Everything but the ribs...

Dinner tonight was all homemade.

Everything that is except for the ribs.

What did we have?

A salad with lettuce picked from our garden plot and dressing made from scratch. The dressing is light; made with mayo, lemon juice, olive oil and a few other ingredients that make it perfect for summer.

The croutons were also homemade. I frequently buy Italian-style bread at Meijer for croutons. If I don't use it right away, I freeze it. Then I pull it out when I want to make croutons. Of course it's best when you can let the bread sit for a day or two before making croutons out of it. The older the bread, the better the croutons.

The tomatoes and olives were from the store. But we are growing tomatoes in the garden so we'll have homegrown ones soon enough.

I made my slightly famous beer-battered onion rings. They are always good, but tonight they were especially good.

Then there were the ribs.

In case you hadn't noticed; most of the food wasn't homemade. We didn't grow the onions, grind the flour, or brew the beer. But nothing came preassembled, so we're calling it homemade.

Back to the ribs. Bill made his special dry rub. Then he made his special sauce. We call it, "Bold Bill". It's not too hot (as in spicy), but it starts out sweet and gives a little kick at the end. It is delicious. Together, the rub and the sauce, make these ribs superior to anything I've ever had.

That is saying something. After all, I am the girl who, at her Junior Prom, wore white gloves and ordered a full rack of ribs at dinner. I didn't spill a drop.

I know ribs. Don't worry, next time you come visit, there's a good chance we'll make them for you.