Recipe: Barbecued Ribs and Cola BBQ Sauce

OVEN ROASTED RIBS:
We use 1/4 cup of preferred barbecue sauce for each pound of ribs.

1-LB spareribs or baby back ribs
Salt
Pepper
Barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 450 F. Rinse ribs, drain well; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on rack in roasting pan. Pour 3 cups water into roasting pan. Bake in preheated very hot oven for 30 minutes. Remove ribs to platter. Drain roasting pan; wipe dry. Lower oven temperature to 300 F. Return ribs to rack in pan. Use 1/4-cup barbecue sauce per pound of ribs. Brush half the sauce over one side. Bake the ribs in preheated slow oven (300F) for 25 minutes. Turn ribs over; brush with remaining sauce. Bake 20 minutes or until thoroughly cooked at thickest part. Preheat broiler. Brush ribs with any of the remaining sauce or pan juices. Broil until crisp on both sides. Cut into serving-size pieces. Serve with additional sauce for dipping.

COLA BARBECUE SAUCE
Makes about 2 1/2 cups

1 onion finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
2 TB unsalted butter
1 cup catsup
1 cup ground tomatoes
1 bottle coca cola
1 TB Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. Balsamic Vinegar
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 crumbled bay leaf
1/4 tsp. ground pepper

Saut the onion and garlic in the butter in a saucepan over medium low heat for 5 minutes; do not allow onions to brown. Add all the remaining ingredients; stir to mix well. Bring to boiling. Lower heat; simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Refrigerate the cooled barbecue sauce in a tightly covered container or freeze.