a cooking double header!

The other day i went South,
now in many circles it means something that did not work and had to be discarded,
but for me it means into the southern US for cooking inspiration!
I learned something from my least likable chef on food network, Ann Burell.  I always learn form her even though i do not like her presentation.
In this case it was removing the spine of the chicken - hers was done to butcher a chicken into pieces
Me?  I do not like the little bones from the spine when roasting a chicken.
So i kept the chicken whole and with a SCISSORS removed the entire spine and neck.
Because i do not like to waste i took all of these discards and boiled them down to remove the meat form the bone.
So my first offering:

Chicken Roasted, with biscuits and gravy

(Southern style)

1 whole chicken

1 teaspoon sage
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon bacon fat
1 tablespoon flour

Remove the spine, neck, heart, liver, gizzards and tips of the wings from the chicken and begin boiling them in enough water to keep them covered.

Since the chicken is splayed, lay the cut side down in the roasting pan.
Carefully separate the skin from the meat of the chicken breast.
mix the butter, sage, thyme and salt with 1/2 stick of butter,
slather about half of this mixture between the skin and the meat and on top of the skin.
Begin baking for 1 hour at 250 F.
Raise the temperature to 350 for an additional hour - skin will be crisp and the meat falling off the bone.

For the gravy:

When all the chicken parts are beginning to fall apart, remove them from the heat.
when cool remove all the bones and cartilage.
Blend the meat and remaining liquid with the remaining sage/thyme butter till smooth.
Heat this mixture and add black pepper and bacon fat.
prepare a roux using the remaining butter and the flour.
Add this to the blended mixture just before serving and stir while heating till thick.
Serve gravy over freshly baked biscuits next to the pieces of chicken.

Second offering-the next day i wanted to do a spaghetti and meat sauce, but found i only had ground pork (it was on a sale and you never know and well this was the day!)
This is not Italian as i have been taught, but was recognizable as a good meat sauce, which is a bit thicker than i usually make, but that would be for spaghetti anyway.

Meat Sauce For Spaghetti

(this makes enough gravy for 2 lbs of spaghetti)

 
1 lb ground pork
5 cloves garlic diced
1 long Italian hot pepper, diced
1/2 red pepper, diced
1 32 oz can tomato sauce
1 32 oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup basil, chopped
1 tablespoon bacon fat
1 tablespoon salt
enough olive oil to coat the bottom of your sauce pan
1 small can tomato paste
2 cups red wine

 heat olive oil with garlic until just hot and add pork.

brown the pork and work it to a fine ground.
add peppers, salt, bacon fat and basil.
when the mixture begins to simmer again add tomato sauce, rinsing the cans with water.
bring to a simmer and cover until the mixture begins to thicken.
Add wine and when simmering again, add tomato paste.
stir well and when this mixture begins to simmer, serve over al dente spaghetti

back to cooking

Since moving from texas, i have been introduced to other meats, besides beef, that can be BBQed.
All along the East Coast (and particularly the Carolinas) i have tasted some delisious pork.
Well Pork ribs have been on sale recently and i have been getting them and this is what i do.
Since it is just to cold for me to be on the grill (or smoker depending), i am using a wet rub.
If i grill or smoke, i almost always use a dry rub.  i used my javorite pre-made sauce as a base, but add enough extra to make it unrecognizable and orange is something that goes very well with pork!

Pork Rib with wet marinade

1 whole rib, any style, ~ 3 lbs
14 oz (1/2 bottle) Jack Daniels BBQ sauce (others work)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon chili peppers, dried and crushed
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoon dried orange zest
1/2 cup spiced rum
2 diced cloves of garlic

mix together all ingredients for the marinade and slather pork rib

let sit in refrigerator at least 3 hours
begin cooking at 250 F for 2 hours.
up the temperature to 400 for 15 minutes
tender and moist!

The cold makes me slow

It is cold out
and i have not felt like much of anything.
The consitancy is that i am very busy
and that i cook.
I know i am still in catch-up mode...
catching up with things left undone since the operation and the recovery.
I still think i am in the recovery stange because i see slight improvements in my vision,
in the "diplopia" part.
Cooking warms me up and so does what i cook.

