Ketchup Caviar for the Win!

This is not a sponsored blog, it’s about my kitchen creativity that got unleashed this week with the arrival of the cute jar of ketchup caviar I won just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Social media can be fun. Like when you see a Valen-Heinz opportunity to win a jar of Ketchup Caviar. I won!

I like ketchup. It’s been on my personal condiment list since I was a kid, so when I saw the #HeinzKetchupCaviar #Sweeps, of course it was interesting to see something new with an old favorite.

Chicago is my city – wait for it – I like a hot dog with ketchup at the occasional sporting event.

I like scrambled eggs with ketchup.

I usually make my own cocktail sauce with ketchup (and horseradish).

Since it’s Valentine’s Day, it made me wonder if you could bake something with it. Yep. You can. I did. #treat

First up, breakfast. Egg, cheese, and veggie concoctions are delish. The option to bake individual servings is appealing for now and to freeze for later. Pretty much any veggie paired with any cheese and mixed with eggs sounds good, which is helpful since this weather we’ve been having in Chiberia has made me not want to leave the house. This influenced my choice. I’m not sure I would have paired avocado with peas and carrots otherwise. I’d do it again.

Egg bakes – makes about 6 servings

4 eggs

1 can peas and carrots, drained

1 avocado, washed, peeled, diced

About 3 ounces smoked cheddar, cubed or grated

cooking spray

6 ramekins

Preheat oven to 350. Mix together the veggies and cheese. Spray the ramekins and divide the cheesy veggie mixture between them. Using a fork, whisk the eggs together (I used the same veggie bowl to save dishes) and divide evenly, pouring over the veggies and cheese. I put them on a cookie sheet to make it easy to handle, then baked until eggs were thoroughly cooked, about 25 minutes. Your oven might be different than mine in terms of performance, so double-check and make sure your tasty egg bakes are cooked to the proper temperature (160 for egg dishes). When ready to serve, top with a spoonful of ketchup caviar.

This would also be great with other veggies, like broccoli, spinach, mushroom, and/or bell pepper with onion, and cheese like feta, Swiss, mozzarella. Don’t be afraid to mix and match. Think pizza toppings or salad veggies. All those flavors play well together with tomato. And egg.

Next up. Ketchup Cake. Inspired by recipe in link; shown below with my modifications. I didn’t add food coloring because I was curious to see the cake color that came from “just” the ketchup. It had a nice, spicy hue that worked well with the final flavor of the cake from the spices you use. #nomnom

2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1½ tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 cup ketchup

½ cup water

3 sticks butter, softened, divided in half

1½ cups packed brown sugar (or 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup white sugar)

The combination of sugars happened because I only had a cup of brown sugar, so I was happy to use that up and still be able to make the cake.

2 eggs

1 package Neufchatel cream cheese, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

3-4 cups powdered sugar

Heat oven to 350°F.

Spray two 9” round pans with cooking spray.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and spices; set aside.

Mix ketchup and water in separate bowl until blended. Set aside.

Beat 3/4 cup butter and brown/white sugar in large bowl with mixer. Blend in eggs, 1 at a time. Add flour mixture alternately with ketchup mixture, mixing well after each addition. Divide evenly into pans.

Bake 25-30 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean.

Cool cakes in pans for a few minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks; cool completely.

To make frosting: Beat cream cheese, vanilla and remaining butter in large bowl with mixer until blended. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating well after each addition. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy.

Place cake layer on plate, top with frosting. Place next cake on top of first, and frost entire cake with the rest of the frosting.

Decorate with ketchup caviar.

Not only was this a great way to think about a classic condiment in different applications, I like options for making sure to use ALL the food in my fridge and pantry.

Farmers work hard to grow all the ingredients in our favorite foods, including condiments. Enjoy them. Find new and tasty ways to use them.

Happy Valentine’s Day! I hope your day is delicious from breakfast through dinner.