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Best Herbs and Spices

by Nancy Conway

I love to cook and bake for our family. Especially during the holidays when a thoughtful recognition of someone's favorite sweet or dish is the best gift I can give. This year I shared a vegetable broth mix that I use often for a soup base, for seasoning vegetables and pasta. This recipe (that follows) is a dry mix of several ingredients, that is well worth the time and effort to make, since it is a versatile seasoning mix you will use daily.

But, time and effort won't make the difference if you use stale spices and herbs. I cook and bake year round, so I use spices up and replenish often from the local grocery store. I was horror struck when I realized most spices, especially the ones we use more often during the holidays, probably sit on the store shelves for months, and in warehouses for longer.

That is when I found kalyx.com, a great source for fresh spices and herbs and more. Even better are the prices which I found compare favorably. Kalyx.com brings together the best from around the world and feature spices selected and bottled by Frontier.

"All Frontier Bottled Spices are freshness dated, non-irradiated, safety sealed and feature a convenient shaker top for easy use. Our exceptional quality herbs and spices have made Frontier the leading brand of natural and organic spices. We offer the largest selection of certified organic bottled herbs and spices, including our top-selling organic cinnamon, oregano, basil, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Most of Frontier’s Bottled Spices are kosher certified.," as excerpted from the Kalyx.com catalog.

I suspected the prices seemed reasonable and to prove it, I compared the grocery store prices for the vegetable broth mix ingredients with those listed for Kalyx.com's products. My grocer offered three brands -- cheapest, medium priced and more expensive brand. I compared with the medium priced brand. Of the 12 spices (didn't bother with salt and pepper) seven spices cost less (per ounce) from Kalyx.com. Common spices like basil and oregano are cheaper at the grocery store, but the difference is freshness. I grow some of these things on my patio.

Shopping at Kalyx.com is so much fun. You get a lot of information about the products, ways to use them and beautiful photos of the plants. It's easy too and shipping costs just about equal what you might spend on gas these days, to get to the grocery store. You can buy in large or small quantities and there are many healthy seasoning mixtures available, other than my vegetable broth mix!

Everything always tastes so much better when made with fresh ingredients.

So, I hope to pass along my recipe and source for fine spices that you will soon call your own.

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Vegetable Broth Mix
4 tablespoon celery salt 4 tablespoon parsley flakes 6 teaspoon garlic powder 6 teaspoon salt 6 teaspoon summer savory 2 teaspoon marjoram 2 teaspoon thyme 1 teaspoon onion powder 1 teaspoon pepper 1 teaspoon tumeric 1 teaspoon sage 1/2 teaspoon basil 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1/4 teaspoon dill weed	Mix together and store in airtight container. This makes enough mix to share. Some usage ideas: Add one scant teaspoon to one cup of boiling water for broth. Use one teaspoon per cup of liquid when making stews and soups. Sprinkle on noodles with a splash of olive oil for a tasty side dish. Add a teaspoon full to bread flour when mixing a batch of bread, for a great herb bread taste.

 

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