Patio Daddio BBQ - Musings of barbecue, cooking, and life -- served hot, fresh and saucy

Welcome! My name is John Dawson and I'll be your host in this little adventure. Do we really need another food blog? No, but I decided to start one anyway. As the tagline implies, my intention is to offer my thoughts and ideas about food and life. I hope you find it interesting and educational.

I suppose I should offer at least a brief introduction of myself. I am a Christian, a husband, the father of three young girls, and an amateur cook living in Boise Idaho. By day I am a senior software engineer specializing in web user interfaces. I am a member of the Kansas City Barbeque Society and I've been competing in barbeque competitions since 2006 under the name "Patio Daddio BBQ", thus the blog name.

As for cooking in general, my passion is good hearty rustic food. I often say that life is too short to eat mediocre food. It may sound corny, but food to me is a way of giving a little of myself to those I cook for. It's a gift on a plate. There are few things in life more intimate than sharing a meal. I am also an artist, so cooking is a natural creative outlet for me. This blog is just an extension of that same outlet.

Another reason for starting the blog is simply to make it easier to share my recipes. I'm no Alton Brown, but I am often asked for this or that recipe, or for help with some technique. So, I sort of see this as basically an online cookbook.

With that in mind, off we go with the first recipe.

Tip: Click the images for a larger view.