Give Thanks...

We all have many blessings in our lives that we can give thanks for. Since this is a blog about condiments, I must give thanks for all the fine sauces, relishes, spices and thick savory syrups that make my life so rich and meaningful.

Where would I be without:

-- Norman Bishop's Dill and Garlic mustard
-- Holy Jalepeno relish
-- pickled garlic (a taste treat that Baby Balsamic also relishes)
-- Balsamic vinegar, especially the delicious kind procured in Italy
-- Sun-dried tomato pesto

And the simple things like French's mustard. And ketchup.

Tonight I partook of a cracked crab and had the great good fortune to experience a new kind of cocktail sauce -- Stonewall Kitchen's Lemon Dill variety. Now, I am a big fan of Stonewall Kitchen's other products, but I begin to think you shouldn't mess too much with cocktail sauce. Take your ketchup and your horseradish, maybe some Worcestershire and you got a friendly ride for most seafood. This version was a little sweet, a little too subtle. I ended up mixing it with a mustard/mayo mixture and that was quite good, but you know, you could add pureed okra to creamy mayonnaise and have a taste treat. It's MAYONNAISE.

I guess I forgot to give thanks for mayonnaise. And I give thanks for myself being too lazy to try and make it myself too often, because it rocks the house when it's homemade and it has more calories than a McDonald's Happy Meal.

I give thanks for the little things that make our lives better, like a Tori Amos song coming on the radio or my kitty cat lying on top of me without poking his butt in my face and a hot bath on a cold day. And my little Baby Balsamic. She is truly my condiment delight.

Have a great Thanksgiving. And my advice is -- don't eschew the canned cranberry sauce. I've grown quite attached to it. The sweetness brightens up the heaviest of gravies.

I would do anything for condiments...

The title of tonight's post is brought to you courtesy of that great artiste of American Rock n' Roll - whose name is synonymous with that of a tasty dish that can soak up all kinds of condiments - MEATLOAF!

I'm in a reflective mood, so this will ramble a bit. This last weekend, I had a dear old friend over for dinner who recently started reading my blog.

"I like your blog, but I fear it will make me spend too much money. All those condiments look so good and they're so expensive."

My hand froze in mid-air, hovering over the jar of Silver Palate Hot Stuff Salsa that I received as a birthday gift. Am I a snob? Do I only revel in expensive condiments that might be enjoyed by Donald Trump and Paris Hilton as they tango on writhing masses of the poor? This cannot be. I am a girl of the people.

This Hot Stuff Salsa -- good, spicy, but not amazing -- retails for about $4.69. That's not a lot, is it? I mean, I have been known to purchase $30 bottles of balsamic vinegars, but that's different. Because I drink it while reading about the suffering of the writhing masses of the poor.

But I don't just recommend expensive condiments. I've carried on about ketchup and plain old French's mustard. Tonight, while dining out with friends, Mr. Mustard, Baby Balsamic and I enjoyed a simple swipe of bread through a plate sprinkled with balsamic vinegar, olive oil and salt. This was at a mid-range Italian restaurant and the bread liquids were not of the finest quality, but I found it the perfect end to a cold day. But I did briefly long for my expensive balsamic.

Then as I listened to the delighted screams of our friends' one year old daughter and Baby Balsamic while dipping their chicken nuggets (Baby Balsamic's favorite. It's because it involves dipping sauce) into a little bowl of ranch sauce, I realized that condiments is not about expense -- it's about what you're dipping and who you're dipping it with.

But remember, practice safe dipping.

Condiment Grrl

Fall flavored Condiments...

Hello dear readers,

I have now recovered from all the hoopla and excitement of the midterm elections. While Condiment Grrl believes that red staters and blue staters enjoy condiments equally, she is a deep shade of Indigo Blue when it comes to politics so she is as giddy as she would be if ten jars of Holy Jalepeno relish got delivered to her door, along with a cooked succelent leg of lamb. And Russel Crowe covered in Cranberry mustard with a bow...well, anyway, this brings me to this posting: Fall approaches and new condiments flood the shelves ready to lure us into the new season and new possibilities for our Thanksgiving relish tray.

First off -- cranberries are everywhere, insinuating them along with their cousin, pumpkin spice, into our lattes, pies, bruschetta and flans. I like a nice tart glaze on many meats, but I'm usually pretty indifferent to cranberries, preferring the more traditional Ocean Spray cranberry sauce in a can to any wild creations involving Martha Stewart peeling and juicing 17 cranberries before adding them to her turkish yule log.

But, I love Fall and I made a new discovery -- orange flavored dried cranberries. I sprinkled them in a salad with blue cheese and turkey and the tangy burst of the holidays to come made my quickie lunch all the more festive.

What are your Fall favorites? I'll blog more about the variety of seasonal condiments that we'll have access to during the next couple months.

I'm blue. So very blue.

Condiment Grrl