If you read my column, you may be familiar with different dishes I cook at home for my kids for which, not only do they enjoy, they beg.

Even though the summer months aren’t quite upon us, there are always signs the season is coming. Just like robins are out looking for food is a sign of the coming of spring, in our house the signs of summer closing in is when my kids start asking me to grill my pork back ribs.

Commonly referred to as baby back ribs, made more famous by the TV advertisement jingle from Chili’s restaurant, not only are my grilled pork back ribs super tasty, they don’t require being dredged in barbecue sauce to please the palate.

Back ribs are cut from where the ribs meet the spine of the pig after the loin is removed. This is close to where pork chops are harvested, another dish my kids love but not for this column. They are also not to be confused with spare ribs. Although spare ribs are more meaty, they are also much fattier. What back ribs lack in meat and fat, they make up for in tenderness.

And to be warned, back ribs are also more expensive because of how more lean they are than spare ribs. However, the cost of a rack of back ribs is around $20-25 and will feed myself and all three kids (between ages 11-13) depending on the side dishes I make with it.

So like I said, there are a handful of dishes I make for the kids for which they beg, but only one gets asked for repeatedly around April and May. And again, the recipe is beyond simple. It’s almost so simple, it’s almost stupid if it wasn’t such a hit for the young ones.

Now my recipe for grilling back ribs first came from the kids’ great grandfather, Malcolm MacDougall, whose name is known in the region among attorneys who practice water rights law. He was nicknamed Sandy, because of his sandy blonde hair before it went gray, but among the family he was known as Papa.

Papa would make these ribs for family functions regularly and would simply salt and pepper the meat after it came off the grill and before getting cut into individual ribs. Since then, I’ve added to the seasoning to enhance them but not by much. The pre-summer begging to have me make them didn’t start until I added the additional seasoning if that’s any measure of quality.

So with the evolution of the recipe, here is what I created to have the kids saying, “Gimme, gimme” come late spring. And remember this recipe is to feed one adult and three pre-teens including side dishes.

First off, gather a rack of back ribs. Don’t get one of the ones you see in stores that are already maringating in juice and spices. I never trust the seasoning in those pre-packaged offerings. You will need salt and black pepper, or you can grind rainbow peppercorns if you have them. You will also need thyme and coriander.

For side dishes, gather two cans of black beans, one head of bok choy, two bundles of asparagus and a small bag of baby carrots, half of a yellow onion, three strips of bacon, olive oil and butter. Now I don’t offer any kind of sauce with this dish, but on occasion the kids will ask for Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbecue sauce from the bottle and my son specifically, who has a stomach of steel, always asks for Frank’s Red Hot hot sauce.

Once you have your ingredients, scrape and spark up the grill. Allow the grill to warm up to a consistent temperature of 350-degrees. Now if you keep the back ribs in the freezer, you actually don’t have to worry about letting the rack thaw prior to cooking. Obviously, it’d make the cook go faster, but it can still be as juicy and successful if it goes on the grill frozen.

Once the grill is to temperature, add the rack of ribs with the bone-side down. The reason for this is to allow what fat is in the rack to render and drip down through the meaty portion on top. If you grill the ribs with the meaty side down first, they are probably going to get dried out and not be as juicy and delectable.

After the ribs touch the grill, take both the thyme and coriander and sprinkle a hefty amount across the upward-facing meaty portion. Once those have been applied, use your hand to rub the seasoning across the top side of the rack so it appears evenly distributed. Once this is done, the cook is all about time.

If you have a smart-phone or a timer with your oven, set the timer for 25 minutes. Now this is if the rack of ribs are completely thawed. If it’s frozen, set the timer for 45 minutes. Keep an eye on the grill for safety to avoid any fires. If you start seeing the fat is starting an open flame inside your grill, move the rack around to settle down and disperse the rendering of fat.

While the rack is grilling in its first round, prep the vegetables by cutting the baby carrots in half, chop the bok choy into 1-1.5-inch pieces as well as the asparagus. Throw away the bottom inch of the asparagus. It’ll be too bitter if you use it. Cut up the half yellow onion into two quarters, half will be for the beans and the other will be for the vegetables. I like dicing my onions because the kids don’t like them but they love the flavor of them, so the less they see them the more they enjoy them.

Dice the bacon and, in a 9-inch saucepan on medium high heat, add a tablespoon or two of olive oil and a tablespoon of butter. Let the butter melt and add the bacon and its portion of onions. When things are sizzling and the bacon barely gets brown, add the two cans of black beans. Stir up the contents and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover the pan and move on.

In either a 12-inch saucepan or a wok if you have one, add another 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and a tablespoon of butter. Let the butter melt on medium-high heat and add the next portion of onions to it. As soon as the onions start sizzling, add all of the remaining vegetables. Stir the pan and let it sit.

Once your timer for 25 minutes has gone off, return to the grill and flip the rack of ribs so the bone side is up. Reset your timer for another 15 minutes. Return to your vegetables and continue to stir or flip the contents until the carrots are tender, meaning you can stick a fork in them without resistance. By this point the remaining vegetables will be ready as well. Side not, my kids like the remaining vegetables a little al dente.

After your timer goes off for the bone-up side of the rack on the grill, remove the rack onto a sheet pan. Add salt and pepper even dispersed across the bone side of the rack. Flip the rack over and even disperse salt and pepper onto the meaty side of the rack.

At this point, if your timing is right, all dishes should be ready to serve. Cut the rack into individual ribs and the dish is ready to serve, either individually or family-style.

For me, the sounds my kids make eating this dish is worth everything. We make it about six times throughout the summer. I would also suggest playing with the different vegetables you include in that side dish, like broccoli or cauliflower. If you individually serve the dish, consider sprinkling freeze-dried chives across the top of the ribs for a good Instagram photo.

So now that our first round of back ribs on the grill has hit our table, summer in our house has begun. As Thomas Keller once said, “A recipe has no soul. You, as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe.” Not only are the ribs delicious and juicy, it reminds us of Papa who had made them a family tradition and who has since passed away. That is the soul of this dish for us.

I hope everyone enjoys their summer grilling endeavors. And thank you, Papa. We miss you.