Munchie Mondays: Help! Crisis in the Kitchen!

@ZatannaAndHerSpells
It should pair well with ham. Ham, beef & lamb in particular have the tendency to coat the tongue with a tiny residue of fat. I find the relish not only lends a bit of sweet/tart/heat combo, but it can actually also serve as a bit of a palette cleanser as well. I thought of the idea kinda along the same principle as the French using a mildly tart, berry relish as an accompaniment with foie gras. Tastes good in its own, but gets you ready for the experience of the next bite or two as well.
(Is it obvious I first learned about cooking watching B&W reruns of the original Julia Child’s, The French Chef on PBS back in the early ‘70s? :rofl: Being from SoCal, I grew up eating spicy Mexican food, so I like a bit of heat along with the sweet/tart combo of the relish. Hence the addition of the chiles.)

Hope you like the recipe and it goes well. A happy holiday season.

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I try to stay away from Munchie Mondays (it never works) because I have a habit of gaining weight just looking at pictures of delicious food, but the other mods were raving so much about all of the recipes this week that I had to check it out!

@RobertDeBeero - those pizzas look amazing! While I’m solidly on the side of “NO” when it comes to pineapple on pizza, even I have to admit that I can see the appeal when I look at yours!

@DeSade-acolyte I make my own cranberry relish every year for the holidays, but have never tried it with ginger ale! I’d have to omit the chili peppers, unfortunately, because I’m highly allergic to all peppers (including black pepper), but I’m definitely making this version for Christmas supper this year.

@severo1drgnfli.52828 That salad looks incredible and so refreshing! I try to have a salad when I’m cooking to avoid snacking so much, so I’m gonna give yours a whirl when I start my cooking later today!

@toonatonian As a proud member of the South, I can honestly say that your DC Comfort Plate is perfection! The ‘S’ in the potatoes must absolutely stand for ‘Superb’ and ‘Super’!

Ooooo…I can feel the extra pounds pouring on, but it was SO WORTH IT!!!

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Hi @Pretty.Poison.Bombshell

Didn’t know about the food allergy.

A few things as food for thought, having cooked for people with different food allergies over the years.

There is the option of adding very finely chopped (or puréed) peeled raw ginger. If you were to try that, I’d use ginger from the “hand” rather than the “fingers”. It’ll be a bit more pungent.

If you can find Vernors rather than Canada Dry, I’d go with that as it has a bit more bite.

If you don’t have a cinnamon & cassia (sometimes known as Chinese cinnamon) you could try a bit of Chinese cassia powder. It will slightly mimic the way capsaicin works.

If absolutely know your allergy is NOT based on the capsaicin, you could try (although it might be hard to get before Xmas), distilled capsaicin extract. It’s a liquid that is pure capsaicin. (Use only a drop or two, it is seriously potent heat) You could try that if you want some heat but only if there is something else in chiles that is not the capsaicin that you are allergic too. Although I’m betting that the base or portion of the allergy is capsaicin. (Hot paprika is out because it gets it heat from peppers as well.)

However you make it, please let me know what you think of it. For good or bad. I always appreciate frank feedback on my recipes.

Anyway, hope you like it and have a happy holiday.

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@DeSade-acolyte

Capsaicin is exactly what I’m allergic to. I actually have some fresh ginger that I use for another recipe, so I’m gonna try that.

Thanks to my father, I have the knowledge of some replacements for my favorite recipes, but I never considered using cassia for something like this! I use it for things such as my cajun cuisine (jambalaya, etouffee, red beans & rice, etc).

I’ll definitely come back and let you know how it turns out, as well as what I did to alter it. Thanks so much for the tips!

I hope you and yours has a wonderful holiday as well! :green_heart:

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That’s awesome about your dad, a wealth of knowledge I bet.

I’m very much a food nerd. While I can’t really make things in the category, I am obsessed with molecular gastronomy. Which gets into the biochemistry of food and how it interacts with both taste buds and smell (since a lot of “flavor” comes from “aroma”.) It is remarkable what they can do with liquid nitrogen and immersion circulators, but a bit out of my league when it comes to cooking.

Molecular gastronomy is amazing! We have a gastro pub here that actually employs people who have degrees in various sciences that also have a passion for cooking and it is just phenomenal. I’m with you though - totally out of my league when it comes to applying scientific methods to cooking.

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Thank you so much for the best wishes! I wanted to let you know that the cranberries with the spicier ginger ale’s yummy! :slight_smile: The one I’m able to get is sweetened with pineapple juice (the one I liked best when drinking on its own used regular cane juice, but it’s hard to find that one now), which, on its own, I don’t like, but with the cranberries and the orange, it’s quite complementary, so it’s a happy surprise. All in all, very successful! :partying_face:

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@MissInkBlot
Glad it worked out well. Another recipe/technique to add to the arsenal. :+1: