Category Archives: Barbecue
Cast Away But Not Forgotten…Sweet Heat Gourmet – The Lost Sauces!!!
Sweet Heat’s Lineup-Almost gone but not Forgotten!!!
I think everyone knows the Tom Hanks’ movie Cast Away! You know….Fed Ex guy in the plane crash who is on a small island for 5 years hanging out with some volleyball named Wilson! Everyone thought he was lost forever, but NO! He turns up, not really any worse for wear, and resumes his life. Well……..I have a kinda sorta similar story about Sweet Heat Gourmet, Michelle Mierwald’s State College, Pennsylvania’s work of love, who sent me sauces to review a looooong time ago. How long ago, you ask? Well, I ain’t sayin’, but it’s been a while! Not Tom and Wilson’s 5 years, mind you, but long enough. There’s a genuine back-story that comes with the delay – but that’s no excuse, and I am dutifully ashamed and embarrassed, and publically ask forgiveness. So here’s where I attempt to make amends!
Right after I received a generous sampling of her creations, I used them, abused them, played with them, made notes about them, enjoyed them, and never finished my formal review of them! Kinda like when, in Cast Away, packages never made it to their final destination…except one, at the end of the movie! Just like this post! (I know it’s a stretch, folks, but work with me a little, okay?!)
Sweet Heat has a great lineup of products. I thought it was especially cool that she sources some of her local ingredients in her online product descriptions, much like Tom gave credit to his ol’ straw headed buddy Wilson! So what was in those lost packages? What’s Sweet and what’s the Heat in the Gourmet?
Pineapple Ghost-my personal favorite!
I received the following: Honey Jalapeno BBQ Sauce, Habanero Peach Hot Sauce, Pineapple & Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce, and Moruga Scorpion Hot Sauce. I have a little left of all of them (testimony that I was saving some for the formal write-up), and they all still have a great fresh flavor and complex profile. Not a bad sauce in the lot! I found my notes, and here’s where it gets eerily similar to Cast Away…..just like Mr. Hanks was creative, ingenious, practical, and opportunistic with the ingredients he had to work with, so goes Ms. Mierwald and Sweet Heat Gourmet!
A Jalapeno BBQ sauce with nice heat!
The Honey Jalapeno BBQ Sauce is fresh, and actually packs a little heat which is unusual for a jalapeno sauce. It has just enough soy and Worcestershire to give it some pop without being salty, a wonderful use of the pepper which you can feel and taste, and a spice compliment that worked well with pork, beef, and chicken.
The Habanero Peach played the cumin and ginger card nicely, creating a unique flavor profile to accompany the peaches and habs, a pleasant medium heat, and the black pepper created a nice earthiness that I really enjoyed. Think fish, veggie medleys, and a Sunday brunch frittata! The Pineapple & Ghost Pepper made a mean salad dressing, with that slow crawling, back palate bhut jolokia burn (but not too much!), and totally faked me out with the raisins, which added a fullness to the flavor profile! I really liked that one…a lot! And the Moruga Scorpion sauce was no-nonsense, front end hot! But not mind numbing hot…just a nice hot! A polite hot! A Tom Hanks nice guy, but tough as all get out to survive 5 years on a deserted island hot! I’m not a big scorpion pepper fan, as I find it a little harsh, but Sweet Heat blends the scorpion with other unnamed red peppers, tomato, a little sugar, and spices to create a Scorpion sauce I could use in chili, spaghetti, meat loaf, and on chicken. I’m sure it has veggie uses if you think about it. After all, Tom tied a raft up with VHS magnetic tape, for goodness sakes!
2nd Annual NYC Hot Sauce Expo March 29&30, 2014
Short and Sweet – these are great products! They all get 4 Fiery Worlds, except for the Pineapple Ghost, which earns itself 4 1\2 Fiery Worlds!!!! After being lost in the back of my frig, my Sweet Heat Gourmet sauces are still very much present and accounted for! So go to their website and order some today! Or catch Sweet Heat March 29 and 30, 2014 at the NYC Hot Sauce Expo! Why, you ask? Because, It’s a Fiery World!
Extra! Extra! Silverleaf International Halts Vampire Invasion!
