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Mule Sauce, from Sticker Mule, Responds to the Global Chile Pepper Shortage

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Mule Sauce

Photo Credit: Sticker Mule Mule Sauce

There have been quite a few shortages lately (food, paper products, etc..). While most of us have become pretty good at rolling with the punches and saying things like, “It is what it is..,” when it comes to food, even the mildest-mannered foodies get their dander up. ESPECIALLY when it has the potential to effect something as delicious as hot sauce.

I mean, how would eggs ever get along without it?!

A shortage I certainly didn’t see coming was the global chile pepper shortage. Recently, Siracha sauce made news for getting rocked pretty hard by the shortage and people everywhere seemed to scramble to find the last bottles on shelves.

The following is a press release from Sticker Mule regarding their popular Mule Sauce. I love the attitude… to take shortages like the ones we’re experiencing and turn them into opportunities. Read on, then head over to Amazon to order some of their Mule Sauce (Amazon link) to try for yourself!

A global chile pepper shortage is decimating current stocks of popular hot sauce brands, like Huy Fong Inc.’s Sriracha sauce, but craft brands like Mule Sauce, the Kick-Ass hot sauce from Sticker Mule, encourage hot sauce fans to use the shortage as an opportunity to try new tasty options.

The sriracha pepper and general chile pepper shortage is a result of changing weather conditions, primarily in western Mexico, New Mexico and California, where droughts, extreme heat and wildfires pervade normal growing conditions. Mule Sauce relies on habanero, yellow Scotch bonnet and bhut jolokia (also known as ghost pepper) to add a fruity, floral heat to its base of red bell pepper mash for its hot sauce. These peppers are grown widespread in a variety of environments, making them readily accessible for Mule Sauce production.

“We have been fortunate to skirt around current supply chain issues related to chile pepper production and maintain a steady stock of ingredients to make our Mule Sauce,” said Sticker Mule founder Anthony Constantino.

The Sriracha shortage (Sriracha accounts for 10 percent of the $2.17 B U.S. hot sauce market) creates an opportunity for brands like Mule Sauce to entice hot sauce aficionados to try a new-to-them sauce and boost sales for craft businesses.

Mule Sauce is quick to adapt to ongoing supply chain issues during the pandemic and credits its nimble start-up roots with Sticker Mule as the reason. “We have carefully gauged our rate of growth to be sure we are never outpacing our abilities to expand. Producing smaller batches of Mule Sauce and basing our production schedule around projected times of higher demand and fluctuations in growing seasons means a fresher hot sauce without preservatives, delivered directly to our customers,” Constantino said. Using multiple trusted purveyors for ingredients – especially chile peppers – mitigates production disasters with a single supply source.

Mule Sauce is already seeing an uptick in sales based on the Sriracha shortage. The addition of ¼-ounce individual easy-open packets of Mule Sauce are popular with the expanded take-out dining market and with outdoor diners during the summer recreation season. Mule Sauce offers piquant heat with notes of floral sweetness and a hint of molasses, measuring 3 out of 5 on the heat intensity scale. It has an impressive cache of 5-star reviews on Amazon, comprising 80 percent of its nearly 800 reviews.

ABOUT MULE SAUCE: Mule Sauce was originally created by the folks at Sticker Mule in 2019 for one of its summer barbeques the company was hosting for its team members. The hot sauce was so delicious that Sticker Mule decided they should share it with the world and launched its hot sauce manufacturing operation and began distributing it online.

Gluten-Free Breakfast Burritos Made with Egglife Egg White Wraps

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Egglife Egg Wraps

Egglife Egg White Wraps

Every now and then I see something new in a store that’s so exciting and delicious looking that I stop my cart so fast I nearly throw one of my grandbabies out of it! It happened fairly recently at Meijer when I spied these Egglife Egg White Wraps.

I’m crazy about wraps – breakfast wraps in particular. Blame it on McDonald’s – they got me hooked on them with their delicious breakfast sausage wraps. Unfortunately, due to health reasons, I had to give up all gluten and wheat, which meant I had to kiss these wonderful breakfast burritos goodbye. Making them at home has always been a little tricky too because gluten-free wraps aren’t always pliable or soft.

That’s why I got so excited when I saw these Egg White Wraps. I knew they’d be soft enough to fold around my fillings and soft enough to bite into without each bite making my brain register “gluten-free… it tastes and feels like this because it’s gluten-free.”

These wraps were even better than I expected – as easy to use as a tortilla wrap but much, much, MUCH more delicious.

