GRILLED (finally) BACON WRAPPED SHRIMP and Great CYBER MONDAY Idea

WOW... posted everyday in November, yet my outdoor, live fire, grilling specialty blog has a total of 5 posts where I actually cooked outdoors. I made candy, baked bread and wrapped pickles in cream cheese. I am not a fair weather griller. I have, and will grill or smoke ankle deep in the snow. But, between holidays and travel, leftovers and invitations out; it just seems like I have not spent enough time on my grill.

So, last night, I got on the grill again for something simple...

Importantly, know how things cook... Shrimp on the Barbie cooks very fast. Only a couple minutes a side and they are done (direct grilling, over hot coals (or high setting on a gas grill)).

I finally found a good use for my George Foreman paper weight (grill). It cooks bacon very well. when you are grilling bacon wrapped shrimp, you want to pre-cook the bacon just a tad. Otherwise, your shrimp will be over cooked when the bacon is done. So I did that. Just a small amount, do not cook til it gets hard and crispy. I also cut the bacon in half, just the right size to individually wrap the shrimp.

And skewer away... I was going to use some new bottles of BBQ sauce. Couldn't decide which one, so I decided to do a taste test and do some with one and some with the other...

BRANDY MANDARIN - ORANGE Sauce from R.P.Hill Exotic Sauce CO. "Gourmet Sauce ~ With a Little Kick". Advertised as All Natural, NO FAT sauce, 2007 Flavor of Georgia Winner! The ingredient list is a joy to read... Almost no salt (a small amount in the Tomato Paste, but no additional salt added). And, very low sugar. I was very excited to give this a shot.

DATIL PEPPER SEVILLE ORANGE BBQ Sauce from Old St. Augustine. Also, all natural, no fat and very low salt. The company is based in Florida, and advertises itself as a local product user. Local grown oranges and a specialty local pepper are combined to make this unique tasting sauce. The bottle suggests to use with fish... so I did (shrimp are seafood... seafood are shrimp... shrimp are fish???)

OK, back to the grill. I prefer to not put the sauce on til after I have grilled for a couple minutes. This way, you get heated sauce, and not burnt sauce. Let the meat cook for just a bit. So, 2 minutes on the first side, flip and then brush on the sauce on the cooked side... 2 minutes, flip, brush on the other side... let it cook for a minute, flip, add another batch of sauce (I used about 2 tablespoons of each sauce, carefully not mixing the two (it's a taste test after all).

Bacon wrapped shrimp with a little tang... They're no turkey with all the trimmings, but they are... GOOD EATS!

I plated these with some leftover FRIED mushroom Risotto that I will blog about one day (GREAT eats, but also I have a fun story to tell about Risotto... Yes, I will abandon my grill for a good story, that's what happened all month).

And the verdict on the taste test. While both were good, and I suspect that I can find a better use for the St. Augustine sauce, both Jackie and I LOVED the Brandy ~ Mandarin sauce! It was thicker, stayed with the meat better (instead of leaking into the fire causing minor flare-ups like the St. Augustine sauce did). But most important, the taste was FABULOUS! Just the right amount of sweet from the citrus flavors and a great kick from the brandy and spices. It is certainly NOT a hot as heck fire sauce. But it IS a sauce full of flavor mixes, that balances perfect. Now that I have an idea of what they each taste like, I am very excited about trying something else with both of these sauces... But just a bit more excited to use the Brandy ~ Mandarin Orange sauce... shhh, don't want to hurt the St. Augustine's feelings, I just need to find a better use for him.

In fact, I like this sauce so much, I have arranged a FREE bottle of this sauce to go to one of my lucky commenters... Just comment on this post, and you are entered (comment before December 6th)

And now...
A Cyber Monday (busiest on-line shopping day of the year)
gift giving idea for the griller in all of us...

And how, you might ask, does someone living in Kansas get a hold of these odd little specialty sauces - you might ask, mighten you??? This is the BEST idea I can share for a gift for the BBQ junkie on your list.

What would be better than a bottle of top quality, specialty regional BBQ sauce???

TWO BOTTLES OF SAUCE!

What would be better than TWO bottles of top quality, specialty regional BBQ sauces???

TWO BOTTLES OF SAUCES DELIVERED EVERY MONTH

What would be better than TWO bottles of top quality, specialty regional BBQ sauces delivered every month???

YOU GET TO PICK FROM DOZENS OF CHOICES WHICH TWO BOTTLES OF SAUCES DELIVERED EVERY MONTH

I am sure you have heard of those "of the month" clubs for things like fruit, cigars, panties and specialty beers. One of the major problems with the idea is you will pay for the months that are less exciting...
Suppose you love apples, but hate pears... In Fruit of the month, you still get a months worth of pears.
Suppose you love a pale ale, but you hate a stout... you still get that stout included in your package.
Suppose you love granny panties, but hate a thong... well, in that case, the panties aren't for you anyway... suck it up and wear em. Butt, you get the idea...

The excellent people at ArmadilloPepper.com have fixed this problem. They offer a "Create Your Own" Sauce of the Month Club!

Here's the deal...

"Receive 2 Gourmet items each month that will excite your taste buds! You decide what is included. Select any 2 items from Pepper Jelly, Hot Sauce, BBQ Sauce, Salsa and BBQ Dry Rub. You even decide if you want "mild" or "spicy".

Just like all of the products in their on-line Gourmet store, these items are tried and tested by a Taste Team before being selected for inclusion in the Monthly Club.

The "You Pick" Month Club is backed by our same 100% Satisfaction Guarantee as all of our other products. You can cancel at any time if you are not totally satisfied and receive a refund for the balance.

Your membership includes a personalized gift message. Just include your message in the Special Instructions section during checkout. The first delivery is shipped within 1 week after you place your order and subsequent shipments are delivered the last week of each month.

Our "You Pick" Gourmet Sauce of the Month Club memberships are perfect gifts for:
* Anniversaries
* Father's Day
* Mother's Day
* Birthdays
* Christmas
* Or just about any gift giving occasion."

I was lucky enough to get a gift of three months worth of of this deal. When I read the details, I set up a give away deal for you guys... Once a month, my gift keeps coming, but also, I will arrange a giveaway with these good folks for you. Just drop a comment and you could win a bottle of my monthly favorite! Butt also, consider giving the sauce of the month deal as a gift.

It's a close call whether I would rather have Jackie in fancy panties or me getting...

new hot sauces
or jellies
or BBQ sauces
or salsas
or dry rubs
or... It's like Christmas morning every month!

Click HERE to see what Armadillo Pepper is all about...