Category Archives: Product Review
Product Review: Season 1 Blends
I was contacted by Season 1 Blends to test out all of the seasoning blends in the picture above. Their primary reason for approaching me (I think) is my obsession with Montreal Steak Seasoning. Season 1 offers a similar product called New York Steak. Although I’ve only tasted the New York Steak on its own (delish) I have yet to use it in a recipe. I will. I promise. In the meantime, I started with the Peppered Lemon & Herb for roasting a whole chicken and the Riviera Blend on chicken breast and in a tomato, cucumber, and feta salad.
Riviera Blend!
Peppered Lemon & Herb
This stuff is awesome.
I’ll generally tell you how I feel about these blends here and then please stay tuned for them in several upcoming recipes.
I really love these blends. Low sodium, all natural, no preservatives, and gluten-free – what could be better? I know your question, though…what is it that sets these blends a part from other spice/herb blends? This was the question I set out to answer and the answer surprised me…
Using these blends is almost equivalent to using freshly cut herbs. I’m serious. The blends that I’ve used thus far, are so fresh in appearance and so fragrant that I cannot tell them a part from the real deal or more accurately, the “fresh” deal.
I used the Peppered Lemon & Herb to rub the inside and outside of a roasting chicken. The flavoring was so fragrant in the oven! It filled the whole house with fresh smelling herbs. The chicken was pretty darn good too! When I took chicken leftovers to work the next day, I brought my jar of Peppered Lemon & Herb. I sprinkled a little on my plate and dipped my chicken in it as I ate. It was a nice additional to next-day chicken.
The Riviera Blend is a blend of sea salt, garlic, black pepper, oregano, thyme, majoram, and lavender. Season 1 recommends that you use it on poultry, fish, meats, veggies, and salads. So far I’ve used this blend on baked chicken breasts and a cucumber, tomato, and feta salad. But, I think the possibilities are endless. This blend is unique and delicious.
For chicken, preheat your oven to 375 and cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Toss heavily with the Riviera blend and a little olive oil. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Serve with salad, brown rice, or farro!
For the salad, cut one cucumber into bite-sized pieces. Combine with halved cherry tomatoes. Mix in 1/2 tbsp of olive oil, 1 tbsp of red wine vinegar, and 1 tbsp of Riviera Blend Seasoning. Sprinkle with feta cheese and serve!
HINT: Apparently this is obvious to most people but not to me (thanks, Greg for pointing it out). Season 1 says: “Make sure you use the shaker top. Some people just unscrew the top and try to pinch or tap it out and then it doesn’t come out uniform because the sea salt is heavier.” Hmmm. I didn’t know this. But, it makes sense. What a great tip!
Stay tuned for more Season 1 seasoned recipes!
The Bacon Book
Not so long ago, CurateHub approached me about my Bacon Wrapped Figs recipe. They wanted to include it in a cookbook! Better yet a Bacon cookbook! It would be a free eBook for CurateHub subscribers. First, who doesn’t want to be a part of a bacon cookbook so yea! Second, um, what’s CurateHub?
The idea behind CurateHub is to allow people to curate email newsletters and send them easily. Curate? Such a fancy word. I looked it up in the Wiktionary. The verb to curate means “to apply selectivity and taste to, as a collection of fashion items or web pages”.
CurateHub recognizes that curation is a growing trend…”there is so much on the internet that its hard to sort through it all and find interesting tidbits”. CurateHub gives you a little bookmarklet that you can click anywhere on the web, and it “curates” the article to your account. Once a week (or day, or month) you can sort through these articles and arrange into a newsletter and send to your subscribers.
And, there you have it.
In an effort to provide “extras” to subscribers, CurateHub is considering the addition of eBooks. So, The Bacon Book is their first eBook. And that’s where you will find my figs and other glorious bacon-filled recipes to try. So, get your copy of The Bacon Book by click here. Bon Appetite!
