Slow Cooker Rolling Stone Spare Ribs with Kale Mashed Potatoes

 

The Rolling Stones Pittsburgh Performance during their Zip Code Tour 2015

I named these ribs after the Rolling Stones who were here in Pittsburgh, PA during their Zip Code Tour 2015.   They performed at the Heinz Stadium this past Saturday, June 20 and despite the dismal wet weather they attracted 55,000 fans to watch their impressive performance.  Luckily the rain stopped when they performed at around 9:15 pm that evening and we were able to put away our ponchos and make shift rain coats made of garbage bags for some.  Actually the rainbow appeared at around 8:30 pm after the short opening act of the AWOLNATION group.  Yes we sat through the opening act with the rain pouring. 

This is my first rock concert in many years and my second if you count the Bee Gees concert in the late 1970's at Ames, IA when I was a graduate student and I was not disappointed.  Upon hearing the first song with Mick Jagger still sprightly despite his 72 years cavorting on stage with his Jagger moves and the two guitarists, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood, electrifying the audience with their incomparable guitar skills, I was totally mesmerized and forgot the long, miserable wait under the rain.

The stage at Heinz stadium with the signature Rolling Stone tongue logo.  Note the people in yellow ponchos braving the rain before the perforpmance.

The people started coming in for the main performance of the Rolling Stone.  Note the Pittsburgh zipcode beneath the logo of the Zip Code Tour.

My salute to the hardworking Mick Jagger.  He still has "it" and his moves are so delightful and unique.

The screen showing one of the original members, the drummer, Charlie Watts.

The one and only Mick Jagger.  Mick, you were awesome and truly an inspiration for this aging fan.  If you can do it so can I.

Rolling Stone Spare Ribs with Kale Mashed Potatoes

The tail gate party we had in the Red Zone parking lot near the stadium with Milyssa, me and my husband Bob featured these ribs, kale mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables and strawberry parfait for dessert.  We were lucky to park under a bridge which protected us from the drizzle that started at around 5 PM and were able to eat the tail gate fare without having to use a poncho or umbrella. 

Poo

Actually only Milyssa ate the tail gate food while Bob and I munched on the De Lallo's olives and crackers that Milyssa brought.  I ate since I could not wait while I photographed the pictures for this blog before leaving for the concert while Bob ate the ribs and mashed potatoes for his late lunch at 3 PM.  Milyssa loved every bite of the ribs and mashed potatoes.  Lucky for her she waited and delighted in eating the tail gate food as it should be eaten in the parking lot.  Shame on us who could not wait.

The sauce for the ribs is a compromise of what Bob wanted, namely just bottled barbecue sauce and my desire to have a citrusy, sweet sauce.  I just decided to combine both.  I healthy-fied the mashed potatoes with the addition of kale and I really liked the result and so did Milyssa, Bob and the rest of my family who had it the next day for Father's Day dinner with New York Strip Steak.

Here are the recipes for the Ribs and Kale Mashed Potatoes.

Slow Cooker Rolling Stone Spare Ribs

Ingredients

• 5 lbs country pork spare ribs
• 1 cup barbecue sauce
• 1 cup orange juice
• juice of 1 lemon and 1 lime
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tbsp sugar
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder to taste
• 2 tbsp cornstarch

1.  Mix all the ingredients in the slow cooker with a whisk except the ribs. Then add the ribs cut up or in small sections and coat with sauce.

2.  Cook for 8 hours at low or 4 hours at high setting.  I used an Aroma brand rice cooker/slow cooker where I cooked the ribs for 3 hrs at slow cooker setting.

3.  You can eat the ribs straight from the crock pot or you can transfer the sauce in a pan to thicken the sauce and transfer it to the slow cooker to coat the ribs.  You can also grill the ribs and  use the thicken sauce to baste the ribs while grilling them.

4.  Serve with Kale Mashed Potatoes (shown below)

Kale Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

• 8 whole medium sized red potatoes with skins on
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1/4 cup butter (you can use more)
• 2-3 cups kale, stems removed and cut to bite size
• salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

1.  Place the red potatoes in a pot.  Add water to cover the potatoes and cook them until they are done for around 15-20 minutes.  During the last 5 minutes, add the kale to the boiling water. 

2.  Remove the kale and set aside. 

3.  Drain the water and return the potatoes into the pan and add the butter and evaporated milk.  Using a potato masher mix the ingredients together.  Then add the kale and incorporate it to the potatoes.  Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.