Recipe today is lentil soup...

lentil soup

 1 bag of dry lentils

1 ¹_/2 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoon fresh minced hot pepper
6 cloves garlic
3/4 onion sliced
1/4 onion minced
1 cup sliced sweet peppers
1 teaspoon dry hot peppers
1 teaspoon orange zest
¹_/2 cup orange
8 bay leaves
10 black peppercorns
1 teaspoon course ground black pepper
1 lb of sausage
5 whole allspice berries
1 cup white wine
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup fresh carrots
5 whole allspice berries
1/4 stick butter
1 quart chicken stock

clean (to remove stones and unwanted debris) and then soak lentils with cold water 3 inches above lentils

soak over night
boil 1 cup of water and soak bay leaves, peppercorns and allspice berries with 1/2 tablespoon salt over night
melt butter and cook onions till just translucent and add garlic, peppers and sliced onions in a large pot (you can use a frying pan and transfer to a crock pot as an alternative)
add lentils, strained bay leaf water and all the remainder of the ingredients except the minced onion to pot on low heat
discard bay leaf mixture, but add fresh peppercorns and allspice to the lentils
Add wine and chicken stock to cover the lentils 1 inch.
cook covered for 6 + hours
topped with minced onions
a dollop of yogurt or sour cream is also an option

Still cooking

in case you did not notice, also blogger is not letting me add more photos, even tho i am no where near my limit!

Drunken Pork Chops

with Rum!

 6 thick pork chops

2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup rum
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper

Mix rum and maple syrup and place into a backing pan

Salt the chops and place them into the liquid
add the brown sugar to the top of each one, sparingly
cover and place in the refrigerator over night
Allow it to come to room temperature.
place covered in a 350 F oven for 1 hour
remove the cover and pour the liquid into a sauce pan to reduce
broil the chops for 10 minutes per side (brown), remove.
plate pouring reduced liquid on each one.

not my mamas tzadziki

an untraditional approach to a traditional side!

1 cucumber, peeled and diced

2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
2 cups yogurt
 
mix all the ingredients and keep refrigerated.  Serve when ever and however you like!

spare time?

no,
i have been busy,the holiday season helps ...

Christmas cactus in time for Christmas

note it is NOT just Christmas, but Christmas is what i celebrate,
but there are a lot of other ones at this time of the year and i hope all the others are health and happy.

There has been baking - which is a tradition for me...
Baklava:  my style

Baklava

This will make 2 large trays of pastry

Ingredients:
1 package Filo dough
2 pounds unsalted clarified butter
10 cups fine chopped nuts - walnuts and pecans
½ cup granulated raw sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground clove
The rinds of 3 oranges or 6 clementines (minced)
Whole cloves

The nuts, 1/2 pound of melted butter, sugar, spices and citrus rind are all combined and mixed well and set aside

In a greased large pan, 7 layers of filo dough are placed, brushing melted butter on each.
The traditional way is to cut this into diamonds now before baking or adding nuts (and it does help).
I bake this for 10 minutes at 350 F (until just brown and a bit fluffy)
Remove and add 3 nut mixture layers - nuts, filo, nuts, filo, nuts and then 7 more layers of filo dough.
Place a clove in the middle of each diamond.
Bake for 45 minutes or until just light brown.
Heat up the Honey/orange syrup 20 minutes before the baklava comes out of the oven.
Add the syrup mixture as soon as the Baklava comes out of the oven.
LET COOL FOR 4 HOURS before attempting tofinish the cut.
The cut is equal straight lines down the pan, then diagonal cuts across those.
Marvelous!

