It’s Labor Day weekend and like all other Labor Day weekends since we purchased our little farm, we are camping out in the backyard.  One year we made the mistake of trying to travel on the interstate to get to another town on Labor Day and there was so much traffic that we sat at a dead stand-still at several different points.  It was ridiculous and we have yet to venture out on such a crazy weekend again.

This year, in addition to camping, we are rigging a spit to roast two whole chickens over our campfire.  My dad called yesterday wanting to know what we were doing.  I could picture him rubbing his hands together conspiratorially like he does when we are together and he excitedly asks me what my plans are for “such and such.”  “You bbqing a chicken?”  I told him yes, two of them.  He laughed and laughed.  I told him I was rigging a spit to cook them over the fire and that we were camping in the backyard to avoid overcrowded campgrounds and because our property has the best mountain view anyway.  He laughed again and agreed that it does.  Before I could tell him that I was roasting them over the fire like we used to do with cornish game hens when he would take us backpacking in Florida when I was a kid, he asked,  “Did I ever tell you what I used to do?”  I knew where he was going.  I mentioned the cornish hens.   He continued, telling me how he would do it.  While everyone else was packing in cans of SPAM, he would pack frozen cornish game hens and during a day of hiking in the Florida heat, by the time camp was set up and a fire was going, the hens would be defrosted.  We got onto another subject before I had the chance to tell him that my memories of those roasted hens was precisely why we were cooking our chickens the same way.

It wasn’t until my husband came home from work and I was telling him about my phone conversation with Dad that I realized, with my husband’s help, that Dad was probably referring to our pet chickens when he asked if we were cooking a chicken this weekend and that’s why he laughed so hard when I said “two”.   That still has me giggling when I think about it.  He knows how much I love those stupid birds.

These barbeque sauces I came up with for the 4th of July weekend picnic we had.  I used one for our ribs and one for chicken.  I was never able to post them because my laptop with the photos of that bbq died before I could post the recipes.  I decided that Labor Day weekend was a good time to get them up and added to my recipe index, sans photos.  I don’t think a couple of shots of bowls of a redish brown sauce would be that exciting anyway.

The chicken in the photo is glazed with Roasted Scallion and Tomato BBQ Sauce.

Tennessee Whiskey BBQ Sauce

2/3 c. tomato paste

1/3 c. soy sauce

1 3/4 tsp. chilli powder

1/2 tsp. granulated garlic

2 T Jack Daniel’s whiskey

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/4 tsp. dry mustard powder.

Combine all ingredients and slowly heat over medium to low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Sweet Carolina BBQ Sauce

1 c. catsup

1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/4 c. honey

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

1/2 tsp. granulated garlic

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. prepared yellow mustard

3 T red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. chilli powder

Combine all ingredients and slowly heat over low to medium heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Additional Backyard BBQ recipe ideas:

Roasted Scallion and Tomato BBQ Sauce

Zesty Barbeque Sauce

All American Potato Salad

Confetti Slaw

Grilled Corn on the Cob with Chive Butter

Green Goddess Roasted Red Potato Salad

Buttermilk Biscuits

Sweet Southern Cornbread

Picnic Devilled Eggs

Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies

Peach Bread Pudding with Molten Praline Sauce

Strawberry Shortcake