Gluten-Free Breakfast Wraps with Picante Sauce

Gluten-Free Breakfast Wraps with Picante Sauce

To make these gluten-free wraps, I cut potatoes into chunks and fried them with onion. While they were frying I made my bacon. I didn’t add scrambled eggs to these wraps because… well… the wraps ARE eggs!

I added shredded Monterrey Jack cheese and Pace Picante Sauce and the wraps were absolutely outstanding. I can’t wait to try them with sausage next time.

If you’re lucky enough to have a Meijer store near you, check for these wraps on your next trip. I got the original flavor but others are available.

Amazon has another brand of egg wraps and many other wraps (Amazon link) available. As of now, they don’t have the Egglife brand available.

Gluten-Free Wraps


Classy and Stylish Luli Bebe’ Monaco Snack Bags: Perfect for Going Back to School in Style

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Luli Bebe Snack Lunch Bag

Image Credit: Luli Bebe’

A few days ago I began working on a “roundup” style post of stylish, very attractive lunch bags for the series of back to school posts. That very day, I got an e-mail about Luli Bebe’s Monaco Snack/Lunch Bags and couldn’t help but be struck by the lovely irony.

I left the windows I had open and honed all of my attention in on the Luli Bebe’ Monaco Snack Bags (Amazon link). Luli Bebe Snack Lunch Bag

These bags are so exceptionally well-made and so ridiculously beautiful that any student (middle school, high-school, college..) OR any worker (office, factory, grocery store, hospital, coffee shop, restaurant…) would be honored to carry one.

They’re available in many gorgeous colors and, as you can see on the right, give ample room for a great meal and/or multiple snacks.

  • Designed in Los Angeles, the Monaco Snack Bag is crafted with Luli Bebe’s signature premium vegan leather, featuring a distinctive quilted texture front pouch and classic gold enameling.
  • Lightweight, fits in travel bags, and easy to carry one-handed. Removable and Adjustable Clip-on Shoulder Strap for over-the-shoulder or crossbody carry.
  • Made with the finest luxury materials, hardware, and premium YKK zippers. Lined with luxurious and wipeable insulated interior. 
  • The large center space is ideal for packing larger snack items, while an additional pocket expands to fit excess snack items. Front & back exterior pockets feature a magnetic clasp.
  • The Monaco boasts a padded insulated interior that will keep all snacks and perishables fresh and cool! 100% stain resistant exterior and smooth wipeable interior.

When I was in high school/college, I would have LOVED a great looking bag like this. Feeling kind of salty about the basic little bag I I had to resort to!

I’ll be honest, I’m so excited about and impressed by this particular bag, I’m giving it its own separate post, away from the roundup that’ll be published in a day or two.


Learn more about Luli Bebe’ – they make equally gorgeous diaper bags.

Frank’s RedHot Introduces Wingman Saucy Support Line AND a Chance to Win a Decked-Out Tailgate Truck! (2019)

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Frank's RedHot Wingman

Are you as excited for the return of football as I am?! Autumn, crock-pot meals, chili, soup, Chai Tea Lattes… this is my time of year!

In celebration of the start of football season, Frank’s RedHot is kicking off #WingmanSweepstakes (2019) on Twitter. Now through September 27th, Frank’s is YOUR Wingman! They’ll be responding to fans’ questions about tailgating (and the football and cooking life, in general, I’d imagine). When you use the hastag, you’ll be automatically entered for a chance to win a brand new truck. Not just any truck, mind you. This truck comes with football tickets, a hot sauce fountain, a ridiculously-over-the-top blow up bottle for Frank’s RedHot, a grill, essentials for Buffalo wings (obviously), cornhole and more.
Frank’s isn’t just putting the SASS in chicken wings, they’re putting the FUN in autumn!

Best of luck… I hope one of you win this outstanding prize!

(Continued below the video….)

Press Release

Frank’s RedHot celebrated the start of football and tailgating season by kicking off the #WingmanSweepstakes on Twitter. Through September 27th, the Frank’s Wingman will be responding to fans’ burning questions about tailgating (and life) from what the brand has dubbed their “saucy support line,” while also entering them for chances to win one of four weekly prize drawings and the grand prize – a Frank’s Wingman Tailgate Truck.

This is no fantasy, it’s the real deal! As the saying goes, Frank’s RedHot urges fans to, “Put that S#!t on everything!” This time, that means a truck that comes decked out with Frank’s RedHot tailgating essentials like football tickets, a hot sauce fountain, a grill, essentials for Buffalo wings (obviously), cornhole and more – showing that Frank’s is the wingman that has your back in the most brag-worthy way.