The Prestigious Golden Chile Awarded to the Ghost Pepper Verde Sauce
Okay, not really, but they could stop a Vampire invasion! Silverleaf International, the Missouri City, Texas based company owned by Neal and Adriane McWeeney, is home to some of the best gourmet salsas, olive oil, jellies, and marinated garlic on the planet. I’m telling you, folks! This is vampire stopping good garlic! I’m talking garlic so good that even Edward Cullen and Count Dracula couldn’t resist! Plus, when you factor in the whole silver leaf thing, those guys don’t stand a chance (Get it? Vampires…silver…silver can kill a vampire….ok, fine…. I thought it was clever..)!
Silver? leaf? What’s that got to do with anything, you ask? Well, maybe you didn’t ask, but I’m gonna tell you anyway. When I was visiting with Neal and Adriane in New Orleans, I learned a little about the back-story of their company. They had gone to Italy on vacation some years ago, and while walking in a monastery olive orchard one morning (sounds like a cool vampire movie setting, doesn’t it? Just sayin’!), they loved the shimmering silver hue of the olive tree leaves. That’s right, the same olives that you buy at the store, or press for oil have cool silvery, shimmery leaves. When they were ready to start their business, the memory of those shimmering olive leaves reappeared, Silverleaf International was born, and the rest is history!
Award Winning Red & Green Ghost Pepper Salsa
And that history has been richly rewarded. Their ghost pepper salsa, made with fresh roasted tomatoes and fresh diced garlic cloves, combined with the super hot ghost pepper, is a perennial favorite and winner at the Houston Hot Sauce Festival, and won awards there from 2009-2012. And their Ghost Pepper Salsa Verde, a green sauce made with fresh garlic, tomatillo, and ghost peppers, won a coveted Golden Chile award! Seeing how both those awards come from Texas, where you best be on your game when it comes to salsa, that’s saying something! Just tonight, I had breakfast burritos for dinner, and their Fiery Hot Garlic Salsa was a perfect compliment, with just the right amount of Habanero heat combined with their fresh California grown garlic and spices. I highly recommend their salsa for any occasion, including watching old Bela Lugosi Dracula flicks, or for you trendy, modern types, a Twilight marathon…
Silverleaf International Fiery Hot Garlic Salsa adds to any dish
So if you’re like me and get a little twitchy watching all those vampire flicks (I’m really not a monster movie kind of guy), and need some protection, Silverleaf’s wide selection of marinated garlic simply blows me away! If you go to their website, you’ll see there’s a flavor profile for everyone, from Mediterranean, to sweet bread and butter, to chipotle, and more. I love the bread and butter garlic and the ghost pepper garlic. If you’re not familiar with a ghost pepper, it reminds me of a bell pepper on steroids, so the sweet pepper flavor combined with its substantial heat marry beautifully with the garlic’s savory notes. Smashed onto a piece of bread, added to any dish, or simply munched as a snack, the ghost pepper garlic will brighten your day, bring a mild (or wild) sweat to your brow, and a big smile on your face. Unless you’re a vampire, in which case you’d pretty much be hosed.
A broad variety of Ghost Pepper Infused Products!
So check out Silverleaf International’s great selection of gourmet quality products. I’ll give everything I’ve tried to date (several types of garlic, all of their salsas, an awesome peach jelly, and their ghost pepper infused olive oil) a minimum of 4 Fiery Worlds! They will be at the New York City Hot Sauce Expo March 29 & 30, 2014, so if headed to the expo, definitely make their booth a must visit! For the rest of the world, check out their website, pick up some garlic for your next vampire slaying expedition, and tell ‘em I sent you! Why? Because, Ladies and Gentlemen, It’s a Fiery World!
Hey Honey! What Bee’s All The Hype About!? Intensity Academy Did it Again?!
Honey Hype Adds a Sweet/Savory Glaze to Pork Loins
That’s right, ladies and gentlemen! Michele Northrup and Tom Was at Intensity Academy came out with one of my favorite new products in 2013, and if this was the 1930’s, I’d say it is the Bee’s Knees! I’m just now writing what I’ve known for months- that all the hype is for Honey Hype, Michele and Tom’s newest dry spice blend! I was introduced to it while in New Orleans at the Chile Pepper Extravaganza, and immediately fell in love!
