A favorite recipe on one of the smoke rings I belong to is for “Atomic Buffalo Turds” or ABT’s… these are a jalapeno stuffed with spiced cream cheese and topped with bacon then smoked to perfection! Some one once posed the question “can they be stored in the freezer”? Nobody was ever able to answer the question because no matter how many anybody had ever made, there were NEVER any left over… So, a resounding YES… cream cheese smokes incredibly well!

While I have found that I have not had to add additional fat to the butts I have been processing into sausage, I have found that trying to obtain pork fat locally will cost about $3.50/lb. +

We have a local butcher that will give you copious quantities of beef fat for free!

While this is great for making hamburger, I was wondering if it provides the same flavor for pork sausage, and is there any reason not to use beef fat in pork sausage?

Reverse Sear is absolutely the way to go… I am looking forward to trying Sous Vide, they tell me it’s every bit as good and easier to control…

I’ll have to give the balsamic g&h jam a try, but I think there are a bunch of other interesting options… you could try something much more “traditional” like nutmeg or cinnamon… or stretch the possibilities with a lil cumin… BUT… I’m more curious to just try a lil naked smoked watermelon…