On One Hand...

Oh the love of canning jars!  I am particularly fond of the small ones, the half pint (8 oz) and the half half pint (4 oz) or I just call them the wee jars.

Found a tea light insert for the regular mouth jars that sits on top and then the screw ring keeps it in place.  Disappointing in that no tea light I had in the house would fit.  I really prefer the battery operated tea lights as no tails will accidentally ignite but on occasion I do get the regular burning type.The battery operated does not fit.  The orange one is from Ikea and I even cut off the tin and it didn't fit.  The white one was from Michaels (17 years ago*) in a tin which I removed and then shaved off the sides of the candle.  If I'm going to be shaving tea light candles I will go with the Ikea brand as they are quite soft.  The jar adapter is a fun idea but where are the candles that fit?

On the other hand, the half pint jar contains Barbecue Rub #67 which is part of the best new recipe of the year.  You will not believe how moist these wings are!  I made half of the rub recipe below and it will last me at least all year. (I also only make one chop.)
Bacon-Wrapped Pork Wings – adapted from Ray "Dr. BBQ" Lampe

Makes 12 servings   Who says pigs can't fly? 

•  Four 1-inch-thick boneless pork chops
• 12 slices bacon (do not use thick sliced)
• Barbecue Rub #67
• Barbecue sauce, for dipping  

Cut each pork chop into three strips.  To wrap the “wings”, start by overlapping the bacon on one end of a pork strip then wrapping it up and around in a candy-cane fashion.  Season the bacon-wrapped wings cautiously with the rub, you don’t want to be heavy handed here as there is a lot of salt.

Preheat oven to 250°F. Place the wings on a cookie sheet, I used my stand-by, the small bar pan from Pampered Chef and cook for 1 hour or until the bacon is cooked. I checked for an internal temperature of 140⁰ after an hour and once there,  put the wings under the broiler for a few minutes  to crisp the bacon. Serve hot with barbecue sauce for dipping. I prefer Jack Daniel's Original No.7 recipe.

Barbecue Rub #67 From Slow Fire: The Beginner's Guide to Barbecue by Ray  Lampe

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons chili powder
• 3 tablespoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coffee
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

 Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well. The rub may be stored in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 6 months. 

 *I know this because I bought the cheapest bag of 100 tea lights for my 50th birthday so I had enough for each year and then I packed them onto a cookie sheet and lit them all.  It was quite bright.