Karidopita

(Greek Nut Cake)

(which appears to be the big favorite:

Ingredients:

8 eggs, separated
1-cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon allspice or nutmeg
1 teaspoon finely diced orange peel
1/8teaspoon Cream of Tartar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8teaspoon salt
1-cup cake flour (i have used regular flour with good results)
2 cups ground walnuts or hazelnuts (remember to use dry measure)
 
Toppings:
Honey/Orange/wine Syrup or powdered sugar
 
Beat Egg yokes until thick and then add cinnamon, sugar, salt, allspice and orange peel.
continue to mix .
Mix baking powder with the flour and add into the egg yokes and mix.
Remove this mixture and beat egg white with cream of tartar until stiff
Fold the two egg mixtures together gently
Finally, slowly fold in nuts
Pour into 2 small (9” x 9”), greased cake pans and cook at 350°F for 40 minutes
If using with powdered sugar, cover plate with powdered sugar and place cake onto plate (of course removing from pan)

Sprinkle top with powdered sugar after the cake has cooled

If using the honey syrup, warm the syrup first and pour about ½ to 1 cup of syrup over the cake and cool

Serve cool

quiet Sunday

i am probably obviously having a great deat of trouble with the other days shooting.

Mostly because everyone wants a reason "why"
and i do not think there is "one", but many, many.
It is not like this does not happen in other places in the world,
there it is many times worse.
So i will now try to keep my voice quiet and see what i can do to help these greiving parents...

In the mean time,
I have a recipe to share.
Some of the tenderest chops i have ever cooked
and so here it is:

Pork Chops

smothered in onions and ...

6 or more center cut pork chops, bone in

4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 large onion, slivered,
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup rose wine
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons black pepper
1 cup tomato sauce (I use a garlic, basil sauce with diced tomatoes)

spread the pork chops in a baking tray

pour the rose wine and the vinegar over them
spread the garlic on each
salt and pepper
add tomato sauce
Cook in a pre heat oven at 325 for 2 hours.
raise temperature to 425 for 10 minutes.
Serve with your favorite pasta

baking - day 2

Today,
in this morning,
I finished the first round of some of my "easy baking:
my own "Kourambiethes".
In latin cultures they are known as Wedding cookies,
but the Greek recipe does pre-date them by a few thousand years.

Not to be out done - i created my own recipe..
which is now posted below.
both yesterday and today i noticed significant differences in the baking.
The time for Baklava was shorted by 15 minutes,
It was not the oven,
today the  Kourambiethes took an additional 15 minutes,
but used less flour.
Now i know the quality of flour can vary because of the amount of gluten in it.
It varies,
crop to crop,
weather pattern to weather pattern during the growning season
and of course between varieties of wheat.
That will change the mixing and baking ability of the wheat.

Any way, here is the second days baking:

Kourambiethes

(Joe's version)

1 cup whipped butter
1/3 cup raw sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon TANG
1 teaspoon orange peel (candied is okay) or zest
1 teaspoon anise flavor
1 teaspoon water
3 or more cups flour
1 1/2 cup pecans
1/4 cup powdered sugar

These cookies are very light and fall apart easily - to make a firmer cookie add 2 eggs to the liquid mixture and more flour (i did this today)

Beat the butter 30 seconds then add sugar and TANG and beat till fluffy.

Add zest or peel, nuts, orange and anise flavor and water.
Add flour slowly, continue to beat until the mixture begins to  “ball” into clumps. (Sometimes I need to add more flour)
You may shape the cookie, keep in balls or “squash down”.  Your choice
Roll into balls and place on a baking tray and cook for 20 minutes at 350º F.
The cookies will have the edges just brown.
They must cool before removing from tray (but not cold).
Place on tray and cover with powdered sugar.
Eat at room temperature.

Pork Carnitas

The other day i found a special on Fresh, sliced, bone in, pork breast spareribs.
I would not make what i normally make with these (the Italian meat sauce and pasta),  these had a lot of meat,  So i went South.

Pork Carnitas

2 lbs Slice Breast pork sparerib, bone in

2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon Anchiote powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 beer
juice of 2 limes
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup tomato sauce

brown the ribs with onions and when just brown add the garlic.

Sweat the garlic and then add salt, cumin, chili powder, Anchiote powder, lime juice, tomato sauce and 2 cups of water.
Bring to a boil and let simmer, replacing liquid with water for a minimum of 4 hours.
Remove all the bones and cartilage and chop all the meat.
Reduce the liquid and add the meat back in with the cilantro and beer.
Serve on warm tortillas with roasted jalapeno peppers and cheese.

