Making Your Own Herb and Spice Blends
This thread is intended to be a feature in the Hints, Tips and Healthy Cooking Techniques Forum. It will be added to at least bi-weekly with new ideas for all of you who want to eat food that has more flavor but is still WLS friendly. The first article explains how easy it is to make your own herb blends. I know that these blends are readily available in most supermarkets today but you have no idea how long they have been on the shelf and they usually contain ingredients to lengthen the shelf life. It is so easy to purchase your herbs online. You can buy them for a fraction of the price that you pay in the stores and the herbs are cut when the order is placed with no additives. I buy by the pound and store them in my freezer. If you don't have that kind of space, you can still purchase from 2 to 4 ounces in jars. My favorite place to buy is the Atlantic Spice Company but if you live west of the Mississippi, you would use the San Francisco Herb Company. They are the same company. Check them out.
Sweet Spice Blend
Everyone loves apple pie and pumpkin pie spice. You can make your own blend that works well with both. Try it on squash recipes in the winter or on sweet potatoes. Mix together:
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice
Store in an airtight jar in a dark cabinet.
Poultry Seasoning
The uses for poultry seasoning are endless. Use on any kind of poultry or stuffing and it is also great added to breakfast casseroles using sausage. Mix together:
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon marjoram
1 teaspoon sage
1 teaspoon savory
1 teaspoon thyme
Store in a airtight jar in a dark cabinet.
Following are two curry recipes. It is important to note that curry powder tastes much better fresh. If you ever watch a true Indian or Thai chef on tv, you will have noticed that they usually toast their herbs and spices and then grind them for each individual recipe. I suggest that you invest in an inexpensive coffee grinder to use exclusively for herb and spice blends.
Hot and Spicy Curry Powder Recipe
Makes approximately 2 tablespoons of curry powder.
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 dried curry leaves
1 teaspoon salt
Sweet and Mild Curry Powder Recipe
Makes approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons of curry powder.
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cardamom seeds or seeds from ~12 pods
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seed
For making either curry blend:
- Place all the ingredients into a coffee grinder and grind them into a fine powder
- You may use a mortar and pestle for a coarser mix.
- Store any leftover powder in an airtight glass jar away from direct sunlight.
Five Spice Powder is used to flavor poultry and meat dishes in Chinese style cooking. It can also be added to soy sauce or teriyaki sauce and used as a marinade for meat, fish or poultry.
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon star anise or 1 star anise pod (I buy the pod)
Grind all the ingredients into a fine powder using either a mortar and pestle or coffee grinder.
Garam Marsala Recipe:
Garam Marsala is similar to curry powder. The ingredients which are all in seed form are lightly toasted in a dry non stick skillet, cooled to room temperature and then ground into a fine powder. It is used mostly to flavor bean dishes and is good on couscous or rice and even on some meats.
Use one teaspoon of each of the ingredients listed below.
Ingredients:
black pepper
cardamon seeds
cinnamon
cloves
coriander
cumin
fennel seeds
mace
Lemon Pepper Recipe
Lemon pepper commercially has additives to keep it from caking. My suggestion is to either make it in small batches or freeze it and use it as necessary straight from the freezer. Lemon pepper is great on fish and seafood, meats and poultry, as well as steamed veggies.
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons dried lemon peel granules
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Add all the ingredients to your coffee grinder and mix to a coarse powder. Store in an airtight jar in the freezer.
French Herb Blend
This blend is so versatile and really wakes up the flavor of anything you put it on.
3 tablespoons each dried savory, marjoram, parsley and thyme
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Store in an airtight container for up to six months. Recipe makes about 1 cup.
This last one is a HOUSE blend of seasonings that will flavor absolutely anything savory in a pinch. It is actually adapted from a recipe from the American Heart Association. I omitted some of the original ingredients and added my own as I decided I would like other things better. Use this as a base and as you become more adept at making your own blends, add or remove what ever you like.
8 Tablespoons garlic powder
4 Tablespoons onion powder
2 Tablespoons dried thyme
2 Tablespoons dried basil
2 Tablespoons dried parsley
2 Tablespoons ground savory
2 Tablespoons celery seed
2 Tablespoons dried oregano
1 Tablespoon black or white pepper
2 teaspoons rubbed sage
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Put all ingredients in a food processor and pulse 30 seconds to one minute to combine well. Store in an airtight container.