Seasonal Chutney

Welcome to december, everyone – The real month of christmas content but also the last week of it on my blog, since there’s no point in me making recommendations if I can’t be sure that they’ll reach you in time.

Today is definitely a seasonal review, though, and it marks the return of Holly and the Ivy, who you’ve seen before under their other name as The Mini Jar Company. Before I try out their little freebie, though, I want to give you a bit of backstory.

I dislike brussel sprouts. I don’t find them bitter so, just as with coriander, I’m not genetically inclined to hate them. I just do. The same way that many kids apparently hate broccoli.

After all, all it takes sometimes is a single bad experience to put you off a food for life. And let me tell you, getting your packed lunch wrecked by schoolyard bullies, only to have it replaced with an almost indeterminable green mush, is definitely a bad experience. A terrible introduction to the traditional veg of the season.

So it’s entirely possible that I’m going to hate today’s product through no fault of its own but, when Holly and the Ivy asked if I wanted to try their Red Onion, Sprout & Naga Chilli Chutney, I realised that I haven’t actually given the vegetable a fair shot in my adult life.

And, since πŸ“½οΈ Mushemi Fire πŸ“½οΈ and Cowley’s Fine Food have both proven that I can like even mushrooms if they’re prepared right, I said β€œyes”. I decided to give their christmas special a go.

sprout

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A Salty Showdown

Happy tuesday again, folks. Today, it’s time for some seasoning.

Chilli salts, instead of sauces, this week and both from companies that we know well.

salts

The Mini Jar Company on the left, makers of salsa, chutney and a great, fiery peanut butter, making their return with an aji lemon (or lemondrop) sea salt.

And, on the right, Wiltshire Chilli Farm, sporting the same brown action lines that we saw on their Dark Habanero sauce for a chipotle salt. A product that promises to be a massive step down in heat from both that and πŸ”₯ the last two items that I had from them πŸ”₯.

Two rather different product flavours – One bright and citrusy and the other rich and smoky – but a single product type all the same.

Let’s see what I make of them.

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More Minis

Hey everyone, you remember The Mini Jar Company, right? Well today I’m featuring them and them alone, with a couple more little jars from Reading:

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To be more specific, I have for you their Pineapple, Chilli And Mint Salsa and their Ginger & Wasabi Chutney, the latter of which doesn’t actually contain any chilli.

Between the mint in the salsa and the rhizomes in the chutney, though, both of these items focus on the sensation they create, along with their flavour. These aren’t heatless like that one marinade that Mahi sent me. They’re just a little different from the norm.

And that, my friends, is what I try my best to represent. Spice products after my own heart.

So, let’s get into the review.

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Nutty Butters

Hey folks, happy pancake day!

Unfortunately, I haven’t managed to write a special blog post for my favourite food-based holiday this year.

I wanted to but, when I found out when the event was, I was too ill. In fact, I still am, to an extent.

Not ill enough to impair my brain function, anymore. I can write again but there is one thing that the remnants of my cold still have over me – I can’t trust my sense of taste right now. Or my sense of heat, for that matter.

So, instead of me writing something topical and special, here’s a post I pre-prepared about one or two of my weirder finds. A couple of the more out there products that I promised I’d be showcasing this year.

Today, I have a pair of peanut butters for you:

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