Top 5 Zesty Burger Condiments

Flickr photo by emerson12

Today is National Cheeseburger Day, so it seems appropriate to list my top five favorite burger condiments, from 5th to 1st. Whether you prefer grass-fed beef or fast-food fare, veggie burgers or venison patties, or any other style of cheeseburger in between, you won't go wrong with one or more of these zesty condiments:

5.  Barbecue Sauce: Many people who enjoy barbeque sauce on burgers--particularly on grilled cheeseburgers topped with cheddar or pepperjack cheese--are looking for a big, bold tomato based BBQ sauce that's a little bit sweet and a little bit sassy to complement the hearty flavors of the burger. My favorite for pouring on a burger is Outta the Park BBQ Sauce, a North Carolina original that's not a vinegar-based barbecue sauce, but rather a classic All-American sauce with lots of savory-sweet tomato. The Original finishes with a bit of a spicy kick while the Hot & Spicy version adds a secret blend of hot peppers for a feisty heat.

4.  Relish:  While a lot of burger enthusiasts stick with traditional pickle relish made from cucumber, I prefer the flavor and fire of a good, spicy pepper relish. An excellent choice is Texas Longhorn Bread & Butter Jalapeno Dip, chock-full of chopped green jalapeno peppers pickled in a tangy-sweet "bread and butter" style brine for a burst of fiery heat and mouthwatering relish-like flavor.

Spicy Pickles

3.  Pickles: You either love them or hate them on your cheeseburger. I love them. And because I tend towards hot & spicy foods when given a choice, my recommendation is Tabasco Spicy Garlic Dill Pickles. There's just enough peppery heat to tickle your tastebuds, while the garlic provides a pleasant pungency that complements the meatiness of a good burger (and also enhances the flavor of veggie burgers).

2.  Mustard:  I must confess that most of the time, I don't put mustard on my cheeseburger if I'm eating a beef burger.... but if the patty is made from another ground meat such as venison, chicken or turkey, or if I'm eating a veggie cheeseburger, the sharp tang of a good mustard makes the overall flavor more enticing, at least to my palate. And when I'm faced with a non-beef burger and I'm craving a meaty flavor, my choice of mustard is Jim Beam Bacon Mustard. It's a classic American mustard that's dressed up with a splash of Kentucky bourbon and the unmistakeably meaty, smoky flavor of bacon.

Black Pepper Ketchup

1.  Ketchup:  Hands down, my favorite condiment for a cheeseburger (or any burger) is ketchup, ideally a high-quality ketchup like one of Melinda's Ketchups, made with the finest all-natural ingredients and no high-fructose corn syrup for a grown-up, gourmet flavor that's neither one-dimensional nor cloyingly sweet like the major brands you find at the supermarket.  Melinda's Ketchups come in five different varieties with varying levels of spice: The mildest is her Black Pepper Ketchup with an upscale flavor and a touch of peppery zip; next is Melinda's Jalapeno Ketchup with a pleasant medium heat and distinctive jalapeno pepper tang; then there's her Chipotle Ketchup with similar heat but that earthy chipotle smokiness; then for serious chileheads Melinda makes a fiery-hot Habanero Ketchup that's one of the hottest (and tastiest) on the market; and finally there's the incendiary Naga Jolokia Ketchup made with the notorious ghost pepper, considered by many to be the world's hottest hot pepper.

What's your favorite cheeseburger condiment? Leave us a comment below to let us know, or tell us on the Carolina Sauce Facebook page. We love hearing from you!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Il Primo Giardiniera & Sport Peppers are Back!

Buy giardiniera online

BREAKING NEWS: Il Primo Giardiniera and Chicago-style Hot Dog Sport Peppers are once again back in stock at the Carolina Sauces online store!

After a protracted absence due to manufacturing problems, we're pleased to announce that our warehouse once again has these two popular Italian pepper condiments in stock and ready to ship. This is fresh inventory, just released by the manufacturer, and both products are on sale.

As you may know, Giardiniera is a sandwich condiment originating in Italy and comprising of marinated peppers (both mild/sweet and hot) and other vegetables including carrots, celery, cauliflower and olives. Often found in Italian delis in Chicago and New York, giardiniera is the ideal condiment for Italian subs and other cold-cut and meat sandwiches (call them heroes, hoagies, grinders, etc.). Giardiniera is also excellent on burgers or pizza, with eggs, in salads, and even as a snack on crackers, crostini, bruschetta or pita wedges.

