Author Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote about her husband Almanzo’s childhood in her wonderful book Farmer Boy. Mrs. Wilder shared with her readers the fact that Almanzo, as a little boy, could out-eat most grown men, and that his favorite food was fried apples-n-onions.

My grandmother told me that fried apples-n-onions was pretty much a staple dish back in pioneer times, and again in hard times. She told me that when she was a young mother, she often served fried apples-n-onions when she could afford nothing else to put on the table for her children.

Everyone in my family is a huge Laura Ingalls Wilder fan, and we often re-create the foods she writes about. Fried apples-n-onions was a natural: so easy to put together, and so inexpensive, to boot.

Therefore, I wasn’t surprised when my kids, visiting for the weekend, suggested that we see how fried apples-n-onions would be, using Apple Cherry Habanero Rib Candy. It sounded good to me, so we did it.

Oh holy cow, it was awesome. You’ll think so, too.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 big Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced fairly thin
2 big onions, sliced
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup Apple Cherry Habanero Rib Candy
Dash of cinnamon

What to do:

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, and add the apples and onions. Stir-fry, never leaving the pan, until just almost tender. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, and Rib Candy, and continue stirring until the apples are tender. Serve, and stand back.

With onions, this dish is a great spicy side. Without the onions, this dish is a fantastic spicy dessert.

It’s awesome, with or without the onions, and whether you use Rib Candy with or without the peppers.

Remember, it’s the simplest recipes that often give us the tastiest foods.

Now, get out there and start re-reading the Little House books, by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Now.

This is Texas Pepper Jelly’s newest product, Texas Rib Candy, and it’s so good it’s almost impossible to describe.

It goes with almost everything. Anything and everything. Brush it on chicken or ribs, right before you take them up on a platter and serve them, or at any time during the grilling process. Use it with stir-fry. Use it as a dip. Use it in your crockpot.

It’s excellent as a salad dressing, too.

Texas Rib Candy comes in three flavors: Apple Habanero, Apple Cherry Habanero and Mango Habanero. The possibilities are endless!

The only problem I’ve ever had with Texas Rib Candy is that my husband doesn’t want to share it with anyone. I always have to search for it behind something else in the refrigerator.

Seriously, Texas Rib Candy is like an addictive drug. Once you try it, you can’t ever get enough of it.

P.S. As I write this post, my husband is sitting at the table dipping raw vegetables in Texas Rib Candy. He says it’s awesome.

I can’t take his word for it, though. I MUST try it for myself.

Mmmmmmm. . . . . he’s right.

Spicy Squash Rings is a fantastic side dish, but it’s also a great appetizer if you’ve got company.  It’s also easy as can be to make, and attractive to look at as well.

Ingredients:

2 acorn squashes

1 cup Texas Pepper Jelly, any variety

What to do:

Cut the squash crosswise into 1-inch-thick slices.  Discard the seeds.  Arrange in a single layer in a shallow baking pan.  Sprinkle lightly with salt if you wish.  Cover and bake in a 350 oven for about 40 minutes.

Remove from oven and pour pepper jelly over the squash rings. Return to oven for another 15 minutes or until squash is completely tender.

Acorn squash is also delicious with Texas Rib Candy instead of the pepper jelly.  Depending on which condiment you choose, you’ve got a completely different dish!

I keep reminding y’all that often the simplest things are the best of all.  Well, here’s another reminder/hint along those lines.

Any time you’re serving mashed potatoes and think you’d like to kick ‘em up a notch, just whip some Texas Pepper Jelly into them.

I’ve done this with almost every kind of pepper jelly, and it turns plain old bland mashed potatoes into a zesty addition to any mean.

You can do this with mashed potatoes from a box, or from scratch.  Just add the pepper jelly during the “whipping” process.

Or, you can use the pepper jelly in place of gravy.

Either way, pepper jelly will turn a very ordinary side dish into something absolutely EXTRAordinary.

There are many variations of this Cool & Spicy Summer Salad, and each one is as delicious and easy as the one before.

This is one of those salads that’s even better the next day.

Ingredients:

1 package bow-tie pasta, cooked and cooled

1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese

1 cup fresh raspberries

1 cup Raspberry Habanero pepper jelly

What to do:

Mix all the ingredients into the pasta.  Sprinkle a few raspberries on top, cover securely and put in the refrigerator.  It’s delicious now and will be even better in a few hours!

We consider this to be a main dish on those stiflingly hot summer nights.  It’s also a great snack, a super side dish, and a really, really excellent supper for guests.

More variations to come.

Also to come?  Texas Rib Candy news.  There’s a reason it’s called Rib CANDY.

It’s Fourth of July Weekend, and that means cookouts, picnics, and reunions galore!  And what is any of those things without a big bowl of cold potato salad?

That’s why I’m posting our fantabulous potato salad recipe again.  People ask me for it all the time, ever since I first posted it here, and I usually just send them the link or the recipe via email.

However, since everybody will be wanted potato salad this weekend, here’s our Texas Pepper Jelly potato salad recipe, in its entirety.  Enjoy, y’all.

Ingredients:

Ten large potatoes: peeled, cubed, and boiled.  Drain and set aside. (I don’t peel them any more, if I use red potatoes.) (Let them cool before you start mixing things into them)

Eight large dill pickles.  Chop LARGE and set aside.

