On the list of things that I love – old skool rap and root beer is right on up there. I use Root Beer A LOT (check out all my other root beer recipes) in cooking because I love the flavor that it adds. Sweet with a hint of spice, it’s perfect for cooking meat.

Using a crock pot makes this tri tip fall apart beautifully and it is the perfect mid-week meal. Start it up in the morning and by dinner you’re good to go.

ingredients:
2-1/2 lbs tri tip
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
dash of cayenne
1 can root beer

Mix all the dry ingredients together and rub it on the tri tip. Place in the crock pot.

Pour in the root beer. Set the crock pot on low for 6-8 hours.

Slice or pull apart the trip tip and serve!

Lately I can’t live without a little heat. Sweet Chili Sauce provides a nice balance between the sweet AND the heat and it goes great in a pork chop marinade!

ingredients:
4 boneless pork chops (1/2 inch thick)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons sweet chili sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
juice of half a lime
pepper

In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, sugar, chili sauce, garlic, lime juice and a dash of freshly ground pepper.

In a baking dish pour the sauce over the chops and marinate for 1 hour.

Heat a pan over medium-high heat and cook the chops on both sides until they are no longer pink in the middle.

Marinating pork makes for a flavorful and quick weekday dinner!

Raspberries are abundant at Farmer’s Markets right now, and while they are sweet and ready to eat or bake with, they also add a nice flavor to more savory dishes.

I decided to use up our raspberry haul by simmering them with some nice roast beef and making a sweet yet savory dinner.

ingredients:
2 pound chuck roast
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 cup raspberries
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pepper
1/2 cup beef broth or water

In a bowl mix together the olive oil, red wine vinegar and sugar. Add the raspberries and garlic and mash up roughly until the raspberries are macerated. Stir in the salt and pepper.

In a dutch oven over medium high heat, add a little oil and brown the chuck roast. I like to cut the roast into smaller pieces so that it fits in the pot and also cooks evenly.

Pour the raspberry mixture on top of the browned beef and add the beef broth. Cover and let simmer on medium low for 1 to 1-1/2 hours depending on how well done you like your beef.

Let the meat rest for 5-7 minutes, then slice.

I love using jam/jellies in savory dishes. It adds just the right amount of sweetness. My favorite are Hawaiian Sun products because the flavors remind me of Hawaii. The mango+pineapple combo is something you wouldn’t think would work for ribs, but it makes for an amazingly flavorful short rib that is reminiscent of the islands.

I am giving away a few jars of Hawaiian Sun jam/jellies – make sure you enter!

ingredients:
2-3 pounds short ribs
10 oz jar of Mango-Pineapple jam
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 Tablespoons mirin
1/4 cup water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper

In a bowl combine the Mango-Pineapple jam, soy sauce, mirni, water, garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper. Mix well.

Place the ribs in a crock pot and pour the sauce over. Set the crock pot to low and cook for 6 hours.

The salty sweet combo is a perfect marinade for short ribs and the slow cooking will give you a lovely fall off the bone consistency.

Not to be confused with a Choco-Taco, I used my beloved Valrhona Cocoa Powder (the only thing I use for my baking) to add a little depth to beef tacos.

Chocolate is often used in Mexican mole so I thought adding a bit to my regular spices would add a deep, rich flavor – it did and was perfectly savory! And I loved telling the kids they were going to have chocolate for dinner, the look of confusion was priceless.

ingredients:
2-3 pound chuck roast
2 Tablespoons Valrhona Cocoa Powder
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (14 ounce) can beef broth

tortillas, cheese, lettuce, etc.

In a bowl combine the cocoa, brown sugar, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper. Whew. It sounds like a lot but trust me, I’ve altered this a few times and with this combo the flavors stand on their own yet come together perfectly.

Place the chuck roast in the crock pot. I like to cut the meat down into at least three pieces rather than one large roast. Sprinkle the spice mixture on top of the meat, then pour the beef broth in.

Set the crock pot to low for 6-8 hours. When the meat is done it will pull apart easily, serve it on tortillas with all the accompaniments you like!

The kids ate this up and they can’t wait for more ‘chocolate’ tacos!

Yes, I did make ALL this food for a Sunday Family meal…

Cooking in the crock pot is great but sometimes I miss that nice crust that you get from the oven. For these ribs I did most of the cooking in the crock pot and then transferred them to the oven right at the end to finish them off. Soft, yet crispy, and flavorful, these Brown Sugar Ribs are a big hit at family gatherings!

ingredients:
2 pounds pork spareribs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup water
2 slices fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
fresh ground pepper

Place the ribs in a crock pot.