Buy sport peppers online

As far as I can tell, pickled Sport Peppers are a specific variety of pepper and a Chicago specialty commonly enjoyed on hot dogs. In fact, some Chicagoans would argue that you can't have a real Chicago style hot dog without sport peppers. These long, slender peppers are pickled with vinegar and salt, and are also quite good as a condiment for sandwiches, pizza, salads, and anywhere else you'd use pickles or giardiniera. You can also chop or dice them to add to omelets, ground meat for burgers, egg salad, tuna salad, chicken salad or potato salad, and other similar dishes.

You can order Il Primo Sport Peppers and Giardiniera from the Carolina Sauce Company on our Peppers, Pickles & Relish page.

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Giardiniera & Sport Peppers Now Available!

By popular demand, the Carolina Sauces online store now has the world-famous Il Primo Hot Giardiniera and Il Primo Sport Peppers available for purchase!

Giardiniera is a traditional Italian condiment made of peppers and other garden vegetables that are chopped and marinated in oil and vinegar with Italian herbs and spices.  The result is a toothsome, mildly tangy and savory relish-like condiment that complements all sorts of sandwiches, whether cold or hot.

Il Primo's giardiniera was born almost 100 years ago in a Chicago deli and is generally regarded as the best giardiniera on the market.  If you've eaten Chicago Italian beef, sausage or meatball sandwiches and want to make them at home, this is the giardiniera you need.  It's also a delicious condiment for pizza, burgers, omelets and all sorts of salads.  Il Primo Hot Giardiniera adds just enough peppery spunk to spice up your food, but it won't destroy your taste buds or overpower the food's other flavors.


Another signature Chicago eating experience is ordering a Chicago dog from a hot dog vendor or deli.  Chicago style hot dogs are gussied up with pickled Mississippi sport peppers, a variety of chile pepper that's small, long and thin with a gently spicy bite.  Il Primo Sport Peppers are the condiment you need to serve genuine Chicago style hot dogs at home.

It also adds a pleasantly tangy crunch when chopped and added to omelets, pasta dishes, pizza, green salads and veggie salads.  Or mince a few sport peppers to add to marinades, dressings and dips.  You can even snack on Il Primo Sport Peppers straight from the jar, or serve them as part of a pickle tray for a simple appetizer or party snack.

Both Il Primo Hot Giardiniera and Il Primo Chicago Hot Dog Sport Peppers are currently on sale at the Carolina Sauce Company.  You'll find them in our Hot & Fiery Snacks page and also on our Peppers, Pickles & Relish page.

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Fresh Cranberry & Candied Pecan Salsa

This unique fresh cranberry side dish features bright flavors and colors with pleasing textures and crunch.  Sassy, sweet & tangy, with a citrus-cilantro twist, cranberry salsa pairs perfectly with traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas entrees like turkey, ham, duck, goose and even chicken and roast pork.  My friend Nancy Difede gave me the recipe, which I made it for the first time this Thanksgiving, and it was spectacularly good with Greg's smoked turkey and oyster-sausage stuffing. I'm looking forward to making this cranberry salsa again soon and serving it with venison tenderloin.  With Nancy's permission, I'm sharing her recipe here.

The hardest part for me was making the candied pecans, because I had never melted sugar before and the instructions I found online didn't exactly work the first time around.  If you're used to making pralines or candy or otherwise melting sugar, this shouldn't be an issue for you.  Nevertheless, it's probably a good idea to follow Nancy's advice and make the candied pecans the night before serving the salsa.  I didn't have quite enough pecans so I added a few chopped walnuts to them, which turned out just fine.  Also, if you want a spicier salsa, you'll want to use two jalapeno peppers, or perhaps 1 jalapeno and 1 serrano pepper.  The single jalapeno provided just a barely discernible nip.

Ingredients for Candied Pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Make the candied pecans:  Melt the sugar in a small, heavy-bottomed pot, then stir in the pecans until coated.  Remove from heat and spread the pecans on parchment paper to cool completely.  Once cool, coarsely chop into small pieces.  Set aside (or store in an airtight container) until ready to serve the salsa.

