By Sent Linda her copy of the book with a handwritten note. She called Saturday after receiving it and said the foreword made her cry. She said: I didn't know you could write like this. I said I hadn't known for a while either. She read me her favorite sentence — the one about a horse being a living record of the hands that have touched it — and asked if that was true of people too. I said I thought it might be. She said she thought so.
Second haying is complete. The barn is full. We're ahead of where we were this time last year, which means the winter outlook is better. These are the facts that matter on a working ranch: hay in the barn, water in the tanks, fences intact. Everything else is secondary.
Started working on the first magazine column. The topic resolved itself over the course of the month: it's going to be about elk chili. Not just the recipe — the seven-year arc of refining it, what each season's chili revealed about what was missing, the year the recipe was finished and what finished means when you're talking about food you make with an animal you hunted. The column writes itself once I'm in it. Eight hundred words is not enough for this subject. I'll have to cut.
Made a simple late-summer dinner: grilled flank steak, corn salad with cherry tomatoes and basil, cucumber with rice vinegar and dill. The kind of meal that tastes like the last week of summer should taste. I ate outside at the picnic table while the sun went down and the horses came to the fence to see if I had anything. I didn't, but I stayed at the table until the light was gone anyway. That was the right place to be.
That evening at the picnic table — the horses at the fence, the light going slow, the corn salad and the steak — reminded me that the best meals are the ones that match the moment without trying to. The barn was full, the column was taking shape, and Linda had called about the book. When everything lines up like that, you don’t need much from dinner except that it be honest and good. Cola barbecue ribs are exactly that: a straightforward, deeply satisfying thing to make when the summer is winding down and you want something that rewards patience the same way the season does.
Cola Barbecue Ribs
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 2 hrs 30 min | Total Time: 2 hrs 45 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 racks baby back pork ribs (about 4 lbs total)
- 1 can (12 oz) cola (not diet)
- 1 cup your favorite barbecue sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Prep the ribs. Remove the membrane from the back of each rack by sliding a butter knife under it and pulling it away with a paper towel for grip. Pat ribs dry with paper towels.
- Make the dry rub. Combine brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, and cayenne in a small bowl. Rub olive oil over both sides of the ribs, then press the dry rub evenly onto all surfaces.
- Make the cola glaze. Pour the cola into a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook until reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Stir in the barbecue sauce and remove from heat. Set aside.
- Oven-bake low and slow. Preheat oven to 300°F. Place ribs meat-side up on a foil-lined baking sheet. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 2 hours, until the meat is tender and beginning to pull from the bones.
- Glaze and finish. Remove the foil and brush the ribs generously with the cola glaze. Increase oven temperature to 400°F (or transfer to a preheated grill over medium-high heat) and cook uncovered for 20–25 minutes, brushing with additional glaze every 8 minutes, until the exterior is caramelized and sticky.
- Rest and serve. Let the ribs rest for 10 minutes before cutting into individual ribs. Serve with any remaining glaze on the side.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 620 | Protein: 42g | Fat: 34g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 890mg