Everything But The Squeal

I dig pig.  Of all of the great foods that used to have a face, pork is my all-time favorite. We ordered half a pig a month or so back and , well, it's gone. The pork chops, hams, bacon, sausage and butt; gone. The last cut was this little piggy's ribs. Spare ribs to be specific and we had them tonight.
I was looking for a recipe that would not induce an insulin spike but since usually pork ribs are slathered with sugary barbecue sauce I was faced with somewhat of a challenge. I went with a salt based rub and a braising liquid made with my homemade hard cider- if you don't brew your own cider a store-bought cider is fine.

Cider Braised Spare Ribs

Salt Rub:
  2 Tbs Sea Salt
  1 Tbs Smoked Paprika
  1 Tsp Black Pepper
  1 Tsp Chili Powder
  1/2 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
  1/2 Tsp Dried Thyme
  1/2 Tsp Old Bay

Combine ingredients and rub onto a slab of pork spare ribs. Preheat you oven to 325. Wrap the ribs in foil but leave a spout to pour in the braising liquid.

Braising Liquid:
  1 Cup Hard Cider
  a good squirt of Honey
  A few dashed Worcestershire sauce

Combine the ingredients in a glass bowl and warm for a minute in the microwave to dissolve the honey.  Pour in the braising liquid and seal the foil packet.  Place the ribs on a sheet pan and bake for about 2 hours. When the ribs are done, remove them from the oven as set it to broil.  Peel the foil packet open and slide the ribs under the broiler for a few minutes to add a bit of color. I served them with a nice salad and some steamed broccoli I browned under the broiler along side the ribs.