Salt and Pepper

Here is my table trio: Morton salt substitute, apple vinegar, and evoo (extra virgin olive oil).

Nicole and I had some good nachos in the Hard Rock Cafe in Cancun.

Freshly ground sea salt and pepper corns are the best of seasonings. Unfortunately, salt is on my banned list now.

Lots of people love salty snacks. Dave eats lots of potato chips. Mother likes chips and dips. Patrick likes Cheetos. Nicole likes Doritos and hot cheese, jalapeno, and tomato dip. Jeffrey likes cheese and crackers. I like to serve sliced vegetables like celery, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, etc. with hummus. I'm sure there is salt in the hummus, but I don't think it's as salty as some other dips.

I love the Kimmelweck rolls from Buffalo, New York. They are loaded with salt on the outside and are served there with roast beef and horseradish to make a sandwich. Delicious! They don't transport well and must be eaten the same day or they turn dry. Here is how they are served. Use beef tenderloin roast, prime rib, or eye of round roast. Roast to medium rare coating meat with 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper. Make a glaze with 1/2 cup water and 1 tablespoon corn starch. Heat to gentle boil. Stir until thickened. Take a kimmelweck roll and coat inside with glaze. Layer with thin slices of meat. Sprinkle with carraway seeds and salt. Put a dollop of horseradish on and finish with top of roll. Heat if preferred and serve. If you go on the web, there is a recipe for kimmelweck rolls that you can try. These rolls are only served around Buffalo, but are similar to a Kaiser roll.

I like those freshly baked pretzels they used to sell at the mall. They always taste good. You can order these with just a touch of salt or none at all. They also serve them with dipping sauces.

Pretzels are a healthier choice for snacks than chips. There seem to be more low sodium products at the grocery store these days.

If you have a preference for a certain salty snack, share it with the rest of us. If you have a recipe for a good salty treat, let us know.

Don't forget pepper. There is peppered turkey deli meat that is good on sandwiches. Some cajun coatings are made with lots of ground peppers. It is especially good on catfish fillets. I bought some crackers with a pepper flavor that were very good. Then there are the jalapeno pepper flavored cheeses. My whole family loves this cheese. I read that hot spicy flavors are very good for you. Apparently, Mexicans and Chinese have lower blood pressure than we Americans do and it is partly due to their spicy diet. I guess this could apply to the Thais too.

Let us know if you have some recipes that use lots of pepper. Do you know of treats and snacks that use pepper as the flavorings?