One large onion.  Chop finely and set aside.

One green pepper.  Chop LARGE and set aside.

Two boiled eggs.  Peel and chop and set aside.

One small jar of red pimento.  Open and drain.

3/4 cup of Miracle Whip.

One tablespoon cheap yellow mustard.

1/3 cup of Pineapple Habanero Pepper Jelly

Tiny dash of salt, if you must.

What to do:

Now, dump the drained potatoes into a large bowl, and throw everything else in there with them.  Mix thoroughly but carefully, so you don’t mash the potatoes.  Cover the bowl tightly, and put it in the refrigerator.  Potato salad is best cold, you know.

We’re having all the family here on the Fourth, and we’re grilling out, naturally.  I’ll be making Spicy Potato Salad tomorrow night AFTER everybody goes to bed.  If I make it too soon, there’s none left for the actual meal.

We do what we gotta do.

(Don’t forget to watch this space for our new product’s official debut!  It’s awesome, and you’ll love it.  That’s all I’m sayin’ right now.)

There are many variations to this fantastic and versatile summer pasta salad, but this is the one we’re having for lunch tomorrow:

Ingredients:

1 box bow-tie pasta

1 cup feta cheese

2/3 cup Texas Pineapple Habanero pepper jelly  (more if you like it “goopy,” less if you don’t)

1/4 cup diced onion

1/2 cup shredded pineapple

1/2 cup shredded cooked chicken (if desired; it’s great without any meat, too)

What to do:

Boil the pasta according to the directions on the box.  Drain.

When the pasta has cooled, add all the other ingredients and toss lightly until pasta is coated and other ingredients are evenly distributed.  Don’t mix too roughly or you’ll tear the bow-ties.  (Don’t try to mix this pasta salad while the bow-ties are hot; you’ll melt the pepper jelly!)

Pasta salad is great served immediately, but my family likes it better after it’s been refrigerated for several hours.

Spicy Summer Pasta Salad is a great summer meal all by itself, but it’s also an excellent side dish.  We’re having it tomorrow with corn on the cob.  That’s a lot of starch, I suppose, but hey, it’s summer.  They’ll run it off.

(Sometimes I add some diced green pepper, if I have a green pepper.  This time I didn’t have one.)

Spicy Rice Pilaf is delicious any time and any season, but my family likes it best when the weather turns warm.  This dish is good all by itself, or as an accompaniment to fish or pork.  Beef, too, but we don’t eat all that much beef in my family.  When the summer’s tomatoes are at their peak, my husband will cover his plate with tomato slices and spoon the pilaf over them all.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups chicken broth

1/4 cup dry lentils, rinsed well

1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and well-drained

1 cup Texas Habanero Salsa

1 cup uncooked rice (I always use brown rice, but long grain works well, too)

1 cup frozen yellow corn

1 jar (2 ounces) diced pimentos, well-drained

1 teaspoon chili powder

What to do:

In a saucepan over medium heat, saute the onion in the oil until tender.  Add the broth and the lentils; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  Stir in all the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 25 minutes or until the rice is tender.

Serve hot or cold, depending on the weather and your family’s preferences.  Make Spicy Rice Pilaf several times so your family can decide what their preferences are. 

On a hot evening, I like Spicy Rice Pilaf and a piece of cornbread for supper.

Your family will love this rice recipe!  My husband uses the leftover rice as a kind of dip, in fact.  Well, he scoops it up with those big bowl-shaped Fritos, anyway.

This is a spicy side dish that your family will ask for again and again.  It’s easy to make, too.  It’s also really inexpensive, especially if you have the peppers and onions in your garden.

Ingredients:

1 small onion, chopped

1/4 cup chopped green pepper

1/4 cup chopped red pepper

1/4 cup chopped yellow pepper

1 cup Texas Habanero Salsa

1 cup chopped tomatoes (fresh is best, but canned is still really, really good)

3 cups cooked rice

dash of pepper

What to do:

Saute the onion and peppers for a few minutes, in butter.  Add everything else and bring to boiling point.  At the first sign of a boiling bubble, turn down to simmer and, stirring constantly, simmer gently for about five minutes.

Serve hot, although my husband doesn’t heat up the leftovers before he dives into them with his bag of Fritos.

Slaw is a great salad/side dish any time of the year, but there’s just something about a nice cold slaw on a hot day that’s irresistible.  Cole slaw is always yummy, of course, but Zesty Apple Vegetable Slaw is just different enough to be in a category by itself.

Your family will like Zesty Vegetable Slaw because it’s oh-so-yummy, and YOU will like it for that same reason and also because this slaw is extremely nutritious.

EXTREMELY nutritious, in fact.

When all of these ingredients are fresh and in season, this slaw is even better.  It’s still good off-season, with store-bought produce, though.

Ingredients:

3 cups finely shredded cabbage

1 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup shredded onion

1/2 cup shredded green pepper

1/2 cup shredded red pepper

1/2 cup shredded celery

1/2 cup shredded apple (peeled)

3/4 cup Texas Apple Jalapeno or Apple Habanero pepper jelly

What to do:

Put all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss until thoroughly mixed.  Chill before serving.

I like to make this the day before so the flavors can get acquainted.

My family LOVES this slaw.  Tim likes to use it as a dip, even.