Maggie's Daddy Shares His Recipes

Every big holiday or birthday that celebrates Patrick he wants only one meal--BBQ chicken which he makes himself. I've offered to make him something else so he doesn't have to put forth the effort but he always refuses. Here is his recipe for the BBQ sauce concoction:

BBQ Sauce:

These are estimates – I never measure anything.

1 bottle store-bought barbecue sauce (anything will do)
¼ cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 ½ teaspoon salt
1 large onion chopped
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ cup brown sugar

Mix in blender until liquefied.

If I’m cooking chicken I use the sauce as a marinade and then brush on during cooking. For ribs, I just brush on during cooking. Use it all.


We love it when Daddy offers to make his homemade pizza. His crust is from scratch! It's a basic recipe that comes out perfect every time! He makes a thick crust pizza for me and a super thin crust for him. The dough is great for both.

Pizza Crust:

1 cup warm water
1 package yeast
1 teaspoon honey (more for sweeter crust)
1 tablespoon olive oil
3-4 cups flour

Combine yeast, honey, and water. Let proof in warm place until foamy (5-10 minutes). Put 3 cups flour on work surface, make well in center and add oil and yeast mixture to well.
Stir flour into yeast mixture. Add additional flour until slightly sticky. Knead dough about five to ten minutes until smooth and elastic. Form into ball, place in lightly greased bowl and let rise in warm place and let raise until 2-3 times original size.
Roll to appropriate size (depends on size of sheet and/or desired thickness). I use a pizza stone but question what this really does for cooking or taste.
Once dough is rolled onto sheet/stone, brush with light covering of extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 475 degrees until the crust starts to brown. Remove from oven, add toppings, and cook until cheese is melted (reduce cooking temperature to about 400 degrees).