The beginning of Christmas cooking

I love this holiday time...
for me it is Christmas, others Hanuka, others winter solstice and still more holidays around this time for different cultures than i could even hope to name.

I begin with candied citrus peekss and will use them in sweet and savory dishes.
Here you have Orange (clementines), lemon and lime!

Use a peeler and try to get as little of the with "rind" as possible (it is bitter, but a little bitter is okay many times).  Cut very thin in long strips.
Melt a half a cup of sugar with 2 tablespoons of water.
When is just comes to a boil add the slivers of peel and let cook 5 minutes - remove and drain.
Save the sugar for other uses because it has the citrus flavor in it.

Getting ready

I have begun preparing myself for my retirement.
I have been taking days off per my doctors request.
Today is one of those days and when i go to work tomorrow,
It will be day 7 before i do not work at the Health Department any more.
The day is mild and sunny and beautiful.

In the days i have been taking off -
some have been very busy,
others not so.
I can already see an improvement in the vision issues that i have
and the balance is improving also.
This is what the doctor and i expected.

For today I am thankful,
we have the girls (2 labs, the daughters of our lab), who provide entertainment and distraction.
I have been hoping to go through more of my mom's things (mostly pictures),
but find it difficult emotionally,
there will be time.

In the mean time there are still roses on the rose bush

and i am cooking something different
Life is good.

Chili mild with beans

(a northern apostasy) 

1 bag small red beans

1 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon mild dried chili's
2 tablespoons cumin
1 teaspoon anchiote powder
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 stick of butter
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 or 2 beers

Rinse and soak the beans over night (water level should be 3 times the beans).

brown the ground beef with the butter and spices
pour into a slow cooker set on high (about 200 F)
heat the beans and all the liquid to boiling and pour into the slow cooker.
add syrup.
after 2 hours reduce the heat to medium or low (about 160 or 140 F)
add beer to keep the liquid level up.
Do not let dry out!

Serve with rice, chopped cilantro, chopped onions and or sour cream.

Sunday morning and i am good

I have been fortunate,as of late in many ways.
So as i looking at all of the small things,
i find one that is a bit fun,
unlike many years where the pumpkins of Halloween froze and the decayed into a disgusting mas,
they have maintained a very health composure.
Today i am stewing meat in a pumpkin, but while doing this, i ran into a recipe from last year using pumpkin as a pasta sauce.  It was awesome, but i am sticking to the stewed meat today.

here is the old recipe:

PUMPKIN PASTA SAUCE

2-cups Pumpkin or winter squash

¼-cup half and half
3-cups water
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
1-teaspoon ground rosemary
½-teaspoon allspice
1-teaspoon salt
1-tablespoon brown sugar
1-cup Parmesan cheese
1-cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Boil cut up pumpkin with 2 cups water and salt until soft

Strain, coarsely and pour remaining water (boiling) through the mash
And allspice, nutmeg, Rosemary and sugar to the mixture and bring to a boil
Reduce heat so the mixture just simmers and continue until volume is reduce by half
Turn off heat and add cheeses and mix
Serve over your favorite pasta immediately.

Pork Chops

this is what i cooked last night and i was surprised at how juicy and tender these chops were.

Pork Chops - baked - juicy - flavorful

6 pork chops

6 cloves garlic, sliced or minced
2 cups celery, diced
2 or 3 Italian hot peppers, rough cut
1 onion, diced
4 apples, sliced
1 cup white wine
1 cup apple juice
1 can black olives with juice
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cooking oil (your favorite)

In a large skillet, add the oil, peppers and onions and just sweat the onions.

Add the garlic and then the chops and just brown the chops on each side.
preheat the oven to 270 F and when the chops are just brown remove them and put them in a large baking pan.
Add the remainder of the ingredients to the skillet and bring to a boil for 2 minutes.
Pour over the chops and place in the oven for 30 minutes.
Turn the chops and continue for an additional 30 minutes..
Increase heat to 425 F for 15 minutes, turning the chops once.
 
