Wasn’t sure if it was appropriate to say Happy Memorial Day, cuz it isn’t, really.
Since I thought this was next weekend for some strange reason, I have to get up early tomorrow to go tend the 'rents gravestone and make it all pretty – and make sure Dad got his flag.
Other than that, nothing much planned. A streaming pre-recorded concert viewing tomorrow (but with the band on the live chat, so that’ll be fun!) and maybe fire up the smoker on Sunday. Ribs or Italian smoked pork. Or maybe both!
We’re serving lunch for 16 people on Monday. It’s a combined Memorial Day celebration plus 2 birthdays, 2 anniversaries, and Easter celebration – all the things we missed during shelter-in-place. My smoker will be running all afternoon on Sunday. The menu for lunch is homemade pimento cheese on grilled bread for an appetizer and smoked pork tenderloin sliders as the main dish. I’ll smoke a chicken, too, for the people that don’t eat pork.
How do you do your Italian smoked pork? That sounds good.
No get together’s here as yet. We are in phase 1. Not much on the weekend horizon either. I’ve been trying to keep myself busy and my brain occupied with crafts and doodling but even that needs a bit of a break … so I’ve been ripping apart the place … room by room … cleaning, sorting, throwing crap out I haven’t touched in years. I am by no means a hoarder. But, I think growing up poor has me hang on to things endlessly because I never know when I’m going to need them and don’t want to pay for them all over again 
And I have soooooo many bits and bobs of left over craft projects. I think it’s time to just make a box and let it go.
This will sound very maudlin … but the older I get the more aware I become of all the crap I have and what someone will have to go through when I kick the bucket. I’m sure 95% of what I have stored and boxed will not mean a thing to them. I can remember going through my Mom and Dad’s stuff and thinking … WTF did they ever save this for? 
I’m calling this the great purge of 2020 lol … someone will thank me for it … somewhere in the future
Have a great weekend everyone!!!
… and now I want some smoked meat
BBQ Italian pork is basically a Porchetta done in the smoker.
I like to use a boneless Boston Butt cuz the meat is more tender and juicy than using a boneless shoulder or loin roast, but you have to tie it up more. To do it for real you have to get a pork belly from the local butcher, but I don’t have that kind of coin right now.
Cut the roast with a sharp knife to make a long, wide flat piece of meat. For spices I use sea salt, fresh course ground black pepper, lots of garlic (minced or crushed in a press) fresh rosemary and fresh thyme (I have a bunch of that just harvestable size in the garden right now!) Slather that onto your meat flat rather liberally and then roll the meat into a roast shape. Use butcher’s string to hold it together. If your roast has a piece of skin, even better. That goes on top to get all crispy and bubbly (think pork rinds!) How long it needs to cook depends on how big the roast. I usually put it on a wire rack in a tin pan because it will catch on fire eventually if you don’t contain the drippings. I’ll also fill a pan on a lower rack with some bad hard cider thinned to half with water (I’m a sucker for new hard cider labels and a lot of them aren’t worth drinking, but they are good for cooking!)
Some people add sage and fennel to the herb mix because they associate that with “Italian” pork sausage, but it’s not an authentic flavor and I dislike the taste of both herbs anyway. Use em if you like em.
I’m heading out of the city to my home town for the weekend. It’s time to spray the apple trees.
Whatever you end up cooking, post a pic.
This one’s a boston butt.
Butterflied
And tied
It’s still cookin’.
Gonna have to wait another hour or two for more pics.
We’ll all be right over! We should get there about eatin’ time
Done, about an hour ago, with a nice bottle of homemade raspberry wine.
Um…I can’t feel my lips right now. That stuff is about 14% alcohol.
I’ve been taking some pictures throughout the weekend. I’ll upload after lunch tomorrow.
The Italian pork looks great.
Oooh that looks delishhh! I’m not a wine drinker … but I would be tempted to try that raspberry version … looks tempting
Slicing the smoked pork tenderloin.
Tray of tenderloin.
The chicken just off of the smoker.
Tray of smoked pork tenderloin sliders with slaw.
Tray of pulled chicken sliders with slaw.
Grilled bread.
Grilled bread with home made pimento cheese. The sliders were great, but, honestly, this stole the show.
Good heavens Steve … You’re torturing me! Happy What’s-Left-of-the Long Weekend!
Oh, man, Steve-o you win!
That all looks really good!
We only had cherry cobbler and rice/beans with the porchetta.
Thanks, all! It was a tasty lunch, no doubt.
