J:

Here, finally, is the recipe for the May birthday request,
which was actually cooked early in June.  It was so well
received that Beth picked it for her birthday dinner in July.
It is for -- surprise -- ribs.  I got this recipe off the Net
many years ago and it is actually called "LBJ Beef Brisket".  I
don't remember if it supposed to be the authentic recipe used
by LBJ, but it makes for pretty darn good beef brisket, beef
ribs, and (just to horrify Texans) pork ribs.  I made pork
spare ribs in both July and August.

You can do this in the oven, but it is *much* better on the
BBQ.  It takes hours, so if you don't want to heat up your
house all day, use a BBQ.  You need to have a big enough one
that you can cook indirectly.  That is, you need to pile the
coals on the sides and put the meat in the middle.  Also, you
need a lid that closes.

Here's what you do.

Rub the meat with a mixture of 

1/4 cup salt
1/3 cup chili powder
1 1/2 Tbsp black pepper
1 Tbsp garlic powder.

Make a "mop" sauce with (actually, I think I double this)

1 can (10 oz) beef broth
1 1/3 cups water
3/4 cup worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp tabasco
1/2 tsp paprika

Boil, then take off the heat.

Put the meat on the grill and brush or "mop" with the mop
sauce.  Then mop every twenty minutes for 4 hours, or until the
meat is tender.  Brisket probably takes longer.  Remember to
add fresh coals every hour if you're using the BBQ.

I used to serve this with store bought BBQ sauce, but hardly
anyone uses it because the meat is so good without it.