Sunday, May 13, 2012

Button Swap Blog Hop - Reveal!


Yeeha! Today's the big reveal day! Naturally, I'm not home to write my blog early in the day. But it's only 9:52 p.m! So technically it is still Sunday, May 13th. My husband and I are on our way to New York via New Orleans, LA, spending the night at our daughter and son-in-law's house sleeping on an air mattress in the living room floor. Well he's sleeping, I'm blogging. I know TMI! But enough about me. This blog is suppose to be about the Button Swap, which by the way is my first. It has been fun and exciting!

Cindy Wimmer of Sweet Bead Studio put this Swap together & assigned out the partners. She had a huge job ahead of her with so many signed up but looks like she did a fabulous job. Hopefully it is a huge success & we can do this again!

My partner, Mary Govaars from California, sent me some wonderfully interesting buttons in a cute little tin. Love them! I used one of the vintage buttons & the bear paw. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the tin. It's at home in New Braunfels, TX & I'm in New Orleans, LA. So there will be no picture of it at this time. Sorry Mary!


  
I really had several things planned for these buttons but time became a constraint. I know that's a hard one to believe in this busy day & age. So I ended up only doing one of the things I had planned. In our business of Texas Pepper Jams we sample our candies at festivals, market days & other shows. So I wanted to do something that would coordinate with that.
  


Thanks to Cindy & Mary, I now have a unique sample plate for our Hot Pepper Fudge. I will somehow have to protect the buttons & beads from small children fingers that will want to play with them.
  
Below is the list of participants for everyone to check out. Enjoy & happy blogging. I really look forward to visiting everyone's blogs & seeing pictures & of course, new ideas!   
        
Thanks again to Cindy Wimmer for this exciting new experience & all her hard work!

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Grilled Raspberry Champagne Anaheim Habanero
Glazed Ribs


Ingredients 
  • 2 racks (approx. 2 1/2 lbs. each) Baby Back Ribs
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped Onion
  • 1/3 cup Soy Sauce
  • 2 tsp minced Garlic
  • 1 tsp Pepper
  • 1/4 tsp ground Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground Ginger
  • 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
  • 1 cup Raspberry Champagne Anaheim Habanero Texas Pepper Jam

Directions
  1. In medium bowl combine: Onion, Soy Sauce, Garlic, Pepper, Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg and 1/2 cup Raspberry Champagne Anaheim Habanero Texas Pepper Jam. Mix together well. Place ribs in large resealable plastic bag. Pour in marinade. Place bag in large pan, refrigerating overnight or for at least 6 hours, turning occasionally to coat well.
  2. Remove ribs from marinade. Reserve 1 cup of marinade & discard the rest.
  3. Grill ribs; remembering to turn often & baste with remaining marinade; Or Bake ribs at 350* in covered pan with remaining marinade for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until tender.
  4. When ribs are almost done; only 5-7 min left; Brush remaining 1/2 cup Raspberry Champagne Anaheim Habanero Texas Pepper Jam over the ribs as glaze. Cover for final few minutes.
  5. Eat & Enjoy! 
NOTE: This Pepper Jam also tastes good on Chicken & Pork Chops.
     

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

New Braunfels Wein and Saengerfest

              May 5th a.k.a. Cinco de Mayo was HOT and humid. While the temperature was in the high 90's, the heat index was 100 degrees. This does not bode well for us as summer isn't here yet, but it sure feels like it! The crowds were not as heavy as expected probably due to the heat.
            Although the turnout wasn't huge, we had a wonderful time visiting with the many families that stopped by our booth to sample jams, candies, and salts. For the wine fest we made a variety of jams with what else? Wine and Champagne! They are delicious and several are very mild and child friendly.
           These varieties are for a limited time. They include: Grape Gerwuztraminer Jalapeno, Blueberry Wine Habanero, Blackberry Cabernet Sauvignon Habanero, Apple Chardonnay Tuscan Pepper, Cherry Pinot Noir Oriental Hot Chile, Mandarin Orange Spumanti Anaheim, Peach Champagne Ancho, Pear Chianti Ancho, Pear Moscato Habanero, Raspberry Champagne Anaheim Habanero and Strawberry Champagne Chipotle.
             Like all our jams, the wine and champagne jams range in heat strengths from mild to hot. Some of the favorites were the Strawberry Champagne Chipotle, Grape Gerwuztraminer Jalapeno and Blueberry Wine Habanero.