“Frank’s RedHot is everyone’s game-day wingman, and – like a hilariously good friend – sometimes gives you bold advice,” says Alia Kemet, Creative & Digital Strategic Director with Frank’s brand. “For instance, Wingman could tell you something simple like how much Frank’s to put on your wings, or whether to bring a date that you just met to the game. The Frank’s Wingman is there by your side to support all of your saucy tailgating adventures.”

To enter, Twitter users are encouraged to tweet a question at @FranksRedHot, with the hashtag #WingmanSweepstakes, for an assist. By doing so, they will automatically be entered into the sweepstakes for a chance to win the Frank’s RedHot Wingman Tailgate Truck. Fans who are participating will also have the weekly chance to win mini tailgate Wingman kits equipped with a bottle of Frank’s RedHot. All entries must be sent from the account owner, and received no later than September 27, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Use of any automated method to send Entry Tweets is prohibited and will result in disqualification. No purchase necessary to participate. For full terms and conditions of the sweepstakes, visit FranksRedHot.com/sweepstakes.

As the go-to hot sauce of any game-watching event, Frank’s RedHot is the franchise player of your favorite tailgating recipes – Buffalo wings, Buffalo chicken dip, RedHot chili and more. Recipes are available at franksredhot.com/recipes.

About Frank’s: It all started back in 1920 when the first bottle of Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce was introduced. Made with a premium blend of aged cayenne peppers, Frank’s RedHot adds the perfect blend of flavor and heat to your favorite foods. Frank’s Cayenne Pepper Sauce was used as the secret ingredient in the original Buffalo wings created in Buffalo, NY in 1964. Try our family of products including the Original sauce, Buffalo Wings sauce, Queso Dip seasoning mix, Buffalo Ranch seasoning, Frozen Buffalo Wings and more. Visit www.Franksredhot.com for more information and recipes.

Frank’s is one of McCormick & Company’s brands. As a global leader in flavor, McCormick has built a portfolio of leading flavor brands that enhance people’s enjoyment of food all around the world. Every day, no matter where or what you eat, you can enjoy food flavored by McCormick. McCormick Brings the Joy of Flavor to Life™.

Be sure to follow Frank’s on Twitter!

Sparkling Ice Mystery Flavor Contest 2019

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Sparkling Ice Mystery Flavor 2019

A while back, in an effort to eat/drink healthier, I completely gave up soft drinks. It was a HUGE step for me. I had been hooked on Diet Dr. Pepper and Dr. Pepper since childhood and I had perfected my game over the years.

Sparkling ice and raspberry tea are, literally, two of the reasons I was able to say good-bye to the Dr. and never look back. Sparkling Ice drinks are particularly fun because there are so many different flavors. I’ve made my way through all of them and consistently buy my favorites: Black Raspberry and Cherry Limeade.

Sparkling Ice actually has an especially fun contest going on right now with a new limited-edition Mystery Flavor. The What the Flavor sweepstakes gives fans the chance to win a Holland America Line Caribbean cruise for two with roundtrip airfare, in addition to 500 other pool-themed prizes!

The new flavor (which takes its cue from flavors of an exotic tropical vacation) is delicious. Absolutely delicious! As soon as you open the top, you’re hit with an exotic scent – your nose knows before your taste buds that it’s going to be special.

See Sparkling Ice’s Facebook Page for all the information you need or visit their website to enter the contest. Good luck… I hope you’ll soon be Cruisin’!

Sparkling Ice Mystery Flavor 2019

 

Find Sparkling Ice on Amazon!

What Is the Ketogenic Diet and How Do You Get Started On It?

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What is the Ketogenic Diet?

This is a guest post by Louise Hendon, co-host of The Keto Summit and author of The Essential Keto Cookbook 

The Ketogenic diet has been making waves lately.

In fact, you’ve probably seen the name being mentioned by various health-and-wellness bloggers on the internet. But what is it, exactly? And how is it different from all the other diets out there?

We’ll run through what the ketogenic diet is, what foods you can eat on the keto diet, how the diet benefits your health and some beginner’s tips for getting started.

What Is the Ketogenic Diet?

It’s a diet that changes your body’s metabolic state – instead of mainly burning glucose, you’ll be mainly burning fat instead.

That’s because the ketogenic diet limits your carbohydrate intake which means there’s simply less glucose available for your cells to use as fuel. And as a result, your body is forced to start burning up your stored fat.

This metabolic state is called nutritional ketosis and it has all sorts of health benefits (more on those later).

