Everyone wins with Brisket (or tofu)

This post is belated, mostly due to the time it took for me to get out of my self-pitty pool....but I've decided that everyone wins, regardless of the games outcome...as long as you have Pecan Pie, Beef and Beer.

Mrs. Maad and I started off early in the week by getting the baking out of the way, so this meant applying the finishing touches to my Pecan Pie....

And a new addition for this year....some longhorn cookies...with plenty of OU themed icing....all served upside down. I even ensured, in a kosher manner.....that all cookies were prepared, inserted into the oven and served upside down....

After picking up Mr. Adams from the airport Thursday night....Dr. Sooner came over and helped out with the prep of the largest piece of Bevo we had planned....a 15lb briskie.....

We had a good thing going...one man on foil...one man on the Tuck Fexas rub....and me...beating and pounding the hell out of Bevo with the rub....

Into the fridge this beast went for an overnight flirtation with the dry rub....only to be kicked out of bed early the next day (Friday) by me to apply a layer of good ole' mustard.......

and then some coarse grained spice to promote a nice thick bark....

Starting the smoke out with a mix of 1/4 mesquite, 3/4 hickory.....

The plan was for a 24 hr cook time at a dome temp of 220 F, cesation of smoke at the plateau somewhere around 165, and a pull at 190 F internal temp...or whenever a probe into the heart of this beast felt like soft butter.....

as you can see from the internal temp....it's got a way to go.....

Leaving this beast for a while with the flowers and smoke (if you're lookin', you aint cookin)....Mr. Adams and I took a quick spin around Hawes before commencing on the beer drinking proper out on the patio.

Since this was Mr. Adams first time out at Hawes....on a loner bike from me....and his first time on the bike in a while...I took it easy....by doing Mudflaps at the beginning of the ride....

At least the air was clear of dust and other inhibiting pollution....

However as we rode on and the temp began to climb......my mind drifted to the sweet smell of mesquite smoke and thoughts of the meat....so we pedaled on...

After getting home, cleaning up, eating some burritos....we went to pick up the keg and prepare the second round of life....Longhorn ribs....

By this time....I was running a fever with chills and cold sweats...I had clearly been coming down with something all afternoon....but I'd be crazy to sit this one out....so chugging down some more beer(which was soooooo good for me)....I weathered on with the able help from the meat crew once more to make a meat train.....

which then transitioned into the Tuck Fexas dry rub train.....

Which were then foiled up for a rest overnight in the fridge just like the briskie which was now at an internal temp of 150....getting close to that heat plateau and stall point....Dr Sooner and Mr. Adams continued to drink and shoot some fuzzy pictures while I collapsed on the couch with a raging fever, passing out with the meat probe alarm next to my ear....

Beep-Beep.....Beep-Beep.....Beep-Beep.....I rubbed the crust off my eyes, looked at the clock which read 2:12am...I had only been sleeping for an hour and 45 minutes...but saw this.....

190 F internal temp achieved over the course of 18 hours, I grabbed my headlamp and headed outside to probe the meat...felt like soft butter...so I grabbed it and brought it inside to be foiled and placed into a cooler stuffed with blankets to continue to heat up and rest unassisted for the next 9 hours.....I was quite pleased with the look of this bark.......

Passing out in my bed this time, still with a fever...I set my alarm for 0500 so that I could get the smoke started again for the ribs....targeting a serving time of 1100. Waking up in the early dawn, my fever broke...I felt like a crisp 10 dollar bill as I lit the fire to keep me and the ribs company....

The rest of the day went as planned (except winning the game and seeing Sam Bradford's last collegiate snap). Folks came and went...no more pics were taken...except for the pic of the spread prior to eating. I was very pleased with the outcome of the briskie....it came out so tender...it was falling apart. I managed to dry the ribs out a bit though...trusting the 2-2-1 formula above my common sense. Lesson Learned....Next year they'll be as good as the briskie....and OU will beat texas! Many thanks to all who came and brought good cheer....and special thanks to the folks who showed up early to help drink some beer, prep food and hang out. I'm not sure how I would have managed through the fever without your help.