Homemade Barbecue Sauce & Rice-a-Roni

That is correct my friends - last night I made homemade BBQ sauce and homemade rice-a-roni and I will never buy BBQ sauce or rice-a-roni from the store again, ever, they were THAT good!!  Not to mention the recipes are incredibly easy!  I adapted the them from Plain Chicken (my current food blog obsession) but mixed it up just a tad.

 

I made chicken to go with the BBQ sauce but I am pretty sure it would taste amazing on anything.  Also, I love boxed rice-a-roni but the amount of sodium is amazingly unhealthy and it always leaves me feeling sort of 'blahhh'.  Homemade rice-a-roni on the other hand is not only delicious and filling but it also has significantly less sodium!  So here we go ...

 

Balsamic BBQ Sauce

(Adapted from Plain Chicken)

1 cup balsamic vinegar

  3/4 cup ketchup

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp garlic powder

1 Tbs Worcestershire suace

1 Tbs Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground pepper

 

In a nonreactive plan add all the ingredients and whisk until smooth.  Bring to boil and then simmer (uncovered) for 15 - 20 minutes or until the sauce is reduced by a 1/3.  Allow to cool and serve over a meat of your choice! 

 

Simple!  I plan on making a batch or two at some point to have on hand. 

Next up is the rice-a-roni!

 

Parmesan Orzo (a.k.a. Homemade Rice-a-Roni)

(Adapted from Plain Chicken)

3 Tbsp butter
8 oz Orzo
1 tsp garlic powder

1.5 cups chicken broth (low sodium)
1/2 - 3/4 cup White Wine
1/2 cups Parmesan-Reggiano Cheese
Salt & Pepper (to taste)

 

Melt butter in a sauce pan (with a lid).  Add the 8 oz of orzo and cook, stirring frequently until the orzo is golden brown.  Add the white wine, chicken broth and garlic powder.  Bring to boil, reduce heat and cover.  Cook for about 10 - 15 minutes.  Once all the liquid has absorbed and the orzo is tender remove from heat and add cheese.  Stir until the cheese is melted and serve!

 

Simple yet again!  Now I know what you are thinking - wine, chicken broth and garlic powder combined?  Really?  The answer is YES!  The wine give the orzo a great flavor - in the case of this batch, just a hint of sweetness.  And chicken broth and garlic powder will make just about any dish more flavorful.

 

Chicken with homemade BBQ sauce and a homemade 'rice-a-roni' side!

Yummm!

This is a great weeknight meal and definitely something that I'll be making again soon!