Keto Diet foods: What can you eat?

You’ll be eating a moderate amount of protein, lots of fats, and very few carbohydrates.

Healthy foods to eat include:

  • Non-starchy vegetables (so leafy greens like spinach and kale)
  • Meats, organ meats, fish and shellfish
  • Nuts and seeds (in moderate amounts)
  • Healthy fats like ghee, coconut oil and olive oil
  • Herbs and spices, like cinnamon or paprika: Joi has a great article on their health benefits

And the foods to avoid are:

  • Starchy vegetables like potatoes and squashes
  • All legumes, aka lentils, beans, and soy
  • All grains, such as wheat, oats and rice
  • Vegetable and seed oils
  • Processed foods, meaning chips, crackers, cookies etc.

If you’d like a more extensive list of what foods you should be eating and avoiding, feel free to check out our list of Keto diet friendly foods.

How does Keto benefit your health?

There are many health benefits to the keto diet, and we’ve rounded up just a few below:

  • It stabilizes your energy levels by balancing out your blood sugar levels. When you’re not consuming carbs, your energy no longer spikes and dips – you feel more alert and don’t have to deal with brain fog or the dreaded “mid-afternoon slump.”
  • It can help you beat your sugar addiction because you’ll be going cold turkey on all the sweet treats you’re addicted to. Plus, another benefit of having stabilized your blood sugar levels is you avoid the blood sugar crashes that trigger cravings in the first place.
  • It decreases your hunger levels naturally and researchers have shown that a low-carb diet leads to lowered food intake because it influences the hormones which control hunger. This then helps with weight loss and combating overeating.
  • It’s great for weight loss, and just by scanning through some of the many success stories on the web you’ll be able to see how effective the keto diet is for losing weight!
  • It could be used as a therapeutic treatment for a wide range of diseases. It’s already being used to treat epilepsy, and research is being done to see if it can help reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, PCOS, and cancer.

What is the Ketogenic Diet

How does Keto benefit your health?

There are many health benefits to the keto diet, and we’ve rounded up just a few below:

  • It stabilizes your energy levels by balancing out your blood sugar levels. When you’re not consuming carbs, your energy no longer spikes and dips – you feel more alert and don’t have to deal with brain fog or the dreaded “mid-afternoon slump.”
  • It can help you beat your sugar addiction because you’ll be going cold turkey on all the sweet treats you’re addicted to. Plus, another benefit of having stabilised your blood sugar levels is you avoid the blood sugar crashes that trigger cravings in the first place.
  • It decreases your hunger levels naturally and researchers have shown that a low-carb diet leads to lowered food intake because it influences the hormones which control hunger. This then helps with weight loss and combating overeating.
  • It’s great for weight loss, and just by scanning through some of the many success stories on the web you’ll be able to see how effective the keto diet is for losing weight!
  • It could be used as a therapeutic treatment for a wide range of diseases. It’s already being used to treat epilepsy, and research is being done to see if it can help reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, PCOS, and cancer.

Tips for getting started on Keto

It’s tough getting started on any diet – here’s our advice for keto:

  1. In the beginning, just focus on reducing your carbohydrate intake. Make sure you focus on eating less than 25g of carbohydrates per day and then, once you’ve adjusted to that, take a look at your protein/fat intake. Especially if you’re used to consuming a Standard American Diet, reducing carb intake will a big enough change in the beginning.
  2. Choose one meal in each day to skip because it will make starting a keto diet much easier if you only have to think about/plan for two meals each day instead of three. Some folks like to skip breakfast and some folks like to skip dinner, so experiment a little to see what works for you.  If you have circadian rhythm issues, then skip dinner (or lunch) instead of breakfast.
  3. Find a buddy (friend/husband/wife) as it’ll help you stick to the diet if you’ve got someone else to keep you accountable.  And if you can’t find a buddy, then at least share your goals with your friends/family or on social media – it’s been proven to increase your chances of success.
  4. Choose the right week to start by making sure you pick a week when you’re not overloaded with work and don’t have too many social plans. It can be a little tough adjusting to keto in the beginning, so you’ll be much more likely to succeed if you pick a good week to start.  Don’t wait forever though!
  5. Plan your meals and re-stock your kitchen to make sure you’re prepped ahead of time…and aren’t stuck in the supermarket wondering what you can/can’t buy and what you should make for dinner. A little bit of planning will go a long way towards making your keto diet journey a stress-free one.

Would you like some simple keto recipes to get you started? Check out my cookbooks here.

The Essential Keto Cookbook