Serve

he olives actually begin to shrival and pack a lot of flavor

"Fred"

A simple one pot stle pasta dish resembling Lasana in taste.
That is the definition as simple as i can make it.
Discussed on another blog, on another continent "Carol's Chatter".

The following is mt  (and David's) version of Fred!

The Cook of the Day



onions and garlic

parsley, celery and peppers



the meat

with everything but pasta

with pasta

"FRED"

 A simple, Lasagna like in its taste, pasta dish

4 cloves Garlic, sliced

1 white onion, sliced
2 bell peppers, roughly diced
1 cup celery (leaves and all) chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped.
1 and 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 tablespoon dry oregano
1 teaspoon salt (plus extra to taste)
1 jar of your favorite pasta sauce
1/2 cup basil, chopped
1 pound of your favorite tube pasta (not spaghetti-like)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup red wine

sauté the onions and garlic in a small amount of olive oil.

Add meat when they just begin to get soft and brown it slightly.
Add wine, oregano, basil, parsley, celery and peppers.
When this comes to a boil add the pasta sauce.
reduce to a simmer and start the pasta.
Add the parmesan cheese and then the pasta and stir.
Turn off the heat.
 
Serve with a bit more parmesan cheese on top.

some people like to add black olives and crushed red pepper.

oops

forgot again the Sunday recipe...tonight is cool, is Halloween so...

Joe's Sweet, Hot and Savory Corn Chowder

16 oz frozen corn

1 stick butter
4 potatoes, diced
1 tablespoon died orange zest
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup chives, chopped
1 teaspoon smoked dried hot red pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup half and half
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped fine
options
vegetable stock
dry potato flakes

defrost corn and sauté it in butter with the potatoes, salt, orange zest and dried red pepper.

allow the corn to just caramelize and add the orange juice.
simmer for 1 hour and add water or vegetable stock (without tomatoes) to keep the liquid from drying out.
add scallions, sour cream and half and half and bring just to a boil.  Thicken with potato flakes is desired.
serve in bowls topped with parsley.

Green Tomatoes

As you know from my last post, i went cleaning up my garden this week
and found some wonderful surprises!
Things that were wonderful,
but not such a surprise,
were a large quantity of Green tomatoes.
While raised in the South of the US,
I never really liked the typical "Fried Green Tomatoes",
that was the usual end to such things,
sooooo....2 recipes for dealing with them.

GREEN TOMATO Cornbread

5 large Green tomatoes

2 boxes Jiffy cornbread mix (you thought i was going to do everything from scratch?)
1 tablespoon salt
2 Onions, slivered

Clean and then boil the tomatoes till just soft with salt
Drain and remove tomato skins (if loose) and quarter
Follow directions on Jiffy cornbread package.
Mix tomatoes into the batter and pour into a greased pan.
Bake and enjoy!

GREEN TOMATO SALSA

1 Quart Green tomatoes

2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon salt
2 Chipolte peppers, diced
1 cup Green onions, diced
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Clean and then boil the tomatoes till just soft with salt
Drain and blend tomatoes, discarding skins where possible
add all other ingredients and simmer to reduce the volume about 1/2.
Chill and serve with what ever you want.
I have been using this with Enchiladas of various fillings to the delight of all.

A final bit, because the dreams of "what comes after this life" are still coming fast a furious and if there be any truth to them, I'll be cooking with my spiritual family at many feasts!

Missing a Sunday

So last Sunday i did not post a recipe, so that might tell you the state of mind (or heart) i was at,
but today is a new day and i will rejoice and give you another recipe

TEXAS CAMPFIRE CHILI

Makes 10 quarts of chili

9 lbs ground chuck

5 lbs chuck steak, diced into 1/2 inch squares, fat  included
2 cups Hatch Chili peppers, diced
1 cup smoked Hatch chili pepper
3 Chipolte peppers, diced, not dry
2 medium onions, diced
2 tablespoons cumin
2 tablespoons paprika
1/2 cup ground chili powder
2 sticks butter
3 tablespoons salt
1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons raw sugar
2 tablespoons Bustello instant coffee
1 bar 90% cocoa
1 quart spicy V8
4 bottles Dos Equis

Grill all the meat cook it to just past pink - some will be browned.

