Welcome to Fall!
A time when we want to get in the kitchen and cook! We are ready to explore new recipes, add new meals to our routine, change up our style of eating from something light, to something more wholesome and hearty.
A great way to start exploring new recipes is by having the right spices on hand to get creative with.
I have been introduced to a variety of spices, mostly by friends, that I never would have discovered on my own. It is such a treat to eat together and learn new things!
I have found having an organized and well equipped spice cabinet, or drawer, in your kitchen is essential.
I recently had a friend enthusiastically tell me about a brand of red pepper flakes that I had never heard of. Additionally, my daughter loves them, especially when added to pizza and fettuccine, so for these two reasons alone, I was motivated to check them out.
Anyway, I went ahead and ordered these Flatiron Grill red pepper flakes. I was so excited to try them, that once they arrived, and I tasted them, I threw out my old chile pepper flakes and will never go back.
The difference is astonishing. I especially like the Sweet Heat, but they all are fabulous!
A great addition to spaghetti, pizza, and fettuccine among other things. The smoky one is great with tacos, grilled steak and chicken as well as added to cream cheese with preserves. The Four Pepper Blend has great flavor but is hotter than expected, so be mindful when you are adding it in.
They also have a super hot one called “I Can’t Feel My Face” which my son would love to try. Likely two of my sons, but I’m not that brave!
My mom has also sent me some really cool chile powder blends and rubs from New Mexico from the brand Albu Kirky. These give that local taste to some favorite dishes.
There really is nothing like New Mexican food. I could eat it everyday! The beans, tortillas, sopapillas, calabacitas, enchiladas and tostadas all bring back special memories and a desire to cook wholesome fulfilling food. In addition, these rubs are great on grilled meats too.
One of my sister-in-law’s introduced me to Penzey’s spices. She gave me a gift pack for Christmas one year after we moved away from our family for my hubby’s job. Anyway, this was the first time I’d ever had beautiful spices. My life was changed!
Penzy’s has so many beautiful nice quality spices and blends, that you cannot go wrong. Some of my all time favorites are the hot curry, Northwoods, roasted garlic, and Greek. Once you have their curry powder, you will never go back. So flavorful. Such depth. Delicious!
Another of my favorite brands is Spiceology. My favorite flavors so far are Cowboy Crust, Rosemary Dijon, and Jamaican Jerk. So robust!
I am passionate about cooking and my spices. Having the right supplies puts you at the helm of truly being creative in the kitchen. This can turn a dish from being mediocre to magnificent!
Organization
Knowing where things are when you’re trying to throw a nice meal together makes things go so much more smoothly.
I decided to organize my drawer. Yes, I know many people keep their spices in a kitchen cabinet, but to me, the drawer works better as I can see what I have. If you don’t have a drawer that will work, they do make lazy Susan’s and tiered shelves to be able to see things easier.
When I had ordered these Flat Iron pepper flakes, I already did not have any room in my spice drawer, so it needed a complete revamp.
Once I took everything out, I decided to separate things in sections, both by category of seasoning and how often I use them.
I divided them by Mexican, Russian, Indian, and Italian style, and standard seasonings like garlic.
I also have some baking spices like cloves, allspice, and vanilla beans that I wanted to keep together too.
Once they were separated by category, I noticed that I had some duplicates including thyme, chipotle, curry powder, Herbes de Provence, and a Tuscan seasoning. I decided that I would either consolidate them or eliminate them. I decided to give some of my duplicates to my daughter.
I had also ordered some bulk seasonings that needed to be added to my existing supply. These are the little ones that come in baggies instead of bottles.
When it came time to put them back in my drawer, I put the things that I use most frequently in the front and things that I use less frequently towards the back.
I like being able to see what I’m looking for, so I tried to face all the labels to the front, except for the garlic, as if I face it that way, it tends to not close tight and makes a mess in my drawer.
Once they were all set up in an efficient way, I was thrilled!
Getting Inspired!
Over the years I have tried to make lists of menu ideas and even an Excel spreadsheet having everything categorized by either the main course, meaning the meat group, or by the ethnicity.
This enables me to glance at my list and either meal plan for the week, or be inspired to make something I haven’t made for a while.
I have searched and saved countless recipes that are so beautiful. And by beautiful, I mean flavorful, colorful, well plated, glorious food! Adding these to my list means I get to be creative in the kitchen.
If I don’t plan ahead, I don’t have time to be creative and I have to just throw a familiar meal together for my family. If I read new recipes, I get to prepare and make something new and different.
