So just who is this Julie Reinhardt?  Julie Reinhardt, owner of Smokin’ Pete’s BBQ, a Seattle joint, is passionate about the slow smoke of barbecue and understands the difference between ‘cuein’ and grillin’.  Born into an extensive Southern family, Reinhardt is ready to talk pork butt with the most macho grillmaster.  She plans and caters big events, and teaches smoking and grilling classes for women,  Reinhardt lives with her husband, son, and daughter in Seattle, Washington. “–She-Smoke back cover

Julie Reinhardt

“I will never forget my first taste of barbecue.  I was at a hole-in-the-wall joint just outside of Trussville, Alabama; it offered classic two meat/three side combos, a huge selection of smoked meats, and sides like warm peaches drenched in syrup and creamed corn.  When I first bit into those tender, smoky ribs, I had to take a moment of silence,” Julie tells in the opening sentences of the preface of her new book.

“This story is one of those that I’d told my friends and family too many times, so I needed to write a book to get some fresh ears. Seriously, though, it definitely shaped my approach to writing the book.  I’d been catering and working in restaurants for years, and though much of that was “front of house,” I had my share of prep and pantry experience.  When I looked back at my first grilling experience, I was first struck by how late it was in my work history.  I realized that there were so many women out there who avoided grilling and barbecue automatically, either because of some fear instilled in them at an early age, or simply because they didn’t question the assumption that barbecue was a man’s domain.  I wanted to write something to help change that.”

She-Smoke” isn’t your normal BBQ cookbook.  Julie set out to write more than just a cookbook, ” I definitely consider my book more than just a cookbook.  It’s a primer aimed at teaching technique and taking the mystery out of barbecue that many, especially women, find intimidating.”

Whether it’s the simplicity of explaining the difference between smoking and grilling to the the more complicated aspects of starting a proper fire in your pit or campfire Julie is not afraid to explore areas of barbecue often ignored by other barbecue cookbook authors.

Unlike more traditional cookbooks, “She-Smoke” doesn’t have pictures of the recipes.  The book, however, is filled with simple illustrations and charts that show how to cook barbecue.  One example is this simple, yet informative illustration on how to remove the membrane from a rack of ribs:

Whether it’s descriptions of the different regional barbecue styles or illustrations on how to cut up a chicken, Julie has come up with one of the more informative “how-to” BBQ books on the market today.  Yes, the book was written for women, but the book will teach anyone whether they are male or female, young or old, experienced or novice.  She takes some of the mystery out BBQ and opens doors for many to get involved in a great hobby.

The book “Smoke & Spice” to me has been the BBQ cookbook to gauge all others by.  It’s the book that really got me going in the right BBQ direction.  It’s been my inspiration for years.  “She-Smoke” doesn’t have the polish or literary chops that “Smoke & Spice” has, but if you are looking for a BBQ book to really learn the ins and outs of how to do traditional low & slow barbecue along with some great grilling tips then “She-Smoke” is a can’t loose purchase for you.

What’s next for Julie?

“What is next. Oh boy! I have so many things I want to do, I’ll have to live a very long life. We are in the mulling stage of what direction we want for our restaurant in terms of expansion. Since we opened six years ago, I’ve wanted to produce a line of wholesale rubs and sauces. I also have many more books inside me. In the short term, I need to figure out a way to get more sleep,” she explains.

Let’s hope her other books are as good as this one is.

Okay, so I have a new favorite cookbook every couple of weeks but this week it’s Ham: An Obsession with the Hindquarter. Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough have come up with a well written, enjoyable book to read If you enjoy ham as much as I do, you’re going to want this book.

Bruce and Mark are the authors of the “Ultimate” cookbook series. Even those this book doesn’t have the word Ultimate in the title they have written what may be the ultimate ham cookbook.

The cookbook is divided into four primary sections that deal with the four basic types of ham: Fresh Ham, Old World Dry-Cured Ham, New World Dry-Cured Ham and Wet-Cured Ham. Each section not only has representative recipes from around the world it is interspersed with stories, definitions, cooking tips and humor that illustrate the versatility of the back-end of the pig.

By “ham” we mean the hindquarter, the joint that becomes Italian prosciutto crudo and Spanish jamon iberico, the meat that comes to the table at a holiday meal –sometimes with those nasty canned pineapple rings and maraschino cherries stapled to it, sometimes tarted up with canned soda and unspeakable marinades, but many times just on its own: glorious simple smoked or not, cured or not–a large cut of pork the ultimate roast.