Ingredients for Cranberry Salsa
1 package (12 oz) fresh cranberries
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & chopped
1/3 cup honey
2 Tbs fresh lime juice
1 tsp freshly grated lime zest
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (including some of the green part)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Place the cranberries, jalapeno, honey, lime juice and lime zest in your food processor and pulse until the cranberries are chopped.  Stir in the green onions.  Transfer to a bowl, cover and chill until ready to serve.  Just before serving, stir in the chopped cilantro and candied pecans.

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

PS:  If you enjoy cranberries and spicy food, you'll love the award-winning Toad Sweat Cranberry Dessert Hot Sauce, made here in North Carolina using all-natural ingredients.

PPS:  Make sure to visit this blog on Monday, November 28th, because I'll be posting an exclusive, one day only Cyber Monday coupon for the Carolina Sauces online store! The coupon will be available shortly after midnight on Monday morning, and will expire in twenty-four hours.
 

Habanero Relish & Bone Suckin' Hot Salsa are In Stock Again!

Two fiery and flavorful condiments are finally back in stock at the Carolina Sauce Company, much to the joy of pepperheads (or chiliheads if you prefer) around the nation. First, there's Bone Suckin' Hot Salsa, an all-natural, chunky, tomato & hot pepper salsa with a seriously hot kick and garden-fresh flavor. Excellent with chips and all your favorite Mexican or Tex-Mex foods, Bone Suckin' Salsa is also tasty with omelets, frittatas, scrambled eggs, quiche, as a casserole or fried-fish topping, and in recipes. Bone Suckin' Salsa is made in North Carolina, and it's Kosher, gluten-free, and comes with a free recipe brochure.

Another fiery North Carolina product making a return is our very own Habanero Pepper Relish, hand-crafted especially for us on a family farm in the North Carolina mountains. Made with all-natural locally-grown ingredients including plenty of HOT habanero peppers, onions, savory spices and chopped cabbage for extra crunch, our habanero relish is superb with burgers and hot dogs, sandwiches, kielbasa, bratwurst, Italian sausage, as an alternative to salsa with chips, and on any hearty dish that could use a tangy kick. For every jar we sell, we donate $1 to Operation Sauce Drop, our nonprofit program that sends free gift boxes of BBQ Sauce and hot sauce to US troops serving abroad.

If you've been waiting for either of these zesty condiments, thank you for your patience and I'm relieved to say that your wait is over!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Carolina Sauce Newsletter: May is National BBQ, Burgers & Salad Month!

Coupon Sale for National BBQ, Burgers & Salad Month!

If you love BBQ, burgers, or salads (or all three), you're in luck: May is National BBQ Month as well as National Burger Month, and vegetarians can join in the fun by celebrating National Salad Month! The Carolina Sauce Company can help you celebrate AND save you money. Simply use the coupon code May2010Blog and we'll give you 10% off ALL barbecue sauces, burger condiments, and salad dressings, including already-discounted sale items, no minimum order size required. Now is the time to stock up for your Memorial Day cookout or picnic! This coupon is valid through May 31st, and is good on the following products:

*All BBQ sauces

*All Mustards and Ketchups

*All relishes, which include: Crunchy & tangy-sweet Chow Chow relishes in Mild and Hot, mild & tangy-sweet Sweet Pepper Relish, hot & tangy-sweet Habanero Pepper Relish, fiery-hot & savory (not sweet) Mama T's Hot Pepper Relish, ultra-hot and sweet Twenty-Pepper Relish, and spicy-hot & savory Just My Taste Jalapeno Sauce & Dip

*All condiments, which include: Fiery and tangy-sweet Mixed Hot Pepper Rings, spicy-hot and savory-tart Hot Dill Pickle Chips, and our all-time best-selling product, the tangy mustard-ketchup burger sauce from Greensboro NC called Castle Sauce

*All salad dressings, which include: Mama T's Olive Oil Vinaigrette (a classic herb vinaigrette dressing that's hand-made in the NC Outer Banks) and Thomas Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing (a unique vinaigrette with a zesty tomato twist from a splash of BBQ sauce)

Get 10% off the above products when you use the coupon code May2010Blog. Enter the coupon online in the "coupon code" section of the billing page, or mention the coupon when ordering by phone. This coupon is valid during the ENTIRE month of May, and you can use it more than once, so order as often as you wish during May to save $$$ while celebrating National BBQ, Burgers and Salads!

