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.