No. Just no.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/damn-shame?utm_term=.akGrn8EBe#.ku6Aq4Y2a

Spice haul

All I needed was cumin. I have problems...

Betrayal!

Talluto's, WHY?

Support Your Local Spice Monger

So... The Spice Corner, which I have previously reviewed, has been closed for some time now with no explanation posted.

Spice fam, get to Melange! These stores don't stay open because of hopes and magic. They stay open only if they are well supported.  We can't afford to lose another spice shop in Philly!

Hungarian Paprika

I've already done an article on Spanish paprika and in it I mentioned how some people seem to think that paprika is flavorless powder that is only used for color.  It is as untrue for the Hungarian style of paprika as it is for the Spanish variety.  I don't know what it will take to dispel these myths, but people, please do your part!!!

Hungarian paprika is the exact same plant as the Spanish style, capsicum annuum.  The difference between the two is entirely in the drying method.  Simply put, the Spanish smoke theirs, the Hungarians air dry them.  There are other, more subtle differences which can be attributed to variances in soil, rainfall, altitude, etc.  Yes, paprika gets as fancy as wine in its home countries.  It is also a highly celebrated thing with both Spain and Hungary having paprika festivals.

Of course they do.  Just look at this glory!

As I said, it is NOT a flavorless red powder.  In fact, it is rather potent most of the time.  It should be spicy and deeply tangy, not unlike barbecue sauce.  If it does not taste like this, throw it out.  For some odd reason a lot of store brand paprika is really, really awful and I don't know why, but perhaps it has to do with confusion about varieties.  You see, like Spanish paprika, Hungarian has different "types".  these range from mild to intensely hot, depending on how many of the seeds of the pepper are ground into it.  The closer to red it is, the more mild it is, while browner varieties are hotter.  It's possible that Americans, who have been spice averse since the great depression, favored the redder, more delicate varieties.  These mild types would become flavorless in cheap store brands.  Stay away from the cheaper stuff.  Go with Pride of Szeged if you must use a store brand.  In general, though, try to find something that has an actual variety listed in Hungarian.

Varieties (in order of heat):

• különleges (special) - The most mild and delicate
• csípősmentes csemege (heatless sweet)
• csemegepaprika (sweet)
• csípős csemege (pungent sweet) - The most popular
• édesnemes (sweet noble) - Roughly the same as "sweet paprika" in US groceries
• félédes (semi sweet)
• rózsa (rose)
• erős (strong) - The hottest variety
• Hot Paprika (lies) An American grocery store invention.  Do not fall for this trick.

Paprika is celebrated the world over, from its homeland of Hungary to Germany where it's a popular flavor of potato chips, all the way to Japan.  It is used in Levantine cooking as well as being familiar in American homes.  Perhaps its most famous use is in Hungary's own goulash.  I haven't ever tried my hand at it but this recipe looks good to me.  Give it a go!

So remember, paprika should always, always, always be flavorful.  Whether it's Spanish or Hungarian, it brings a lot of spice to your dishes.  It is not red chalk.  If anyone says otherwise, break out a tin of erős paprika and ask them to eat a spoonful of it.

And you thought the cinnamon challenge was bad...

Spicy swag brag!

So, for spicemas this year, my sister gave me a rotating spice rack.  NEAT!

preeeeeeettyyyyyyy... 

But I'd like to call your attention to something...  sinister...

Your words are as empty as your soul! Mankind ill needs spices such as you!

Non harmful mace

Fall is once again upon us, and that means it's time to start talking about autumnal classics because apparently that's a type of food.  I'm not sure who decided we're not supposed to eat gingerbread and stuffing all year round, but whatever.  So let's talk about a spice that's considered a major player in autumnal edibles, Mace, or myristica fragrans.  No, it isn't used in pepper spray.  It's also got nothing to do with the medieval weapon of the same name.  No, mace is a much more benign substance than the name would lead you to believe.

Mace is the same plant as nutmeg.  It's funny how we give such different names to different parts of the same plant.  For example, cilantro and coriander are the same plant, but are the leaves and seeds of it, respectively.  Though this distinction is lost outside of the US where they call both "coriander".  Cilantro is the Spanish name for the plant and we're most familiar with it through Mexican cooking so...  Wait, I'm rambling again...

Let's try that again...  Mace is the same plant as nutmeg.  The difference is that nutmeg is the, well, nut.  Mace is the aril, or soft skin that covers it.  It looks almost like something out of a SyFy original.  Like a weird alien egg.  This covering is peeled off in what is referred to as "blades".  These are rather delicate which is why you almost never find them sold whole.  In fact, the delicate nature of the plant makes this one of the most expensive spices second only to saffron.

Better not let Kane inspect them...

So what does it taste like?  All this time I've been talking about mace and I haven't mentioned the flavor at all.  Well, sit down and brace yourself.  You're not gonna believe this.  Mace tastes...  like nutmeg.  It's a little more delicate, woody and fragrant, but all in all the two are very similar.  Because of the expense of mace, it would be completely understandable if you decided to substitute nutmeg instead.  Apparently there's a saying that mace is for cooking while nutmeg is for baking, but the recipes I've seen tend to directly contradict that.

Speaking of recipes, this is the part where I give a recipe.  I don't use mace in much, I'll admit.  I tend to just throw it into sauce heavy dishes to add more flavor so I don't have a recipe of my own that I use.  However, this recipe calls out to me despite the fact that I haven't tried it yet.