Last-Minute Mother's Day Gifts

Still haven't found the perfect Mother's Day gift? Here are some beautiful and thoughtful gifts she's sure to love:

*Send breathtaking florist-arranged flowers of the highest quality, all at a reasonable price, such as the Sweet Serenade mixed bouquet of roses, lilies, stock, daisy poms and more, arranged inside a sleek lavender vase decorated with a wearable heart locket and chain.

*Gorgeous fresh flower bouquets shipped directly from the grower, including 12 pastel premium long-stem roses accented with greenery and Baby's Breath

*Pamper your Mom with the luxurious and indulgent So Serene Spa Essentials Gift Basket, or send her a bountiful Gourmet Gift Basket loaded with fabulous foods, delightful snacks and candy confections -- or how about the Bon Appetit Taste of Italy Gift Basket filled with delicious imported treats such as Parmesan bruschetta crisps, Tuscan style dipping herbs, Los Olicos wine biscuits and more.

*Moms are sure to enjoy the magnificent Gourmet Breakfast Basket, a beautiful cloth-lined muffin/bread basket filled with fantastic breakfast favorites including classic buttermilk pancake mix, New England maple syrup, cinnamon nut coffee, Perugina chocolates, cappuccino rolled wafer cookies, European sipping chocolate and more!

*For more last-minute gift options including fresh lobster & steak dinners, fine coffees & wine accessories and more, click on the link boxes at the top of the left column of this blog to see our offerings and select that special gift. Next-day and even same-day delivery options are available!

Latest Zesty New Products

Our newest products offer something for everyone, from mild & tasty to fiery-hot. Check these out:

Bone Suckin' Poultry Seasoning & Rub: From the makers of Bone Suckin' Sauce, this mild and savory-sweet seasoning features an all natural blend of herbs and spices that pair perfectly with chicken, turkey, cornish hens and more. The whole family will love the finger-lickin', bone-suckin' good flavor!

Blue's Chipotle Mustard Pepper Sauce is fiery-hot and robustly flavored with smoky chipotle and zesty mustard in a rich, thick base. Wonderful on everything from burgers to sandwiches to pizza to Tex-Mex and more -- and it's ON SALE!

Carolina Sauce Co. Mixed Hot Pepper Rings are deli-style "bread & butter" (sweet/tangy) pickled hot pepper rings made in the NC Mountains from locally grown hot peppers and all-natural ingredients. Terrific on burgers, subs, sandwiches & more, these zesty hot pepper rings are on sale AND you'll get an extra 10% off when you use the coupon code May2010Blog!

Carolina Sauce Co. Three-Pepper Hot Sauce is made in the Piedmont region of NC from all-natural ingredients and features jalapenos, cayenne and black pepper in a tangy-sweet vinegar base. A tasty, all-purpose hot sauce, it also makes a great spicy-hot sauce for Eastern NC style pulled pork BBQ -- and it's ON SALE!!

May is Military Appreciation Month - Send Free Sauce to a Soldier

Operation Sauce Drop is our non-profit program that sends free gift boxes of sauce to US military personnel stationed abroad. To date, we've shipped over 900 free gift boxes to our deployed military, at absolutely NO cost to them. Our cost to purchase and ship each free gift generally runs from $20 to $25. The troops really appreciate the free sauce, as you can see from the thank-you notes to donors and photos they've sent in. Want to send a soldier a taste of home and bring a smile to his or her face during Military Appreciation Month? Then please donate to Operation Sauce Drop. You can also shop to support Operation Sauce Drop, where some or all of the purchase price of the products goes straight into Operation Sauce Drop (you get the products you order, and the money you pay is used to send free sauce to the troops).

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Carolina Sauce Co. Mixed Hot Pepper Rings

If you like to pile on the hot peppers at your neighborhood deli or favorite sandwich shop, you're going to love our brand-new Mixed Hot Pepper Rings. Made in small batches on a family farm in the North Carolina mountains, this feisty condiment feaatures a variety of locally grown green, red and yellow hot peppers which are pickled according to an old-fashioned "bread and butter" recipe using only natural ingredients, for mouthwatering sweet-tangy flavor and fiery heat. The first time I tasted these mixed hot pepper rings, I couldn't stop eating them straight from the jar. So I am thrilled to be able to offer them under the Carolina Sauce Company brand name, and to share them with you and other zesty-foods fans all over the country.

