BEST dinner EVER.

Ok, maybe it wasn't the best dinner EVER, but it was definitely up there. Above homemade spaghetti but below grandma's vegetable beef soup. (You should know that both things are extremely high on my list of foods that make me happy).

Last night I made baby back ribs, pineapple slaw and steamed fiddleheads. If anything I have ever cooked heralded spring and the coming of warm weather, it was this meal. It all sort of fell together, but it must have been my subconscious cheering on the blooming and greening outside my window.

I found the fiddleheads especially exciting. Fiddlehead ferns are an extremely seasonal vegetable, usually only available for a few weeks each spring. They are the curled up heads of young fern plants that are harvested for food. It has been a "seasonal eating" goal of mine to try these pretty plants, but I had never seen them in the store before. UNTIL NOW. I happened to go to Whole Foods (which I generally don't do) and I couldn't find the cilantro. I spent much longer perusing every shelf in the produce section because of it, and there, tucked away in a small basket, were FIDDLEHEADS! So I personally think it was meant to be. I washed and then steamed them for about 5-6 minutes and then served them with butter and garlic salt. The best way I can describe their flavor is a cross between asparagus and Brussels sprouts. In other words, they were AMAZING.

Here is how I made the rest:

Slow Cooked Ribs-
Ingredients:
apprx. 2 lb baby back ribs (ours came from Rocky Plains Meats)
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped (this was from In Season Local Market)
1/3 can cola (I used Blue Sky Organic)
1/2 tsp Hickory Smoke Sea Salt*
1/4 tsp garlic powder
freshly ground black pepper
3/4 c bbq sauce (use your favorite kind- I used Annie's Naturals Organic Smokey Maple)

Put onions and cola in the bottom of a large crock pot. Sprinkle meaty side of ribs with salt, garlic powder, and a few good grinds of black pepper. Lay the ribs meaty side up on top of the onions and cola. Coat the ribs with the bbq sauce. Cover and set the crock pot on high for 4-6 hours. Ribs are done when they are tender and meat starts to fall away from the bone.

*I got this salt from Savory Spice Shop. This particular salt lends a unique smoky, almost grilled flavor to the meat.
Pineapple Slaw (adapted from a recipe in Real Simple)-
Ingredients:
1 small jicama (about 3/4 lb) peeled and cut into thin sticks
1/2 pineapple- peeled, cored, and cut into thin sticks
1/2 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
3/4 c fresh cilantro sprigs, roughly chopped
juice from 1 lime
1 tsp olive oil
salt & pepper

In a large bowl, combine jicama, pineapple, bell pepper, and cilantro. Squeeze juice from lime over slaw. Drizzle oil over top and then sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Toss lightly and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes to allow flavors to combine.

Happy Spring, everyone!