In a small bowl combine the brown sugar, soy sauce, water, ginger and garlic. Pour over the ribs and season with fresh pepper.

Place crock pot on low for 4-6 hours.

Take the ribs out of the crock pot, place in an oven safe dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. And serve!

Chop steak is a cross between a hamburger patty and a meatloaf, basically a hamburger steak usually topped with gravy. A very old skool recipe in Hawaiian home cooking or even plate lunch.

I thought making a teriyaki version would give it a lot more flavor without needing to make a gravy at all (who needs more work?). This is one of the kid’s fave meals and if you make mini versions they make a great bento for lunch.

ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
1 onion, sliced

In a bowl mix together the ground beef, panko, soy sauce, sugar, garlic and egg.

The signature shape of a chop steak is oval – don’t ask me why. I shaped six mini oval patties but you can also just shape them into four large size patties.

In a pan on medium high cook the patties about 5-7 minutes on one side, flip and cover with a lid. This will help the patties cook through the center. Cook for another 5-7 minutes until done.

Take the chop steaks out of the pan and set aside on a plate. In the same hot pan add the sliced onions and cook down until caramelized. Top the steaks with the onions. Now you’ll notice mine have NO onions, that’s cause the kids weren’t having it and rebelling against all things onions that day. So it goes.

This is one of the kid’s favorite meals and it’s quick and flavorful!

Lilikoi is Hawaiian Passionfruit. The jelly is fragrant and sweet and makes a perfect base for ribs! These ribs can be cooked a variety of ways, no matter what the taste is divine. A meaty little taste of the islands…

ingredients:
2-3 pounds pork spare ribs
1-1/2 cup lilikoi jelly
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tablespoons sake
1 slice of fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon brown sugar

ground pepper

Lilikoi jelly can be found in most asian markets in the Hawaii section. It comes in a 10 ounce jar which is just enough or you can find it online.

Combine the lilikoi jelly, soy sauce, sake, ginger, garlic and brown sugar. (also, cheap sake is good enough. This one’s $2/bottle!)

I prefer doing this in the crock pot, but I noticed a lot of readers don’t own a crock pot, so here are some other ways of cooking these ribs:

Option 1: Put the ribs and the sauce in a crock pot and cook 6-8 hours on low.

Option 2: Marinate the ribs with the sauce for 5-6 hours, then grill.

Option 3: Marinate the ribs and bake it in the oven.

All options turn out GREAT. For the purposes of this recipe I went with the oven method. Place the ribs in a freezer bag and pour the sauce in. Marinate 5-6 hours.

Line a baking pan with foil and pour in the ribs and marinade. Season with ground pepper. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Let rest and serve!

The fragrant smell of the lilikoi will make you salivate as you wait for the ribs to cook, I promise you!

The Kid LOVES pears. He eats them almost everyday and so we always have fresh pears on hand. I decided to cook up a little something – coupling the sweet pears with some savory pork chops. A pretty, fruity dinner!

ingredients:
4-6 pork chops
2 pears
1 clove garlic, minced
salt
pepper
2 Tablespoons butter
4 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prep an oven-proof pan by greasing it with butter.

Using a peeler (whether it’s a mouse-peeler makes no diff), peel the pear and make ‘ribbons’. (Don’t use the peel.)

Layer the pear ribbons in the bottom of the pan.

Place the pork chops on top of the ribbons. Season with the minced garlic, salt and pepper.

In a small bowl combine the butter, brown sugar, dijon mustard and apple cider vinegar. Stir well and pour on top of the pork and the pears.

Bake for 60 minutes and serve.

Now that Oprah’s over I have no one to tell me how to live my life. I will bury my sorrows in chili burgers.

It’s Memorial Weekend – if you’re having a party try to make your life easy – ahem – I’m one to talk (party over-doer), but you know what I’m saying. The less steps the better.

These little sliders are perfect because you just set your crock pot o’ chili up in the morning, then cook the burgers in the oven and bring them out when the guests are ready. No standing at the grill getting sweaty and gross – just kick it in the kitchen and enjoy the fun!

ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

King’s Hawaiian sweet bread rolls
crock pot of chili (I like my ‘Not-Zippy’s Chili’ for these recipe, here)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prep a baking sheet lined with foil on the bottom and then a wire rack on top.

In a bowl combine the ground beef, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Form little slider size patties, I like to indent the center so they cook evenly.

Place on the prepped pan and bake for 20-30 minutes as desired, until the juices run clear.

I love serving warm meaty dishes on King’s Hawaiian rolls. The sweet Portuguese bread seems to always balance things out.

Place the burgers on the sweet bread rolls and top with the crock pot chili, or have the guests assemble their own. A perfect party treat!