You can enjoy our Mixed Hot Pepper Rings like you would any pickle or spicy condiment: In subs, sandwiches and wraps, on burgers, patty melts and hot dogs, with sausage and other grilled meats, chopped and added to tuna, chicken, potato or egg salad, mixed into three-bean salad or tossed on green salads, and even on nachos and with Tex-Mex dishes like burritos, quesadillas, fajitas and more. Greg likes to add them to omelets, especially really cheesy ones, and I also use these pickled hot pepper rings as a condiment for scrambled eggs and frittatas. I haven't tried them on pizza yet, but I bet that would work. Heck, they'd probably make a great addition to tartar sauce and cocktail sauce for fried seafood, too!

Carolina Sauce Co. Mixed Hot Pepper Rings come in an old-fashioned Mason pint jar, and are currently on sale for only $4.99 for a 16oz jar. Better hurry and order yourself some, before I eat all the inventory!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Best-Selling Salsa & Relish for 2009

In honor of National Chili Day, I thought today would be a good day to post the Carolina Sauce Company's list of 2009's Top Ten Best Selling Salsas and Relishes (after all, I've been known to enjoy a good salsa with my chili from time to time). So without further ado, here's the list:

1. For the second consecutive year, the best-selling salsa is the original Peppers Blue Crab Salsa, a medium-spicy tomato and pepper salsa made with real Maryland crabmeat. This salsa is for more than chips: Pour it over spaghetti for a fresh alternative to marinara or pasta sauce!

2. Last year we introduced our very own Hot Chow Chow Relish, and it quickly became a best-seller, finishing in second place for the year - and we donate $1 from the sale of each jar to Operation Sauce Drop for the troops!

3. Our third place finisher for 2009 was the same as from 2008, and comes straight from Chicago: Capone Family Secret Hot Giardiniera, a spicy-hot traditional Italian condiment for sandwiches and subs, antipasto trays, appetizers and more -- and it comes with a free recipe for Giardiniera pizza!

4. Another unusual and delicious crab salsa, Peppers Zesty Blue Crab Salsa, was the 4th best selling salsa last year. This version adds a hefty dose of horseradish and hot peppers to kick up the spice in the original blue crab salsa recipe.

5. Our Mild Chow Chow Relish, also introduced last year, finished in 5th place for the year - and we donate $1 from the sale of each jar to Operation Sauce Drop for the troops!

6. Pepper Dog Salsa - Medium is an all-natural, smoky Southwestern style smooth (not chunky) tomato salsa with jalapenos, and it came in 6th place on our best-selling salsa list. This salsa is ideal for cooking (Tex-Mex, chili, Mexican), as well as for enjoying with chips.

7. Repeating its 2008 finish, Scorned Woman Salsa came in 7th last year. This smooth tomato-rich medium-hot salsa is terrific with chips, on enchiladas and burritos, in tacos, with scrambled eggs, and as a spicy alternative to plain ketchup.

8. The Mild version of Capone Family Secret Giardiniera finished 8th last year (as it did in 2008), and is perfect for folks who enjoy authentic Italian flavor but prefer to avoid hot peppers. It comes with a free recipe for Giardiniera pizza!

9. In ninth place is Thomas Fish Camp Cocktail Sauce, an old-fashioned zesty cocktail sauce from North Carolina with a zippy horseradish kick.

10. Completing our list of the top ten best-selling salsas and relishes for 2009 is another North Carolina product, Thomas Fish Camp Tartar Sauce. Featuring authentic old-fashioned homemade flavor, this tartar sauce is far tastier than any grocery store brands and will complement all your seafood fare including fried shrimp, fish, deviled crabs, crabcakes, etc. Kids love it on fish sticks and even chicken nuggets!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Carolina Sauce Habanero Pepper Relish

If you are looking for a fiery-hot, tangy-sweet relish for sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs, etc., look no further than our brand-new Carolina Sauce Company Habanero Pepper Relish! We chose this sweet habanero pepper relish to bear our name because it's hand-made in small batches on a family farm in the North Carolina mountains using all-natural ingredients, locally grown produce, and a traditional southern relish recipe that's been spiced up with habaneros. The flavor is reminiscent of bread-and-butter pickles in terms of the tangy sweetness, and the texture has a pleasantly toothsome crunch from the chopped cabbage, peppers and onions. And of course there's a good fiery burn and bite from the habanero peppers, but not at the expense of the fabulous flavor.

