Rustic Photos Tuesday - Ribs n' Corn, Tea n' Cake

Barbecue, beer, bourbon and barbecue sauce, and corn all have important places in American culture, and each have a rich and varied history.

Traditional BBQ should be cooked slowly (overnight) in a wooden pit, but modern BBQ usually involves gas or (in our case) charcoal outside on the patio. Traditional rubs and sauces vary all over the country. I'm sure purists and traditionalists would scoff at Jack Daniels sauce as being too commercially sugar-laden and far-removed from 'the good stuff' but hey, I like it. One day I'd love to do a BBQ road trip of America for tender slow-cooked pulled pork, authentic style.

And I totally get it now, the BBQ thing. A BBQ is not always a special event here, it's just practical. On Sunday when you want a nice family dinner, but it's 100F outside, it makes no sense to heat up the house by cooking in the kitchen.

And for dessert, in contrast:

Afternoon tea has an important place in British culture. And without my fabulous baking girls I've had to resort to my own baking (it's not as good). A decent cup of tea, despite America's tumultuous relationship with the drink, isn't actually hard to find here in the suburban/rural sprawl. I've heard other British expats complain about the quality of American tea, so trust Tetley to combat that:

The irony is that as a Brit I pay US taxes without being able to vote

Tetley British Blend: For American families with a British blend! I'm sure purists are scoffing right now, but hey, I like Tetley's tea, and it sure beats Lipton.

Du bon, aye.

Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee was my penultimate weekend in the UK, and the perfect opportunity to catch up with friends in Edinburgh and Glasgow before I head off.

Friday Pimm's and midnight baking!

First off was a couple of days with my domestic goddessses, which included late-night impromptu baking. These girls are amazing and can pull off a perfect Victoria sponge at a moment's notice. They have expert cupcake, sewing and even wool-spinning skills. Honestly, it's like a young WI whenever I see them. That's all fine by me, of course, as I'm very good at eating cake…

…and we all did extremely well at that on a trip to Loopy Lorna's for traditional afternoon tea. It's perfectly quirky with mismatched tea-sets, home-knitted tea cosies, and super-tasty dainty cakes. The tea selection is pretty good too, try the Honey Bunny tea.

All-in-all, a wonderfully appropriate way to wave goodbye to my favourite ladies in all Old Blighty.

Next stop was my old stomping ground, Glasgow, for Mexican food and a ubiquitous drink of which the dear old Queen would probably approve:

Gin and Fentiman's Tonic!

Fact: The Queen drinks a gin and Dubonnet every lunchtime, a glorious habit she picked up from her mother.

Another Fact: Dubonnet tastes a bit like another fortified wine which has gained a cult notoriety in the West of Scotland. This amuses me greatly, though I'm not sure I'd want to try such a re-mix of the Queen's drink. Anyone want to give it try and let me know how it goes?

I can't thank all of my brilliant friends enough for their support, and some great memories to boot. I'm almost done with my UK farewell tour, but I'd like to think these are more "see you laters" than real goodbyes. So many folks have promised/threatened to come and stay with me in the New World!