I also have an iTouch, that I has the exact same songs on it as did my iPod mini that retired after 4 years. So this fancy DVD thing has a place to attach your iPod to it and it feeds your songs to the TV.

I have a few playlists, but last night I decided to put it on my Top 25. I had never looked at it. Here’s a snippet:

1. S.O.S. by ABBA
2. Midnight Rider by Willie Nelson
3. My Maria by Brooks and Dunn
4. Check Yes or No by George Straight
5. Angel Flying to Close to the Ground by Willie Nelson
6. 7 by Prince
7. Seasons of Love from the Rent Soundtrack
8. Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2
9. Fernando by ABBA
10. Neon Moon by Brooks and Dunn

I still don’t know what to think about the randomness in my top songs, but I’m sure that I need to listen to more Aerosmith. I have no idea how they didn’t make it to the top 10.

My song psychology moment did help time pass by while I marinated and cooked a rib recipe I found over at Homesick Texan’s blog. I’ve cooked with Dr. Pepper before, I made these tasty Cherry Dr. Pepper Cupcakes and they were delicious.

These ribs were sweet, smokey and crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. I think you can’t ask for more from a rib. What I think really worked with the recipe is that the cooking method. If you’re going to cook ribs inside, I’d think you could create any variation of the recipe, but keep the cooking method and you’d end up with a great result.

I didn’t have chiplote powder, so I substituted anjo chili powder and smoked paprika. My variation to the recipe from Homesick Texas is reflected below:

Dr Pepper ribs

For the rub:
1/4 cup of salt
1/4 cup of black pepper
1/4 cup of brown sugar
4 teaspoons of mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne
2 teaspoons of anjo chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of allspice

For the glaze:
2 cups of Dr Pepper
1 cup of ketchup
1/2 cup of mustard
1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons of molasses
4 teaspoons of smoked paperika

Two racks of St Louis ribs
1/4 cup of Dr Pepper

Coat the ribs with the rub, wrap in plastic and place in the refrigerator for at least four hours.

Heat the oven to 300 degrees and bring the ribs to room temperature.

In a foil-lined large baking or roasting pan, arrange the ribs with the meat side up, pour in 1/4 cup of Dr Pepper, cover pan tightly with foil and place in the oven.

Meanwhile, place all the glaze ingredients in a pan, bring to a boil and then simmer for 20 minutes until thick and syrupy.

After an hour and a half, take the ribs out of the oven and spread some of the glaze on each side of the racks. Place back in the oven, meat side up and cook uncovered for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, take out the ribs and spread more glaze over them and cook for 30 more minutes or until ribs are desired tenderness.

At this point, take the ribs out of the oven, spread more glaze on them and then cook each side under the broiler for four minutes.

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Or my favorite skipping a meal excuse, “Oh, I had some almonds and some trail mix.” Really, and you counted that as a meal?

How does that happen? Doesn’t your tummy start to growl? At some point, do you get little hunger pangs and STOP what you’re doing to EAT?

These Chorizo Black Bean Pepper Jack Cheese Empanadas were good enough to have for breakfast and I packed two for lunch.

 Chorizo Black Bean Pepper Jack Cheese Empanadas

12 oz chorizo, cooked and drained

8 oz Pepper Jack Cheese, shredded

15 oz can spicy black beans, with juice

1 small yellow onion, diced, grilled

2 boxes ready made pie crust

1 egg, mixed

1 5′ bowl

Saute the chorizo and place on a plate with a paper towel to drain. Reserve 1 T of the chorizo oil and grill yellow onion in the same pan. About 8 minutes. Add the black beans, cook another 8 minutes or until the juice in the beans starts to thicken.

Allow the meat and the bean mixture to cool and shred in the cheese. Mix well.

Use a 5′ diameter bowl for a guide and cut out circles in the pie crust. Place about 1/4 cup mixture in each crust, use a fork to pinch the edges and brush with an egg. You should get about 12 empanadas.

Place on a prepared baking sheet and bake in 400 degree oven for 20 minutes.

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• A former Miss New Mexico
• A fundraiser coordinator for Make a Wish Foundation
• 2 women who spent a week in New Orleans rebuilding homes

Wow, right? One girl, Ann, was high energy and passionate about her job. She represents Niman Ranch they are a group who encourages and distributes meat that is organically and humainly raised. What a novel concept! Paying ranchers to raise animals free of hormones, growth agents and free range. While browsing the new Whole Foods in Chandler today, I asked the butcher if they had Niman Ranch products. He didn’t have anything in the case, but he did direct me to the frozen food section where there was a frozen dinner by Grace’s Kitchen; It was Niman Ranch Pork with Balsamic Peaches. For $9, it was worth a go and can I tell you the portion size was perfect, the directions produced a juicy clean tasting main dish.

The angle of the picture is deceiving (although this spinach, radish salad was quite delicious too). I’m excited to find out more about this group. If you’re in Northern California, you’re lucky, it seems that most of your nicer restaurants proudly serve Niman products.

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