Bernie's BBQ "cheat" sauce

I am going to write more about Jamie's book, but I was searching for something else and came across this recipe that I use often and refer to as my BBQ "cheat" sauce. It's actually a Chatelaine Recipe for Chili-molasses-rubbed ribs. I love this sauce, and it is easy to make. I call it a cheat sauce because you start off with a store BBQ sauce and then spice it up with theme and chili powder and salt and make it sticky and sweet with molasses (I get the fancy and not the cooking molasses...the former is much nicer in taste, I find.)

Sometimes I will make a big batch and use it for all my BBQ needs, be they pork, beef or even chicken. (I don't think it would go with fish or lamb, but it would go well with hardier vegetables).

The BBQ sauce I start with is usually a chipotle variety. But if you prefer plain, hickory, jalepeno...well, pick whatever you like. While I wouldn't recommend a really expensive BBQ sauce for the base, don't get a really cheap one either.

Jamie's Pancakes and my own (plus crepes)

Because I tend to ease into things, I started with the recipe for pancakes. It's a fairly easy recipe, but here are some tips you might find helpful.

If you are truly a novice cook, somethings to keep in mind if you haven't made pancakes or anything with flour and liquid ingredients is this: mix the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients seperately, then mix them together. It is also easier most time to gradually add the mixed dry ingredients to the mixed wet ingredients.

After you mix the wet and dry ingredients, let it sit for a bit in order to rise. During this time, you can let you pan get hot.

I find for whatever reason, my first pancake is never cooked as dark as I would like it to be. I likely don't let the pan get hot enough. Keep it in mind, since I often don't serve my first pancake and you might find the same thing.

In my case, I had self-rising flour, but I had had it for awhile and I think it went somewhat flat.

I like this recipe, but if I had my choice, I would go with a traditional recipe I use of :

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1-1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted (I think this is optional, though...I never use it)

I prefer this for a few reasons:

1. I don't care much for self-rising flour. It's basically flour with baking powder and salt. Better just to have those three ingredients. Having all-purpose flour is much handier and useful for other things. And of course you should always have salt.
2. Sugar, milk and eggs are also things I always have around.
3. I can basically go from making pancakes to crepes with mostly the same ingredients
   

Crepes consist of

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon salad oil (e.g., corn oil)

There's no sugar, baking powder or salt, and there's less flour and more milk and alot more eggs. This is why they can take richer and are thinner and why they don't rise and appear cakelike as the pancake does. You should mix them up in a blender or use a mixer or even a good hand mixing, then let them rest for 1 hour at room temperature. Or mix them the night before, cover them and stick them in the fridge, and then make them in the morning.

If all this sounds like alot for you, stick to Jamie's recipe. It's good, and a good way to get into the book.