Best Corn on the Cob, and Marsha’s Buttermilk Pie. These are some of the more simple items to prepare in the cookbook, and only the smoked turkey is made on the smoker/grill.
Other excuses to barbecue include: Ground Hog Day, the Daytona 500, Patsy Cline's birthday, plus all of the traditional holidays that you would expect like Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, and Halloween.
A Couple of My Favorites
The barbecue recipes in this book are outstanding. I really love Dr. BBQ’s Pulled Pork Stuffing. It is made using left over pulled pork (which is one of my all-time favorite barbecue foods), various seasonings, and two bags of cornbread stuffing. Dr. BBQ recommends serving this with Turkey at Thanksgiving, which my husband and I are planning on doing this year. We tested the recipe this past spring, making it with a turkey breast, rather than a full turkey, and it was absolutely delicious. We prepared it on our The Big Green Egg Smoker/Grill, which is a grill/smoker that cooks food perfectly giving it a great smoked flavor. I can’t wait to serve this meal at Thanksgiving!
To accompany many barbecue dishes, I like to make Super Garlic Bread. It is made by slicing a loaf of French bread into slices not quite through the loaf so that the loaf doesn’t fall apart. Then, combine a softened stick of butter, 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese, and 1 tsp. minced garlic. Spread the butter mixture onto each slice. Then wrap the bread in aluminum foil and place on the grill (or in the oven at about 375 degrees) for about 20 to 30 minutes. This easy-to-make cheesy garlic bread goes great with barbecue or Italian food, and is really good.
Overall
I love the recipes in Barbecue All Year Long. Everything I have tried so far has turned out great! I recommend this it to anyone looking for some great new barbecue or grilling recipes for a special (or not-so special) holiday meals or get togethers. There are over 200 recipes in this book that range from very traditional down-and-dirty barbecue and traditional holiday favorites, to more inventive gourmet cuisine. This book has inspired me to grill when it is 12 degrees outside, and for some reason, the food seems to taste even better on those kind of days!
Don’t let a little cold weather stop you from enjoying great food, try this book, and get cooking!
Barbecue All Year Long is available at most major book sellers including Amazon.com
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