Many of the recipes include “Slash The Shopping List” and “Tester Tips.” These two features provide keen insight into how to actually cook the recipes. With “Slash The Shopping List” the authors provide home cooks the ability to not go out and purchase ingredients that might only be used once. As an example in their “Grilled Country Ham Steak with Plum Grill Mop” they explain how to eliminate 11 ingredients by substituting a store bought fruit based BBQ sauce. For the thrifty or budget conscious cook this will allow them to experiment with recipes they might not normally use. With “Tester Tips” Mark and Bruce might explain some of the regional differences in ingredients or maybe the history behind something.

Ham! It’s certainly not bacon but Ham: An Obsession with the Hindquarter will help you to appreciate the second most popular part of the pig.

Last year Ted published, Napoleon’s Everyday Gourmet Plank Grilling, what may be the definitive plank grilling cookbook and will be discussed in-depth in future blog posts.  Today’s post deals with his book Sticks & Stones: The Art of Grilling on Plank, Vine and Stone which was published almost 10 years ago.  I came across several references to this cookbook and knew I had to add it to my library.

The test of time is the best way to measure how good a cookbook is.  Even 10 years later “Sticks & Stones” is still available for purchase new.  This tells me Ted has wrote a masterpiece and it doesn’t take but a glance through the pages to know how good this cookbook it.

Whether it’s grilling on planks, marble, terra cotta or using grape vines as skewers “Sticks & Stones” make something that looks complicated and hard to do easy for backyarder.  If you want to impress your guests with great tasting grilled food along with great presentation possibilities you’ll want this book.

The book takes it’s inspiration from the skills developed over thousands of years of plank grilling by the Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest.  Ted Reader and his co-author Kathleen Sloan takes you through selecting planks and preparing them for grilling.  There’s also an introduction to selecting stones, vines and twigs for grilling.

The recipe section is divided up into 5 sections.  Section 1: “In the Beginning” has recipes for soups and starters.  Whether it’s “Wood-Smoked Butternut Squash Soup with Cumin-Roasted Pearl Onions” or “Maple-Planked Brie with Roasted Garlic and Peppers” you’ll have the perfect start to your plank grilled meal.

A section on chicken, beef, pork, lamb, turkey and games leads to the section of fish and seafood.  Toss in a section on sides and sauces and a section on sweets and treats and you have the makings for a complete meal that will surely impress just about anyone.

The origin of the barbecue cooking process along with how the word came about is debated around bbq pits all over America. I don’t think anyone person can explain it the same way any other BBQ enthusiast might.

There probably isn’t a BBQ forum on the internet that has not been turned into a fire storm of contention and arguments over how, when and where barbecue started.  Because of cultural and regional pride no one has probably ever had their mind changed during the inevitable spats that occur whenever this subject is brought up.  Warnes tosses all the normal assumptions out the window with a well researched and highly scholarly examination of the origins of America’s first food.

From the back cover:

“Barbecue, says Warnes, is an invented tradition.  Much like ‘Thanksgiving’, it has close association with frontier mythologies of ruggedness and relaxation.  Starting with Columbus’s journals in 1492, Warnes shows how the perception of barbecue evolved from Spanish colonists’ first fateful encounter with natives roasting iguanas and fish over fires on the beaches of Cuba.”

From the first mention of the word “babeque” in the journals of Christopher Columbus in 1492 to the first use of the word “barbacoa” in what is to become Panama and on to Virginia and Georgia not only does Warne weave a believable scenario for the invention of barbecue he provides a fantastic history of the Caribbean, Colonial America and  social tensions in the England.

Warnes connects barbecue with the “savagery” associated with the people of Caribbean during the height of the sugar trade in the 1600′s.  Although he makes a compelling case for connecting the dots between “savages” and racial stereotypes during this period I’m not sure how much I’m willing to buy into it.  He traces his hypothesis back to England and the social tensions prevalent during the reign of James II.

The book continues on into modern day with a history of BBQ in the south that is an excellent read on the southern BBQ culture that has bred the greatest comfort foods we know.  If you can stand the “college textbook” feel of this book you’ll learn a great deal about why BBQ is more than the etymology of a word, it’s culture, it’s history and more importantly it’s a way of life.

Savage Barbecue: Race, Culture, and the Invention of America’s First Food was published by The University of Georgia Press in 2008.