Category: discoveries

new additions to the spice rack

Turkish_spice_psp

Kala Jeera (Bunium Persicum) is a member of the parsely family and is sometimes refered to as black cumin (not to be confused with nigella). It is sweeter than cumin and posesses a floral, camphorous flavor with cardamom overtones. Toasting somewhat diminishes these flavors and brings forward an earthy, nutty taste. Don’t be put off by the scent of these seeds (the sales lady decided that it smelled like a monkey cage), they really need to be chewed or broken to release their flavor. I can see this being used in both sweet and savory preparations.

Mahlab (Prunus Mahaleb) these are actually the dried kernel extracted from the inside of a Mahaleb cherry pit and belong to the Rosaceae family. They have a floral, bitter almond taste–think marzipan with a hint of rosewater. There is a slight bitterness to them, although not unpleasant. They are widely used in Southeast Europe and Western Asia to flavor sweet breads and cookies.

Sumac (Rhus coroaria) these ground berries have an astringent vinegar scent with a pleasantly sour taste and are commonly mixed with sesame and thyme in the popular spice mix Za’tar. It will be interesting to play with this isolated flavor.

Sweet Lemon/Sour Orange

you just know that Mother Nature was giggling when she planted these.

Sweetlemonsourorange_005psp

These are not new, just new to me.

(left) Sweet Lemon (Citrus Limetta) Round and thin skinned, these seemed so promising when I scratched and sniffed the rinds– heady and floral with spicy undertones– but the pulp is a disappointment– insipid and unremarkable. At least I can salvage the zest. A quick search yielded no practical uses…can’t imagine why this one is still being propagated.

(right) Sour Orange (Citrus Arantium) Also known as bitter orange, this is the All-Star of the orange game. It makes the best marmalade and is used to flavor Grand Marnier, Curacao, and Triple Sec. Its flowers lend their fragrance to orange flower water and the seductive Neroli oil. The pulp is wonderfully puckery and sweet– that is if you can get to it through all of the seeds. No danger of extinction here. I plan to preserve these in salt. After a few weeks, I can utilize them in a relish with cerignola olives, toasted marcona almonds, and roasted piquillo peppers.