Over here in our neck of the woods, leaves are changing, the days are getting shorter, and the orange and brown oversized sweaters are coming out of storage. It's Autumn, people, and we couldn't be more excited to start spicing things up as the weather cools down.
As always, TorchBearer Sauces is here to help you keep your food fun and exciting, even when so many great fall flavors are being lost to the highly overrated pumpkin spice. This time around we are taking action and giving you a few ideas on how to drop pumpkin spice and embrace pumpkin spicy.
3 Ideas for Some Tasty Pumpkin Hot Sauce Pairings
Cue some spicy fall recipes... no UGG boots required.
1. Pumpkin Pancakes That Tingle
Let's start where it most makes sense; breakfast. The most important meal of the day should be tasty, filling, and give you a bit of pep. You're going to want to be awake and alert so you can dodge the boss when he comes looking for that report you didn't quite get finished on Friday.
We know you need it to be quick and easy, too, and it definitely is! Simply take your favorite pancake recipe and throw in some pumpkin puree with the bowl you are mixing your wet ingredients in. We usually find a half cup per egg works, though you can do more or less depending on your taste. Here's the best part; throw 1 or 2 tsp of our mildly spicy Tingly Sauce into that same bowl and go about your pancake making as usual. The sweet, pumpkin-y, and slightly spicy cakes will knock your socks off and get you going! This pumpkin and hot sauce pairing is one you'll keep on hand and on repeat.
The only downside is you'll have to explain to everyone at work why you keep showing up without socks.
2. Pumpkin Chili Spiced Your Way
Now that the nights are cooler and the days are blustery, you will soon be craving something warm and inviting to sit down to after a hard day's work. While we can't be there to hold you (at least not EVERY time), the next best thing is a piping-hot bowl of pumpkin chili.
Just like the pancakes, there's no need to lay out some in-depth, long-winded recipe. You can simply take your favorite chili recipe or follow our awesome Tim Chili one and add a 15oz can of pumpkin puree! After that, add your favorite TorchBearer sauce, like Sweet Onion Habanero or staff favorite Habanero Evil, and enjoy. If you are feeling really fancy, throw in some cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg to get those tastebuds in full fall-mode.
3. Savory & Spicy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
We've got your first meal and lunch/dinner covered but we can't forget those times when you need a quick bite between meals or something to snack on while you watch It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown for the thousandth time. So grab your gourds, folks, it's snack time!
After you're finished scooping the innards out of your pumpkins and you've got a big bowl of seeds, this recipe comes together quickly. While you preheat your oven to 350, wash the goop off your seeds and dry them as best you can. Pop them in a bowl, drizzle them with olive oil, and sprinkle a healthy dose of Dr Lynch's Miracle Powder all over. Get them coated, spread them out on a lightly oiled baking sheet, and roast them in your oven for about 15 minutes, stirring them and testing for crunchiness (yum!) every 5 minutes.
That's it! You just made a tasty, healthy snack! You can add some salt, if you like, either when you initially mix them with the Miracle Powder or after, but it isn't absolutely necessary. We created the powder to avoid salt but, you know, they're your seeds. You do what you want...
Pumpkin and Hot Sauce. Who Knew?
So there you have it. Hopefully we've opened your eyes to some cool ways to autumn-mate your meals. Pumpkin recipes with hot sauce don’t come around very often, so the TorchBearer team decided it was the perfect time to share some fall-inspired flavor ideas.
If you have any "pumpkin spicy" recipes you love, send 'em to andy@torchbearersauces.com and we just might try them out. Stay Spicy!
