Big Acres'October eNewsletter
(10/06/2002)

Hello from Melanie's Fine Foods!

With the kids back in school and life back to "normal" after a wonderful summer, we hope you're all enjoying the fall season! There's still plenty of time to grill (in fact, we grill all year 'round in Northern California) -- so check out our tailgate party menu and come visit us at our fall events!

We're Always Marketing. . .
Life is good at Melanie's Fine Foods! Our web-site is online -- see it at http://www.bigacres.com! And we're still recovering from all the excitement of the San Francisco Chronicle article. (If you haven't seen it, check it out under News & Events on our website). That article brought us many leads, a lot of sales, and many of the new "fans" on this email list (Welcome!).

We were also interviewed by Gary Freiberg of KVEC-AM 920 Radio in San Luis Obispo for his show "Financial Fitness" -- that was too fun. Last week, we were interviewed for an upcoming article in an airline in-flight magazine (we'll tell you more in December)!

Sell, Sell, Sell

Starting next week, we'll accept VISA & MasterCard! Phone or email us to place an order!

Check out our "Where to Buy" page on our web site at http://www.bigacres.com for a more complete list and exact locations. We're trying to keep this list up to date, but we don't always know where our products are placed. If you find our product in a store that's not listed, please let us know -- write to us at index.html!

We're always looking for more places to sell our products! If you want our products in your local store, tell your grocer and send us an email!

Upcoming Events
The Noel Boutique is a beautiful, upscale event held on October 10 & 11 in the home of Craig & Tracey Prim in Los Altos. We'll be selling sauce and a portion of the proceeds go to Rebuilding Together. See the attached flyer for details.

On October 12 & 13, we'll be at the San Carlos Art & Wine Festival -- look for us on San Carlos Avenue!

Stop by our booth at the Redwood City Farmer's Market on Saturdays (except the 12th). The Market runs through the end of November.

For more information on these events, go to http://www.bigacres.com and click on News & Events.

Recipe of the Month:
Try this menu at your next tailgate party or backyard barbecue!

Tailgate Party for 8-10
Tortilla Chips and Vegetables with Salsa
Chicken Wings with Big Acres'Hot & Spicy BBQ Sauce
Grilled Sweet Country Pork Ribs with Big Acres Rich & Mild BBQ Sauce
French style Potato Salad
Tangy Three Bean Salad
Melon and Cantaloupe fingers
Beer, wine, and soft drinks

Tortilla Chips and Vegetables with Salsa
3 large bags of your favorite tortilla chips
2 cucumbers, peeled and cut into sticks
1lb bag of baby carrots
1 bunch of celery, cut into sticks
2 red peppers, deseed and cut into sticks
2 green peppers, deseed and cut into sticks
(or cauliflower, mushrooms, broccoli, zucchini as desired)

Roasted Pepper & Garlic Salsa
5 large tomatoes, diced or 1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
5-7 chili peppers, your choice (jalapenos, pasilla, etc.), roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped
3 roasted garlic cloves, chopped very fine
1 yellow onion, chopped
?cup cilantro, chopped
?tsp chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients and salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight and serve.

Chicken Wings with Big Acres'Hot & Spicy BBQ Sauce
2 lbs of chicken wings
1 bottle of Big Acres Hot & Spicy Sauce
1/3 cup cider or white vinegar
?to 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or your favorite chili powder.
Salt and black pepper

Mix the sauce, vinegar and chili in a small saucepan and heat thoroughly on low heat, until it simmers. Then turn it off and cool.

Meanwhile, wash the chicken and cut the skin of each one in 2 or 3 places. Place in a large bowl with half the cooled sauce, and stir well to coat. Let marinade for 6 to 8 hours, stirring occasionally.

Remove chicken from sauce, dry with paper towels, and season with salt and pepper. Grill on medium grill for 10 to 15 minutes or until done. Works well in a basket, turning often. If your basket is small, grill in two batches.If grilled directly, watch that they don’t burn or fall through you grill slats.

Serve tossed in the remaining sauce.

Grilled Sweet Country Pork Ribs with Big Acres Rich & Mild BBQ Sauce
2 5 lb racks of country pork ribs (not the baby back version)
1 bottle of Big Acres Rich & Mild BBQ Sauce
2 Bay leaves
Roasting pan ?filled with water.
Salt and Pepper to taste

Wash the ribs and trim off any visible fat. Cut to fit pan, if necessary. Bring the pan of water to a boil, add the bay leaves and ?cup of sauce. Simmer the ribs a slab at a time in the water turning every 5-8 minutes for 30 minutes, they should be cooked but not overdone. This may be done the day before, if you refrigerate the ribs once cool. Before grilling, salt and pepper the ribs to taste. Grill on low for 15 minutes. Do not let them burn. Tip - spray with water from time to time as required. Then, for the last 2 minutes, baste with the remaining sauce. Serve wet with sauce and loads of napkins.

French Style Potato Salad
3lbs of warm cooked red or gold potatoes, peeled and sliced in ?inch slices
?cup finely chopped shallots or scallions
?cup all natural or organic chicken broth
3 tbl white wine vinegar
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
?-1/3 cup light olive oil - optional
Salt and white pepper to taste

To cook potatoes, slice them raw then place in cold water. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Lightly toss all the ingredients except the oil together in a bowl at least 10 minutes before serving. This can be done the day before. Toss in oil just before serving. Salt and pepper to taste.

Tangy Three Bean Salad
1 lb blanched green beans cut in 2 inch pieces
1 15 oz can of red kidney beans rinsed and drained
1 15 oz can of chick peas rinsed and drained
1 small red onion, chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped

Dressing
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbl red wine vinegar
1/2 cup light olive oil
1 clove of garlic, crushed
Salt and pepper to taste

Place all beans, chick peas, onion, green pepper and celery in a large bowl and set aside. Whisk the mustard and vinegar in a small bowl until well blended, dribble in the oil while whisking until it makes a thick emulsion. Stir in garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Pour dressing over beans and carefully mix to cover.

Melon & Cantaloupe Fingers
?ripe seedless watermelon
2 medium cantaloupes
?cup fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice

Wash the fruit, deseed, peel and cut into ?inch slices. Sprinkle lemon or lime juice over fruit and chill for 2 hours before serving.

Optional ?Add a little fresh ground black pepper just before serving, try it it’s great!

Have a happy Halloween!

Eat lotsa sauce!

Melanie's Fine Foods, Inc.

P.S. If you'd like to be removed from our list, just reply to this email and ask us to remove you!

[ Return to eNewsletter Archive ]