Ok, this came up this weekend since I spent a bit of time organizing my spice cupboard. I have always loved to cook, but after being diagnosed with Celiac cooking has taken on a new "need". I love eating foods outside the standard fare - I love Asian, Indian, Thai etc. All of these come with their inherent issues if I wanted to eat them out at a restaurant. They all have standard ingredients that do or can contain gluten, so if I want them without worry I have to make them. This leads to the need for an extensive spice selection.
Do your pocket book and your mouth a favor, buy spices in bulk. Even our local "one stop shopping" store, Fred Meyer, has a bulk spice section now. It is in the natural foods section and the selection isn't as extensive as other stores, but it has all the standard fare. For more unusual spices I have had to go to local health food stores or co-ops, which isn't an issue since I shop there at least semi-frequently for other items.
This allows you to buy only the amount you will need. Don't do what our mothers did and keep the same bottle of parsley flakes for years on end. I remember spice bottles that my mother moved from house to house each time we moved, that stuff was YEARS old. I try to never keep spices longer then 6 months, ideally 3 months. They just loose so much flavor after a few months. Buying in bulk allows you to just buy a Tablespoon full if that is all you need for a recipe and don't see yourself using it again anytime soon.
It is also WAY cheaper. You can buy enough spices to refill a standard spice jar, often for less then a dollar, unless it is a less common or expensive spice. This is compared to $4-5.00 for a bottle of spice.
Of course this has also led to my spice jar "collection". I have found some great antique spice jars.
That is my two cents for today.
Here we are, here we go
I found a book years ago that put me on this path. I will have to find it now, but is was something along the lines of "control your food supply". Luckily I grew up canning food with my mother and grandmother so the seed was already planted, so to speak. I started doing other things to achieve a sustainable lifestyle, baking my own bread, growing more of my own food, raising chickens etc.
Most recently I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, which is Gluten Intolerance. This translates to no food with wheat, barley, rye and for the most part oats. It gets complicated to buy processed foods at the store or eat at restaurants. Life has given me some hurdles recently that put road bumps in my journey of food control, but after the diagnosis it hit home that now more then ever I need to control my food before it controls me.
There are so many things people can do, even in an urban environment, to achieve control of your food supply, from top to bottom. Do a little or go all the way, I promise all of it will be fulfilling and you will have a better connection with the foods you eat.
The topics near and dear to me, that will be discussed are - local, sustainable agriculture, vermicomposting, composting, growing food, edible gardening (gardens can be pretty), preserving the harvest, baking and cooking Gluten Free foods that taste like food, farmers markets, CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture)......I am sure I will add to this list over time.
Most recently I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, which is Gluten Intolerance. This translates to no food with wheat, barley, rye and for the most part oats. It gets complicated to buy processed foods at the store or eat at restaurants. Life has given me some hurdles recently that put road bumps in my journey of food control, but after the diagnosis it hit home that now more then ever I need to control my food before it controls me.
There are so many things people can do, even in an urban environment, to achieve control of your food supply, from top to bottom. Do a little or go all the way, I promise all of it will be fulfilling and you will have a better connection with the foods you eat.
The topics near and dear to me, that will be discussed are - local, sustainable agriculture, vermicomposting, composting, growing food, edible gardening (gardens can be pretty), preserving the harvest, baking and cooking Gluten Free foods that taste like food, farmers markets, CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture)......I am sure I will add to this list over time.
Monday, November 12, 2007
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