Sauté the chili's, onion, cumin and paprika in melted butter with the salt and then add 1 beer.
Add meat and diced tomatoes and bring to a simmer.
add sugar, cocoa, V8 and one more beer.
Cover and let simmer several hours.
Add the last of the beer and the coffee, simmer one more hour.
Refrigerate overnight and reheat to serve.

Hay Stacks

2 kinds last night - the first:

Hay Stacks

a meatloaf type dish without the pan

Using various kinds of ground meat, savory vegetables, spices and cheese, a Hay Stack fits your mood;  this is for an Italian Hay Stack

1 lb Ground beef

1 lb ground veal
1 lb ground pork
1 white onion, diced
1 tablespoon of garlic, diced
1 tablespoon basil, diced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
4 eggs
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
Options: 1 8 oz can of tomato sauce

Mix all the ingredients together well, shape them into large, 3" meatballs and place them on a greased baking pan, pressing down to make a flat bottom, but leaving the top rounded.

Cook at 350 F for 1 1/2 hour.

 

Hay stacks

Potato

 

These go with the other in a fun way

5 potatoes washed and Shredded (like if you made Latkas)
1/2 Diced onion
1 table spoon salt
1 tea spoon paprika
1/2 cup fresh parsley
2 eggs
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese  grated or shredded

pat the potatoes dry after shredding and mix all of the ingredients except the cooking oil.
put a bit of cooking oil in each spot in the pan where you will place a hand compacted handful of the mixture onto the baking pan.
make the stack look like the meat.
place a bit of the oil on the top of each stack and bake for 1 1/2 hour at 350.
The outer layer should be crisp and the insides soft.

note that the cooking times are the same and they can be done together on the same pan.

lamb - slightly experimental

as a half Greek, i love lamb and love to slow cook it.
With extra cinnamon Basil in the yard and lots of mint (spearmint) i decided to mix up my traditional recipe, putting both into my mix of on the bone leg of lamb with garlic (of course whole and pushed into slits along the entire leg), lemon and red wine.  The fresh leaves went on top of this with some salt and cooked slowly for 4 hours at 275 F, covered with foil with potatoes and carrot in the pan as well.  then the last hour up to 375 F.  Pull out and serve - i love it, moist, tender flavorful.

1 leg of lamb ( bone in
1 entire head of garlic
1 cup of fresh cinnamon basil
1/2 cup fresh mint
juice of 2 lemons
1 cup red wine
1 tablespoon of Burgundy wine.
1 pound of carrots
potatoes - as many as you will eat.

Texas Brisket

It has been said and repeated many times, that only 2 groups of people in the world know how to cook beef brisket (that fatty tough under the rib part of a cow) - The Jews and the Texans.
  I happen to be the latter and while my process is long, it is realativily simple.
  Temperature - under 225 - 180 is best on a smoker for at least 4 hours (my best is a 10 hour smoke, but that requires some attention).
The wood is what you want. I use a mixture of maple and cherry (what i have available) and some hickory.
  Rub? Salt pepper plus what you want.  Mine - in the following ratio:

                               1/3 Cumin

                               1/3 Hot paprika

                               1 paprika

                               1/6 Garlic/parsley mix

                               1 black pepper

                               1 salt
                               1/6 Cayenne pepper
                               1/6 dried Chipolte pepper
                               1/4 instant coffee
The major thing is it needs to be moist heat - so a pan of water between the brisket and any heat is essential. Let the juices and fat drip into this pan. 
The juices i will reduce with a beer and apple juice for a "dipping sauce" (this is a Texas thing)Remove and put into a pan with apple juice and seal with tin foil and cook over night at 180. 

This will be the juicest, tenderest, most flavorful meat that you will ever taste.
  Time yes, work, not really, eating is 5 stars!