The Bitchy Sweetness of Peperoncino Honey

I was recently thinking about the personality traits of the women I tend to gravitate towards.  One trait they seem to have in common is that they're sweet, yet have the tendency to turn on a witty brand of sarcastic humor on cue.  Maybe there's even a little bitchiness there.  Regardless, the balance of sweetness and bitchiness varies from one person to the next, but somehow, I enjoy that dichotomy in my life.

While I obviously prefer the balance to skew strongly towards sweetness, I like a bit of spiciness as well.  The kind of spiciness that hits me right in the back of the throat, slightly taking me by surprise after a burst of sweetness comes through.  Maybe there's a lingering tingle in my mouth, or even a little warmth under my collar.  A spicy balance can go a long way to keep things interesting.  But while a little kick in the ass is nice, too much heat overwhelms me. 

This need for the perfect balance of sweetness and spiciness is the inspiration behind a peperoncino honey I made as a summer condiment to drizzle onto fish, vegetables, figs, cheese....you name it.  Just add a cup of a neutral honey to a pot, along with a generous pinch of peperoncino.  When just at the point of boiling, pour the honey into a container and let it cool for a few hours.  The oils of the chili will have infused into the honey, creating a bottle of bitchy sweetness all your own.

Comments

[ACB]

There are so many things that are hot about this post... What kind of cheese would you pair this with?

Drop me a line, will you? I can only find the "info" email address, and I'm not sure if that goes right to you.

[jordanbaker]

Oh yum. Anything with pepperoncini, any time.

[Singing Machine Karaoke]

This reminds me of something that I had in an Asian restaurant :]