Rugged Stuff

A Little Holiday Country Cookin’ from Tracy Byrd

By R. Keith Rugg, 11-25-08

	In additon to the cookbook, Tracy Byrd has put out his own line of rubs and marinades.

As a journalist who covers country music, I’m signed up on several country music fan club lists, press lists, public relations lists and such.  Most of the e-mail that comes in from these lists are announcements of cd releases, notifications of performance dates and things like that.  Kinda- but not quite- junk mail.

I’ve gotten about four or five e-mails just from Toby Keith’s people alone this month, what with “Beer for My Horses” coming out on DVD and the release of his album, That Don’t Make Me a Bad Guy.  In fact, if you’re looking for stocking stuffers this year, the e-mail entitled “Toby Keith is #1 and Saving the Economy” has some helpful advice for you.

“…the holidays are officially upon us and the search for the perfect gift is on.  To help in your quest, we’ve added a Gift department with the latest official Toby Keith merchandise.”

The e-mail goes on to note,

“To help this struggling economy get back on its feet, Toby is doing his part by discounting some of the most popular items in the Toby Keith Online Store.  There are over 10 items for $10 or less…”

But I recently got an e-mail from a musician (or at least from his marketing and p.r. people) from whom I get much less news.  Tracy Byrd (gotta love that “Keeper of the Stars!") has a message that also pretty much says he’s an economic savior because he’s offering 10 items for under $10 for your holiday shopping convenience.  (They both market through Music City Networks.) But while Toby Keith’s ’10 under 10’ list includes things like an official Toby Keith iPod Nano cover (“It’s made of an ultra soft rubber material to protect your Nano, plus it wears the Official Toby Keith Fan Club logo and Toby Keith signature! Last few remaining at this closeout price!”), Tracy Byrd’s list includes something I thought was worth calling a bit more attention to.

Tracy Byrd came out with a cookbook about four years ago, called Eat Like a Byrd.  It’s on the list at $10, or for $8 if you’re a member of his fan club.  When I saw this on his holiday gift suggestions, I went back into my files from when the book was first published to dig up some info.

Byrd is pretty passionate about cooking, and does a lot of fun stuff with meats.  He’s real big on putting your own personal touches and warmth into food, as opposed to artsy or assembly-lined food.

“There is a passion and personality that goes into a home cooked meal that you cannot taste in a restaurant. Every homemade recipe has a story to be told. It might be the time you prepared the dish for the first time for a special date with your spouse. Or it could be a special holiday where everyone raved on about a new dish you prepared that has become a family tradition at Thanksgiving or Christmas. It could even be the fried fish recipe that brings back memories of the first time you took your kids fishing.

Regardless of what the recipe is you have a great memory that makes preparing and eating this dish surpass anything you could order at the finest restaurant in Atlanta, New York or any other place.”

His people sent me a couple of recipes to pass on, one for “Tracy’s Smokin’ Cajun Meatloaf” and one for his “Butterscotch Brownies.” And as much as I love meatloaf (I’ve got a few of my own recipes that I’ve whipped up myself for the king of the comfort foods), it’s the brownie recipe that probably fits in better with the holiday season.  So here it is, and happy Thanksgiving.

Butterscotch Brownies
--2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
--1 teaspoon baking powder
--1/2 teaspoon salt
--1 cup butter, softened
--1 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
--1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
--2 eggs
--1 2/3 cup (11 oz. pkg) Nestle Tollhouse Butterscotch morsels, divided
--1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl.  Beat butter, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixing bowl until creamy.  Beat in eggs.  Gradually add in flour mixture, the butterscotch morsels and nuts.  Spread into ungreased 13x9” baking pan.  Sprinkle with remaining morsels.
Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Prep time: 15 minutes — Cook time: 40 minutes — Yield: 4 dozen

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