The pepper crop out on in the backyard has been absolutely amazing this year, far exceeding what I expected from growing them in 5-gallon buckets. I tried a soil recipe I found on a YouTube channel, and the results have been incredible—I will definitely be using this soil blend from now on! (I’m going to track down that channel and link it here for you all).

Because the garden is still producing like crazy, I’m constantly looking for new ways to use the harvest. I already dehydrated all of my super hots—the scorpion and ghost peppers—so I really wanted to do something different with the mountain of jalapeños I have sitting on the counter. With a few more batches expected before our first frost hits here in the Chattanooga area, it was the perfect time to experiment.

Initially, I was going to make a regular Cowboy Candy recipe. But honestly, I really didn’t want to take a chance of sending my blood sugar up. I prefer to stick to no-sugar-added recipes whenever possible. By swapping traditional sugar for a keto alternative, I got that classic sweet, sticky, and spicy condiment without the carb overload.

I also tweaked the spices a bit, using mustard seed and dry mustard instead of the traditional celery seed and turmeric. The dry mustard gives it a wonderful golden hue with a tangy zip, and the mustard seed adds a great little pop of flavor.

Sugar-Free Keto Cowboy Candy

Yield: Three 1/2-pint jars

Ingredients:

• 1 lb fresh jalapeños, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
• 2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 cup brown sugar keto sweetener (like Brown Swerve)
• 1/2 cup confectioners keto sweetener (like Swerve Confectioners) or granulated
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp mustard seed
• 1/4 tsp dry mustard powder

Instructions:

1. Prep the peppers: Wash and slice your jalapeños, leaving the seeds in if you like the heat. (I highly recommend wearing gloves for this!).
2. Make the syrup: In a medium saucepan, combine the apple cider vinegar, brown sugar substitute sweetener, confectioners substitute sweetener, garlic powder, mustard seed, and dry mustard. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for exactly 5 minutes.
3. Cook the peppers: Add all of the sliced jalapeños to the simmering syrup. Let them simmer for exactly 4 minutes.
4. Jar the peppers: Using a slotted spoon, scoop the jalapeño slices out of the pot and pack them evenly into three clean 1/2-pint glass jars. Leave the syrup in the pot.
5. Thicken the syrup: Bring the remaining syrup back to a rolling boil and boil it hard for 5 to 6 minutes to reduce it.
6. Fill and cool: Carefully pour the boiling syrup over the jalapeños in the jars, submerging them. Leave the jars open on the counter until they reach room temperature—do not put the lids on while hot, or the condensation will water down your syrup!
7. Store: Once completely cooled, secure the lids and store in the refrigerator. Note: Because this uses an erythritol-based sweetener rather than real sugar, these cannot be water-bath canned for pantry storage. They will keep beautifully in the fridge for up to 3 months!

Nutritional Information (Per 2 Tbsp Serving):

• Calories: 7
• Total Carbs: 1.3g
• Fiber: 0.5g
• Net Carbs: 0.8g
• Protein: 0.2g
• Fat: 0.1g (Note: Carbohydrate counts exclude the sugar alcohols from the sweetener, as they do not impact blood sugar.)

I will be using some of these candied jalapeños in a soup recipe next week, so stay tuned for that!