Apricot Honey BBQ Sauce

A really good BBQ sauce is an essential ingredient of 4th of July grilling, so when I went searching the web for a starting place, I typed "award winning BBQ sauce" to begin my search. This recipe by Kevin from Extraordinary BBQ popped up.  He suggested that we take his award winning recipe and make it our own, so that's exactly what I did.  

I replaced the "Coke" in his recipe with finely diced, very ripe apricots and the maple syrup with a dark honey.   I left out the thyme because I forgot to buy it, but you could add a teaspoon if you were so inclined.  I don't know how much it changes the taste but this sauce is delicious without it.  I also used a smoky Spanish paprika.  I wouldn't sub this with the regular stuff, it gives the sauce a nice smoky taste.  (My kitchen smells amazing right now.)

You may not have access to fresh apricots like I do (everything I make right now includes apricots) so you could substitute them with apricot preserves, but I would eliminate the brown sugar.

If you want a vegan version of this recipe, you can use a dark agave in place of the honey and Robbie's vegan worcestershire sauce.  You could also use coconut sugar in place of brown sugar.

So, get out your skewers and fill them with mushrooms, chunks of red onion, thick slices of zucchini and your favorite protein.  Then, generously slab on some of this delicious apricot honey bbq sauce and start grilling.  If you have a large crowd you may want to double the recipe.

Happy 4th Everyone!

Apricot Honey BBQ Sauce
Makes 1 1/2 cups - Use organic ingredients whenever possible

1/2 cup ketchup
3 oz tomato paste
1/4 cup beer
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup finely diced fresh apricots
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons onion granules
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic granules
1/2 teaspoon smoky paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Put a good sized pot over a low heat. 
(a bigger than needed pot will prevent a very messy stove)
Start adding all of the ingredients, whisking as you add them.
Turn the heat up to high and bring the sauce to a boil.
Turn the heat down to low and simmer 5 minutes.
Allow the sauce to cool before storing in the refrigerator.