We think our habanero pepper relish is perfect for adding a peppery punch to anything you'd normally dress up with ordinary pickle relish, i.e., hamburgers and hot dogs, wraps and sandwiches, brats and kielbasa or other sausage, and even breakfast dishes like scrambled eggs, hash browns & breakfast sausage. Drain and mix some of this zesty pepper relish with mayonnaise to make a spicy tartar sauce for fish and seafood, or blend with Thousand Island dressing to use as a spicy sandwich spread or salad dressing. You can even add some habanero pepper relish to old-fashioned prepared salads like Three Bean Salad, cole slaw, chicken salad or tuna salad to kick up the flavor and fire. Our habanero pepper relish is currently on sale at the Carolina Sauce Company online store, so get some today!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Carolina Sauce Sweet Pepper Relish

Sweet Pepper Relish is a sweet & tangy condiment that adds zesty flavor without fiery heat to sandwiches, wraps, burgers, hot dogs, hoagies and subs, as well as scrambled eggs, omelets, hash browns, breakfast sausage and more. If you enjoy sweet pickle relish, you'll flip for our Sweet Pepper Relish! This versatile relish also pairs nicely with fish and seafood, roast beef, pork chops, chicken, and other main courses. Because it's made with sweet bell peppers and not hot chilies, the whole family can enjoy our pepper relish, including kids and grown-ups with more sensitive palates.

Our Sweet Pepper Relish is hand-made on a family farm in the North Carolina mountains, using an old Southern recipe and all-natural ingredients including mild bell peppers (red and green) and real sugar, NOT high fructose corn syrup. The tang comes from vinegar, and a secret blend of pickling spices give this tasty relish its old-fashioned, "just like Granny's" flavor. Why settle for boring store-brand pickle relish when you can enjoy this wholesome pepper relish instead -- especially while it's on sale at the Carolina Sauce Company!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Carolina Sauce Co. Chow Chow Relishes

Authentic Southern chow chow is an old-fashioned relish and condiment made with chopped cabbage, sweet peppers (plus hot peppers for hot chow chow), onions, and pickling spices in a sweet-tart base of vinegar and sugar. After much research, I'm happy to announce that we've finally found a true Southern chow chow relish that's good enough to bear our name! Carolina Sauce Company Chow Chow Relish is crunchy, sweet and tangy, made with fresh local produce by an elderly gentleman and his wife in the rural North Carolina Piedmont. They've been making their delicious chow chow relish by hand in small batches for over 3 decades, using an old family recipe and following in the footsteps of the gentleman's mother, who founded their family business in the 1950s. You can taste the tradition and love that goes into every jar of this zesty condiment to this day.

Available in family-friendly Mild Chow Chow and the spicier Hot Chow Chow, you can enjoy these old-fashioned cabbage relishes the same way you'd use ordinary pickle relish or slaw: On burgers and sandwiches, as a side dish for country fare and comfort food, with barbecue, as an item on a relish tray or in your picnic basket, as a snack with cheese and crackers, or even simply straight out of the jar. Usually only found at roadside produce stands along country roads, you can now order all the chow chow you want from the comfort and convenience of your home or office computer thanks to the Carolina Sauce Company online store. If you miss Grandma's homemade chow chow, or if you've never had the pleasure of tasting real Southern chow chow relish, then now's your chance to do so while both flavors of Carolina Sauce Chow Chow Relish are on sale!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Buy Giardiniera, Get $100,000!

