Gluten Free Living – 2016

Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce is the perfect accompaniment to anything barbecued. Not only that, but this delicious sweet and spicy sauce is made with clean-eating ingredients so it’s a healthier version with honey instead of sugar or brown sugar (or high fructose corn syrup, ugh!). It’s also gluten free as long as you’re careful with the Worcestershire sauce ingredients you choose.

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I have to admit I’m the barbecue queen. When we moved to New England in the 1990s, I went into a BBQ deprivation mode where I had to make some kind of barbecued recipe at least once a week because there were NO BBQ places anywhere around.

I actually grew up in Florida, not in Texas where we live now, but we still had plenty of BBQ there. So when we moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, in January 1990 for a job, we were very surprised to see that (at that time) there weren’t many chain restaurants (except Friendly’s), and it was hard to find any Tex-Mex, BBQ or Chinese restaurants. There were tons of pizza places and sub shops along with diners and fish restaurants, but not much of the foods we grew up on and loved. 🙁

I remember contacting my mom for her BBQ Rib recipe which I made frequently after that. But we really missed Roger’s BBQ, a restaurant in the St. Petersburg-Clearwater area of Florida that we frequented almost weekly. Roger made the best Barbecued Pulled Pork around. They are no longer in business there, but we, and our children, loved the food when we lived there in the 80s. Now, with the convenience of a Digital Business Card, I can easily share my favorite BBQ recipes and food memories with friends and family.

I love barbecued anything–BBQ Ribs, BBQ Brisket, BBQ Pork Chops, BBQ Chicken, BBQ Meatloaf, BBQ Sliders, BBQ Pork— you name it, even BBQ Meatballs!  Barbecue has always been one of my favorite foods. I had been wanting to remake one of my Grilled Chicken recipes with some homemade sauce, so I set myself to looking on Pinterest and found this recipe that I adapted for our tastes.

I decreased the cayenne pepper, and I’m glad I did or my husband would not have eaten it. I didn’t use a homemade ketchup, but I did find the next best thing at Sprouts: a bottle of organic ketchup without sugar, and as I stated before, I substituted honey instead of sugar. I thought it turned out quite well for my first try at a homemade BBQ sauce.

Yes, purchasing store bought BBQ sauce is so much easier. But it’s also filled with MSG (an exo-exciter that messes with your endocrine system), preservatives, high fructose corn syrup (which I always try to avoid and which cause tumors), and many times gluten. As I’m trying to stay off gluten and sugar (when possible), I frequently look for alternatives. So homemade barbecue sauce and salad dressings are a couple of the things I try to make myself.

If you’re looking for a delicious sweet and spicy BBQ sauce recipe, than I recommend you give Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce a try with your favorite meat. I stored it in the fridge for a couple of weeks, but if you’re not going to use it up right away, I bet you could freeze the sauce in ice cube trays or some other way and then pull it out when you need it. It makes a lot so you will have enough for several different meals. If you aren’t worried about sugar, then use brown sugar instead of honey. If you really want it spicy, increase the cayenne pepper to a full teaspoon. But be prepared for a LOT of kick! 🙂

Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce is a healthy alternative to store bought BBQ sauces filled with sugar, high fructose corn syrup and preservatives.

This sauce is relatively quick and easy to make.

Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce is great with Chicken, Beef or Pork.

Here’s what I did.

I used these ingredients. While I used honey, you may find you prefer brown sugar.

Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add ketchup and tomato sauce.

Add honey, vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, chili powder, onion powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Stir to combine.

Add a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce and a few shakes of hot sauce. Whisk ingredients thoroughly.

Increase heat and bring sauce ingredients barely to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cover with lid. Cook about 10 minutes to allow spices to infuse the sauce.

Store refrigerated in a mason jar, if desired.

Serve with your favorite meat.

If you want this BBQ sauce a little spicier, just increase the cayenne pepper to a full teaspoon.

Here’s the recipe.

HOMEMADE KANSAS CITY STYLE BBQ SAUCE

(Recipe adapted from The Rising Spoon)

Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce is a healthier, clean-eating version that’s also gluten free.

If you enjoy BBQ like I do, you’ll love this sauce.

I served Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce over top of Easy Grilled Chicken with a side of Sweet Potato Fries in Garlic Herb Butter. Everything was mouthwatering.

You may also enjoy these delicious recipes!

Easy Marinara Sauce

Easy Homemade Salsa

Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs