Belated Fourth of July Gathering and Menu

July 07, 2013

Belated Fourth of July Gathering and Menu

Rain, rain, GO AWAY! We measured 8 inches of rain in our rain gauge from late July 3rd to July 6th. Seriously? It's usually so hot and humid on the fourth we're miserable. But, the party must go on. We decided rain or shine, let's do this and do it right. About mid-day a shining light started appearing through the thick clouds and we were on our way for what turned out to be a gorgeous afternoon and evening. Thank you Lord!

We are all about some fun, food, friends and family. All I can say is if anyone left the house hungry this past Saturday night, it was their fault plain and simple. Andy fired up the pit (in progress) early in the morning and had all kinds of good food smoking. I fixed several favorites starting on Friday and finished up Saturday afternoon. We just like to cook plain and simple. Sometimes we overdo it and we did fix a little too much meat this time. I'm including what we cooked how much and how many we cooked for and how much we should cook in the future (in regards to the meat) so you can have an idea on how to not fix too much food. Plus, it'll be a record of what we did for future planning. The amounts prepared were for 25 guests.The basic times on the pit are listed below.

2- 7 lb. Boston Butts (1)
1-4 lb. Goat ham
4-Fryers cut in half (2)
4-Slabs Baby Back Ribs (3)
2-Sticks BBQ Bologna (3)
2-Packs Polish Sausage (1)
Cowboy beans (Use 3 cans of beans next time--ran out)
Potato Salad (small bowl left over)
Hot Slaw (small bowl left over)
Macaroni and Cheese (1 lb. cooked--ran out)
Vegetable Tray (Broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers)
Cucumbers, Peppers and Onions (small bowl left over)
Dill Green Beans and Sweet Pickles (Ran out)
Deviled Eggs (2 dozens-ran out)
Banana Pudding
Fudge
Rotel Dip and Chips

Andy started building this pit about a year and a half ago. We've added so many projects this past year, he hasn't had time to get the "real" door made.

So we do what any good redneck bunch would do...use a sheet of tin and a "lean to" piece of angle iron or two! :-) It still does a super job.

You can't beat smoking with good ol' hickory!

Load me up!

The butts were put on at 7AM. The temperature stayed between 225-250 degrees all day long.

Getting ready to put the goat in at 10:45AM.

Lookin' good...but not quite done!

The split chickens went down at 10:45.

The chicken is already looking good just 15 minutes later when we put the ribs on.

It's a wrap! The chicken came up at 12:30PM and we double wrapped the ribs,
butts and goat in aluminum foil.

Grandaughter Emilee Rae watches Big Poppa check the internal temperature. She can't wait to eat! Hopefully she'll learn our cooking skills and carry on our traditions.