Dolmades (stuffed grape leaves)

UPDATE: Make that recipe if you want to. However, I have found a recipe that is AMAZING!!!!!!!!! You must eat it now!!!! I tried using veggie hotdogs but they were bland and useless. Use potatoes instead for easy vegetarian soup.

Yellow Split Pea and Frankfurter Soup

So while you might not use a whole lot of mace outside of festive fall confections, you'll get a lot of mileage out of it if you're into baked sweets.  While people might insist it shines best in savory dishes, I feel that it gets called for equally in both parts.

Look out! It's hatching! RUN!

McCormick to Clean Up

Well, I didn't see this one coming.  Apparently McCormick spices is trying to clean up and jump on board the organic bandwagon.  Full article here.

I have a few thoughts on this.  The first is this.  Yay!  Organic!  Yay!  As you could probably tell if you've read some of the entries I've posted on here, I like it when my food is made out of food and not out of product.  I like my veggies fresh and my sauces unprocessed.  I hate when people put things in my food that I don't want.  It's not part of the deal.  When you hear about things like gutter oil being used in food it can give you nightmares.  This is exactly why we need better food standards, and organic standards are just one.

But here's another thing.  Organic food is a market.  It's a very big, growing market.  So many companies want a piece of that pie.  Sometimes it's hard to even know what "organic" means when the USDA themselves has a few different terms all using "organic" that mean different things.  A lot of people are worried that "organic" is starting to lose its meaning and turn into a marketing buzzword.  I'm only half inclined to agree.  I think moving toward more environmentally friendly farming should be applauded and keeping hazardous pesticides off produce is good too.  However, I have to wonder if McCormick is doing this out of the goodness of their own hearts.

Another thing, and people will probably disagree with me on this, is the whole GMO thing.  Now, I'm not a scientist.  Far from it.  I'm just some guy writing a blog for my own amusement.  However, having looked at a few science type articles, I'm left with the impression that GMOs are not some scary big-pharma conspiracy to poison everyone.  Rather, I see at as more of a science that needs heavier regulation within the industry.  Sure, a particular modification can wind up having adverse effects.  However, modifying food has taken place all throughout recorded history.  The corn we eat today is itself a GMO.  Manipulating genes has some scary implications and we absolutely should not trust Monsanto ever, but saying something is "non GMO" shouldn't read as a gold star either.

Finally, the thing that bugs me the most is how shady the world of spice merchants is.  I'm not going to name names, but one clerk at a spice shop had a long talk with me about the various tricky methods that some merchants have of cutting their product and jacking prices.  Everything from iron shavings in rosemary to dirt in cumin.  These are sadly common methods of cost cutting.  I'm worried that McCormick isn't making these "organic" changes out of principal, but because of profit.  If that's not the case, why didn't it happen sooner?  Why did they wait until the organic market was taking off to a memetic degree?  I'm worried that they'll do whatever they can to cut corners while still being able to put "organic" and "GMO free" on their labeling.

Still a hell of a lot better than Cento, though.

Brace Yourselves. Basic Season Is Upon Us.

Oh boy...  Pumpkin spice...  Well I suppose I had to get to this one eventually, didn't I?  You can't very well talk about spices and just ignore pumpkin spice entirely.  Even if you really, really want to.  First, let's get this out of the way.  It is NOT pumpkin spice.  It is not a spice used for seasoning pumpkins.  No, it is called pumpkin pie spice.  Because it is used for pies.  It contains nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and cloves, and optionally allspice and mace.  You'll also see use for it in apple tarts and other delicious fall favorites.  I mean...  not that I use it...

If absolutely must use it and care to make your own, it's two parts nutmeg and ginger, one part everything else.  Try not to make too much since it doesn't keep especially well (dried ginger in particular can be a bit like chalk) and...  well I mean you're not gonna keep using it because I certainly wouldn't.  Nope, I don't find myself much use for pumpkin spice.  I mean pumpkin pie spice. I barely touch the stuff.

All of the spices in this blend have a warm, earthy taste and a bit of sweetness to them.  Many American pastries use a similar flavor profile.  It works very well in many of your favorites, from gingerbread, to kugel, to apple pie, to snickerdoodles, to lattes, to...  Wait, I mean, no! Never put it in coffee!  That's only for basics who blindly follow trends!  Ew!  We don't do that at this blog!  This is a serious blog for spice lovers!

Now, since I absolutely, positively, never, ever, ever put it in lattes, I'm going to give you an actual pumpkin pie recipe.  The fine people at Melange, my favorite spice store hands down, recently put up one of their own and I'd like to share it with you here.  Pumpkin pie is easily my favorite pie and this is a great recipe to...  I mean...  No!  Pumpkin pie is just OK!  I'm not into pumpkin spice! Really! I'm not!

In conclusion, pumpkin pie spice is a great addition to baked desserts and evokes the fall season with its earthy warmth.  It's one of the most celebrated and beloved parts of autumn festivals and...  it tastes so good and...  OH GOD I NEED MORE PUMPKIN SPICE! MUST HAVE MORE!!!  GIVE ME ALL THE LATTES! I DON'T CARE IF I'M BASIC I NEEEEEEEEEEEED IT!!!!

...please don't tell anyone...

Insomnia + Blog = ...

Look, I'm really tired. I just haven't slept in a while, you know? I'm sorry... But like, can we all agree that the five mother sauces aren't a thing? That's just dumb. That's seriously dumb. I mean come on. They don't doing bechamel in Japan! God...

And then a foodie told me to learn the mother sauces of Thai cooking and I was like "peace".

YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT'S IN SOY SAUCE, DO YOU?!