So what’s to love? Well, it’s different. It’s not the normal salt based seasoning blend. And it isn’t just a sweet barbecue rub. It is unique, and I love unique. In an industry where there are so many products that are similar in taste, texture, and use, it’s refreshing to find one that creates a buzz that makes bees all over pollinate with pride!!! And Chile Bee pride is evident in the catchy label! I’m wondering just what Intensity Academy was hyped up on turning bees into flying chile peppers and using a hornets’ nest instead of a bee hive, but it looks cool and is in line with Intensity Academy’s high quality graphic standards. After all, there’s nothing wrong with a little dramatic license! But what’s behind that label is what matters.Honey Hype is some high quality stuff, folks! It uses turbinado sugar, a higher grade that is taken earlier in the refining process, so it keeps more of the dark sugar/molasses flavors. You can tell it’s there by the way that it gives an extra richness to the sweet layer. And what a cool name! Turbinado! Sounds like Sharknado for food! But unlike the bizarre, and cheesy, combination of tornados and killer sharks, the turbinado pairs extremely well with the savory components in Honey Hype- paprika, granulated garlic, and onion powder. And don’t forget the subtle additions of salt and “natural” spices to round out the ingredients! But what about the honey, Honey? (We call everyone Honey and Sugar down here in the South, so I thought I’d throw that in for cultural authenticity!) Well, Intensity Academy uses honey powder, that seems to just lay a blanket of smoothness over everything. And everything is right!
Honey Hype Works Great With Chicken
I have yet to find a dish where Honey Hype doesn’t work. From sweet potatoes (deeelish, as Ms. Ray would say) to Fish to pork or poultry, there is a lot to be hyped up about! The sugar and honey powder combo make a killer combo for a glaze, as it did on some pan sautéed tilapia filets. As you see in the picture, chickens are proud to wear a layer of the sweet and savory sharknado style attack, and I could go on and on! But I won’t! I’ll get to the point!
I’m giving Intensity Academy’s Honey Hype 4 1/2 Fiery Worlds! It’s close to perfect, but I learned that you have to keep it well sealed in a dry place or moisture can creep into the spice, making it clump ever so slightly (A common issue with turbinado sugar, and a small price to pay for higher grade and more natural). Don’t get me wrong- it’s not enough to cause problems using the spice, but I would like to see some instruction on the label. So there you have it, folks! Another winning entry by Intensity Academy! Go to their website, or you can get their products at the various shows or at www. iBurn.com. I’ve also done reviews for several of their wonderful products on the blog, so check out the archives! Why, you ask? Because, Ladies and Gentlemen, It’s a Fiery World!
It’s a Fiery World’s Top 5 Products of 2013 Annouced on Scott Roberts Weekly Firecast!
During a recent taping of our regular segment on The Audio Weekly Firecast with Scott Roberts, Scott and I discuss our favorite products of 2013. My list could have been much longer, as I’ve tasted some mighty fine sauces, snacks, and seasonings this year, but the ones mentioned rose to the top of the class! If any of links here give you trouble, just go to www.scottrobertsweb.com . Please check out the Podcast and I’m looking forward to a much more active 2014 here at It’s a Fiery World! So download and give a listen! And thanks for allowing me to occasionally enter your world with a little of my Fiery World!
Weekly Firecast Podcast Episode #50 – Ken and Scott Name Their Favorite Fiery Foods Products of 2013
In this special 50th episode, regular Firecast contributor Ken Alexander joins Scott, and together they name what they consider to be their top favorite hot sauces, BBQ sauces and seasonings of the year.
Companies mentioned in the episode:
- CaJohn’s Fiery Foods
- Intensity Academy
- Volcanic Peppers
- Karma Sauces
- Madison Chocolatiers West
- Puckerbutt Pepper Company
- Deano’s Jalapenos
- Fireque BBQ
- Race City Sauce Works
- OMG Willikers Chocolate Elixirs
- Big Fat’s Hot Sauce
Other Links:
• Ken’s Fiery World Blog
• Scott Roberts’ Blog
• Audible Trial Page – Download a FREE audiobook!
• Scott Roberts Facebook Page
• Scott Roberts Twitter Page
Listen Instantly!
Click Above to Listen to This Episode Now!
Download this episode | 
Subscribe via iTunes | 
Subscribe via RSS Feed
It's a Fiery World 