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Hello, foodies…

We have a very special Sunday line up for this weekend: not only is there an In the Kitchen with David at Noon ET, but we’ve got a SECOND ITKWD on at 9pm ET. Jane Treacy and our girl Mary will be with you at Noon and I’ll be joining you at 9pm. So why the double duty? Well, Sunday night is that famous TV awards show so we thought it would be fun if we had our own little “small screen” celebration! All throughout the 9pm show, we’ll have more of your kitchen favorites as well as TV trivia revolving around our favorite thing: FOOD.

So speaking of the small screen, what are your favorite TV shows? I’ve got more than one…I love Downton Abbey, Scandal, Madame Secretary, and The Good Wife. And hands-down my favorite TV snack are those Bugles “chips.” I have to watch it with those—before I know it, the whole box is gone!

Anyway, think about your all-time favorite TV shows—now and from long ago. Can you remember an episode where food was at the center of the plot? For me, that show was The Brady Bunch and it was the episode where Peter decided to create a new personality for himself after being told he was a little, well, boring. So he started going around saying, “Pork Chopssss and Applesssauce” to everyone, a la Humphrey Bogart.

That was a long time ago, but I think I still remember it because every Friday my mother made skillet-fried pork chops and hominy, which are kernels of corn you cook in something (like pork fat) to give them flavor. Well, The Brady Bunch aired on Fridays. And one Friday that episode came on, and naturally, we had had pork chops that very night. So the next Friday—and every Friday after—we would say we’re having “Pork Chopssss and Applesssauce” to each other and we would all laugh. Eventually, I think mom even made applesauce to go with the pork chops because we just kept saying it.

In those days, The Brady Bunch, Laverne and Shirley, and Happy Days were mandatory parts of my weekly TV routine—and I think every kid that grew up in the 70s will agree with me. Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley were on at 8:00 and 8:30 on Tuesdays and my bedtime was 9:00. So we had to have our homework finished before the shows started otherwise my mother made us sit in our bedroom while everyone else watched. She did not play around! And that’s why to this day, when she tells one of us to do something, we do it. No questions asked.

I hope we bring back some memories with our food trivia and I hope you’ll find this Sunday’s recipe the perfect TV-watching food…whether for must-see-TV or game days. Here are my Smoked Wings with Homemade Chipotle Ranch.

Smoked Wings with Homemade Chipotle Ranch

Serves 4-6

This recipe is prepared with the Masterbuilt Electric Smoker (K82802).

Go to David's Recipe Item Page for the full list of items that David has used in his recipes.

Ingredients:

Wings:

• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup paprika
• 1-1/2 tsp course ground black pepper
• 1-1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp chili powder
• 3/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1-1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1-1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1-1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 5 lbs chicken wings

Dipping Sauce:

• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp minced shallot
• 1 Tbsp chopped parsley
• 1 Tbsp chopped chives
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 3 tsp seeded chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped fine
• 3 tsp adobo sauce from peppers
•  

Preparation:

1. To prepare the wings, combine the spices in a large bowl. Add the chicken wings and toss until well-coated with the spice mixture. Place the wings in a single layer on 1–2 baking sheets. Place the baking sheets in a smoker and smoke at 275° for 3-1/2 hours.
2. To prepare the dipping sauce, combine all the ingredients in a medium-size bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Foodies, don’t be intimidated by the list of ingredients—you probably have all of the wing spices in your spice cabinet. And I think you’ll love how fresh that dipping sauce tastes compared to jarred dressings, so it's worth the effort. Obviously, if you already have a smoker at home, you can put it to good use. But if you don’t yet have one, our Today’s Special Value(R) will help you make this recipe—and so many more.

So don’t forget—Jane Treacy and Mary will see you at Noon this Sunday; I’ll see you at 9pm ET. Have a great weekend.

Keep it flavorful!

—David