Spicy Valentine’s: Peppered Strawberries in Champagne

In Dessert, Holiday & Seasonal by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

New Year’s is behind us and the Post-Holiday Season Holiday season is coming up. That’s my name for the Winter/Spring trinity comprised of Valentine’s, St. Patrick’s, and Easter. With this greeting card industry trifecta comes plenty of good eatin’–ham, corned beef, rabbit, and, for the romantically inclined, strawberries with champagne. Peppered strawberries in champagne brings the heat. And brings the heat. Check out the spicy recipe and you’ll see what I mean.

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Hot News

In Hot News, News by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

Barbecue and spicy food news hibernates in the winter. You can still find it, but there hasn’t been enough weirdness occurring in either world recently to warrant a Hot News post from me. Until this week. Read on.

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Chipotle Mayonnaise

In Chile Peppers, Recipes by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

Never underestimate the power of a good quickie. Unless you’re in an airplane lavatory. The airlines frown more and more on that sort of thing these days. But enough about my checkered past. Here’s a straightforward, simple recipe for a chipotle mayo that goes great with anything it wants to.

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5 Routes to Sweet Heat (That Don’t ALL Involve Chiles)

In Chile Peppers, News by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

Lately, I’ve been posting a lot of recipes for spicy desserts. Not just because we writers are a lazy lot people who try to get the most out of a subject. Over the last few years we’ve seen more sweet offerings at the National Fiery Foods & Barbecue Show. Seeing a tendency like this at one show would be happenstance, twice coincidence, and three shows, well, that’s an outright movement. The easy route to sweet heat is the strategic application of cayenne or chile pepper to chocolate. While I’m as easy as the next guy, there’s no real art to just adding a chile to an existing dessert recipe and calling it a day. Here are some sources of heat to consider when you start your own adventures in spicy dessert.