I am so excited to try new things, especially when I already know I like the basic flavors of the ingredients.
One of the greatest ways you can try new things is by having the seasonings on hand. Sometimes you can tweak an old favorite and make it healthier or easier to prepare.
Here are some of the inspirations I’ve had, that caused me to buy some of these spices.
When I was in Napa one year, at the Oxbow Market, I bought a spice from Whole Spice that was a Moroccan style seasoning called Ras El Hanout. It was terrific! Oh my gosh!
Chicken thighs in a Dutch oven, bring it on! I add potatoes, carrots, onions and put the chicken thighs on top, it is so delicious! This was inspired by another friend who made a similar dish and had me over. It’s so fun to learn from each other.
Brings back memories when you can come close to creating that flavor. Ras El Hanout is also terrific on grilled meat. Such a warm, hearty flavor. Yum!
When I received the Flat Iron pepper flakes, I was so excited to try them, that the day they arrived, I added some of the Hatch Valley green chile to some leftover scalloped potatoes. I added some of the Four Pepper Blend to some spaghetti that I had as leftovers too. Both were terrific!
As I said earlier, my daughter loves to have fettuccine with the red pepper flakes. After having it this way, I don’t think I’ll ever have it any other way.
It’s also a nice garnish to add to things when you are cooking as it looks pretty too. Even on top of deviled eggs or avocado toast.
It’s great to cook with, and has added a new dimension to my spaghetti sauce amongst other things.
As you can see, I love Penzey’s spices too! Spices are clearly not all created equal. Good spices are worth their weight in gold.
I have found it necessary to have nice quality spices. After all, why have spices if you’re not going to appreciate and enjoy the depth of flavor of the dish?
One of my favorite Penzey’s spices is the hot curry powder. The Northwood seasoning, the roasted garlic, and the Chipotle are also among my favorites. I would not want to live without these as part of my collection. The Greek seasoning is also fantastic and makes a flavorful salad dressing. All have become staples in my home.
Where To Begin
The best way to start your spice collection, of course, would be with salt and pepper. I am even particular about these basics as I only use pink Himalayan sea salt.
I think it is a more salty salt flavoring that brings out the depth of the dish. There are other lovely salts available including a smoky salt, which is especially great when barbecuing.
Nice quality peppercorns and a pepper mill for fresh ground pepper is also essential. You could get this in a Tellicherry black pepper or a colorful blend.
As far as the next spices I would recommend adding to your collection would be an Italian seasoning, oregano, garlic, herbes de Provence, and cayenne pepper.
Cayenne pepper is great in so many things. I actually add it to my spaghetti sauce and also my brownies. It adds a little punch to everything, but those two dishes in particular, especially benefit from it.
The next seasonings I would introduce would be curry powder, Penzy’s Northwood seasoning, Greek, chipotle, and red pepper flakes.
Once you have the basics, then you could begin exploring even further. The ras el hanout Moroccan seasoning is terrific! A Jamaican jerk seasoning is essential for making things like Louisiana chicken pasta. It is so good on grilled chicken and vegetables too. I love it!
You can also add more individual seasonings for cooking many ethnic or regional foods. Everyone has grown up eating certain things, and as we go through life, they still bring us comfort. I think it is important to have those seasonings be a part of our collection.
Dill weed is another favorite and adds a fresh herby flavor, especially if you’re making a cucumber salad with cream and it’s also great on salmon.
Visibility
Having your seasonings visible makes for an easier cooking experience. When you don’t have to search for things, it makes cooking more efficient and smooth.
Some people have all of their spices up in a cabinet and you have to search and dig through, as it is not easy to see the labels. Some people have a lazy Susan that spins so they can find the spices easier.
They also make little three tiered shelves now so the labels are more visible. I think whatever you can do to make things work easier for you, is the route to go.
If your spices and ingredients are not organized, it can add to the difficulty of trying to have all the elements of your meal ready at the same time as it can throw off your timing.
I really like using a drawer where I can see as many of my labels as I can. I also think organizing them according to style of seasoning or ethnicity, makes the cooking experience more fluid.
As you can see I still have too many spices for this drawer, so it’s not 100% perfect. We have to work with the space that we have. Currently I’m not willing to live without any of these spices just to have them fit better in my drawer.
Hopefully someday, I’ll have an even bigger drawer.
In the meantime, this works for me and it’s conveniently located to the left of my stove.
So thankful for good seasonings and a passion to cook. Food is such a gift, meant to be savored and enjoyed.
Hoping you get some inspiration to try some new seasonings and expand your routine menu.
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