Welcome to the Thanksgiving edition of The Heat!. As always,The Heat! is brought to you by Chef Jay and Chile-Pepper-Sauces.com.

I hope you are all enjoying beautiful fall weather. In Texas it has been unseasonably warm, but quite nice.

In this month's issue of The Heat! I'm going to share some of my favorite spicy Holiday recipes as well as a couple of tailgating treats for all you football fans to try.

Since my last newsletter I have found some interesting things online I want to share with you too. If you would like some free hot sauce, Dave's Gourmet has an offer for you. Or, if you'd like to try your hand at cooking Italian food...in Italy...you'll love browsing this other site I discovered.

So, without further ado, here we go. It won't be so long between newsletters this time either. You'll be seeing me in your inbox again right after Thanksgiving. Have a great Holiday and enjoy this issue of The Heat!

Free Hot Sauce

I'm sure you have all heard of Dave's Insanity Sauce and his line of gourmet products. Dave makes some of the hottest and tastiest sauces there are. His line includes products ranging from hot sauces(of course) to pasta sauces to popcorn and cheese products. Needless to say everything has some heat to it.

Well Dave has made an offer you need to try out. If your local grocer doesn't carry Dave's products, talk to the manager of the store. Ask him to call Dave's at 800-758-0372 and talk to them about stocking his hot sauce. If your grocer mentions your name to the Dave's representative they will send you a finder's fee: a free t-shirt and a $25 gift card to use at the Dave's Gourmet online store...DavesGourmet.com

I haven't tried this yet so let me know if it works. It is worth a try anyway. And if you get some free hot sauce be sure to share some with a friend...Spread the heat!

Speaking of passing on the heat, I need to thank a co-worker of my wife, Lisa. I have been receiving some little red peppers from Pam and those things are awesome. I have added them to all my favorites...chicken noodle soup, potatoes and omelettes. They are hot and delicious. Once again, Thanks Pam!

Now, this next site doesn't necessarily have anything to do with peppers, but Italy is the home to some great peppers so why not.

Cook Italian In Italy

A few months ago I came across this website. If you are into Italian food and love a good adventure, how about spending Christmas in Italy?

Mami Camilla offers unique cooking excursions and tours of the Sorrento area of Southern Italy. Click on the link to learn more about it. It sounds like it would be an amazing time and a terrific learning experience if you like to cook.

Thanksgiving Adventure

This time of year is my favorite time to come up with some really different HOT recipes. In fact, one of the oldest sections on my website is dedicated to spicy Holiday recipes.

You may think that traditional recipes wouldn't be the same if you added peppers...well heck no they won't...that is the point!

The whole reason I like to add heat to any recipe is to give it a different feel, a twist, some flair..well you get it.

So why not add a little(or alot) of heat to your Holiday recipes this year? Go check out some of my favorites here. They include jalapeno garlic mashed potatoes, spicy baked macaroni and cheese and chipotle glazed ham just to name a few.

Last year I tried to make chipotle cranberries but something went terribly wrong! So, I'll be giving them a try again this year. If you have any suggestions let me know.

Tailgating Recipes

Now I've got a few recipes for you to try out at your next football party, or any party for that matter.

This grilled chicken fajita pita recipe is a great twist on the Mexican dish and made this way it is easier to pack up and take with you to that tailgating party.

Grilled Chicken Fajita Pita

Ingredients:

1 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 tablespoon (a handful) cilantro, finely chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, canola, or corn oil
4 pieces boneless skinless chicken breast (6 to 8-ounce)
1 teaspoon coarse salt and pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 Pita Pockets

Directions:

-Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Coat chicken in dressing and set aside for 10 minutes.
-Grill chicken on an indoor electric grill(George Foreman) 6 to 7 minutes or pan fry over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet uncovered 6 minutes per side.
-Slice chicken breasts on an angle and stuff into pita bread, add shredded cheese. You can also grill up some veggies like peppers and onions to stuff in there, or smear some avocado dip inside the pita as a dressing.
-Serve with chips and salsa.

This next recipe is borrowed from my mother-in-law. She brings her "7 Layer" dip to every family get together and we just can't get enough of the stuff.

I do have to apolgize as I took the liberty to add an ingredient to her recipe...jalapenos! Sorry Becky.

Eight Layer Dip

Ingredients:

2 cans bean dip
2 cans avocado dip
1 pint sour cream
1/2 package taco seasoning(mixed together with sour cream from above)
3 tomatoes, diced
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped
1 can black olives, chopped
12 jalapenos, diced
1 cup cheese, shredded(cheddar and/or colby)

Directions:

On a large plate(paper will do) spread the bean dip evenly to form the base of your dip. Add the other ingredients one layer at a time in the order above. Of course you can add more or subtract any ingredient as you wish...I did!

Now, grab a bag of your favorite chips, we prefer tortilla chips, and dig in. You may find, as we have, that one plate of this stuff just isn't enough. But, I guarantee it will be a smash at your next party.

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