Purchase Capone Family Secret Giardiniera from the Carolina Sauce Company online store and receive $100,000 for each jar you buy! Not only is this delicious, authentic Italian giardiniera from Chicago currently on sale, but we're giving away a $100,000 bill with every jar! Don't tell me this offer sounds too good to be true -- What, you think there's a catch? Well, ok, there is: Although it's true that we'll send you a $100,000 bill with each jar of Capone Family Secret, the bills aren't actually legal tender, as you can see from the photo on the right. But the recipe for Giardiniera Pizza that you'll also receive with your order is the real deal, and you can make it with either the mild giardiniera or the hot giardiniera. But don't delay in placing your order, as we only have a limited number of these Al Capone novelty $100,000 bills!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Capone Family Secret Giardiniera

One of my favorite tasks here at Carolina Sauce Company is tasting, testing and evaluating potential new products for our online specialty foods store. Most of the samples I try are at least edible (although there have been some memorably awful experiences, and needless to say those are NOT part of our store!), and quite a few samples are pretty good. Once in a while, however, I'll taste something that makes me sit up and take notice, and sometimes even makes me grin ear to ear and declare, "We have a winner!" Capone Family Secret Giardiniera falls into that latter category, and the Hot Giardiniera in particular blew me away, bursting with zesty flavors and packing serious heat.

Made by the same Chicago company since 1909 and brought to us by a descendant of the infamous Al Capone, Capone Family Secret Giardiniera is the real deal, just like you'll find at authentic Italian delis in Chicago and New York. Made with all-natural ingredients and Italian seasonings, the Hot Giardiniera uses a variety of hot peppers and traditional vegetables to deliver peppery firepower balanced with old world flavor. The Mild Giardiniera features select bell peppers instead of hot peppers, making it the ideal choice for more sensitive palates that appreciate robust flavors but prefer to avoid heat.

Traditionally spread on cold cut sandwiches as well as Italian sausage, meatball, and beef sandwiches, giardiniera is also delicious on burgers, hot dogs and other meats, on eggs, pizza and in omelets (drain the giardiniera first), and tossed in salads of the green and the pasta varieties. I like to snack on crackers topped with a slice of fresh mozzarella and a forkful of giardiniera, and it also goes nicely on crostini spread with goat cheese. Another tasty treat is sliced hard salami or soppresata with a forkful of giardiniera. With its big chunks of vegetables and zesty marinade, this giardiniera often finds its way into my green salads as a substitute for salad dressing - I just add some freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice and toss everything together, including a splash of additional marinade from the jar, and sometimes also some anchovy fillets for a little protein. Both varieties of Capone Family Secret Giardiniera got unanimous rave reviews during our tasting earlier this month, and are currently on sale and come with a free recipe for Giardiniera Pizza.

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

Mama T's Hot Pepper Relish

I discovered Mama T's Hot Pepper Relish a year ago during a long weekend trip to our favorite campground about an hour and a half outside the NC coast. While driving out from there to Manteo to eat at The Weeping Radish German Restaurant & Brewery (paradise on earth if you love German food and hearty German beer brewed according to the traditional Purity Laws), we stopped at Mackey's Ferry Peanuts & Gift Shop in Jamesville on Hwy 64E. This gift store sells Greg's Happy Sauce, as well as a variety of other NC products. They were sampling Mama T's Hot Pepper Relish that day, and I spooned some on a cracker... and experienced fiery pickled pepper bliss!! Mama T's Hot Pepper Relish is the real deal, just like I used to have on Italian deli subs back in New York City, made with a variety of chile peppers cut into chunks and preserved in a savory vinegar base with no added sweeteners. I bought a couple of jars to take home, and devoured them in no time, on sandwiches, burgers and omelets, as an accompaniment to grilled sausages and other hearty BBQ fare, and combined with cream cheese for a zesty dip.

This spring, I got to meet Mama T and her daughter Shirley in person. These charming ladies have been making good food for good people for decades, and I was thrilled to be able to offer their delicious creations through the Carolina Sauce Company online store. Mama T Foods is based in Kill Devil Hills, NC (on the outer banks), and Mama T and Shirley make all their products themselves in small batches using only the finest ingredients. Like the rest of their product line, Mama T's Hot Pepper Relish is quite versatile and works as a zesty table condiment, or as a recipe ingredient in stews, soups, casseroles, meatloaf and more. If you're looking for an old-fashioned spicy and savory hot pepper relish, then this is the one for you. And make sure to visit my blog again soon (or sign up for the free RSS feed), because over the next few days I'll be introducing the rest of Mama T's flavor-packed products!

Zestfully yours,
Gloria