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Creamy and Spicy Ramp and New Potato Soup

In Chile Peppers, Chili & Soup, Recipes by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

Ramps are wild onions with a strong garlic aroma and flavor that are very popular in Appalachia, where festivals are devoted to them. But many people think that they are much too strong and there is even an aphorism that goes: “Ramps are not for ladies or those who court them.” Ramps are not cultivated but are collected in the wild. Sometimes they can be found at farmers’ markets from southern Canada to the Carolinas beginning in April. They were a favorite of forager Euell Gibbons, author of Stalking the Wild Asparagus who loved them to pickle them and use them in soups such as this one.

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The Great Montezuma Hot Chocolate Drink

In Alcoholic, Beverages, Holiday & Seasonal, Recipes by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

“Everybody wants some… I want some too…” Van Halen wasn’t talking about hot chocolate when they wrote that but they might as well have been. Chocolate gets associate with sex more often than Craigslist. This hot chocolate is about as close as you can get to what they were singing about without getting buck nekkid and arguing over who gets to go downstairs for sandwiches and cigarettes afterward. We have Richard Sterling to thank for this wonderful libation. You’ll find it and more in this holiday spicy beverage guide at our sister site.

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Dark Chocolate Cheesecake with Red Chile Ganache

In Dessert, Holiday & Seasonal, Recipes by Mark MaskerLeave a Comment

Happy holidays, everybody. As we pull into the home stretch for 2015’s finish line, foodies like us find ourselves busier than the North Pole elves. Over the next few weeks, I’ll grill, smoke, bake, and post a storm of different recipes. One of them is this Dark Chocolate Cheesecake with Red Chile Ganache from this spicy holiday dessert piece at Fiery Foods and Barbecue Central.