I was throwing together a new stew recipe this morning. <\/span>As I added the paprika and coriander I wondered why I used those two spices so rarely. <\/span><\/p>\n No doubt it has to do with we humans being creatures of habit. <\/span>And when it comes to getting stuck in a rut, cooking is one of the easiest ones to get stuck in. <\/span>Racing into the kitchen each night, who has time to flip through a cookbook for new inspiration? <\/span>So we fall back on our same old standbys that use the same few herbs and spices. <\/span><\/p>\n As a kitchen coach<\/a>, a request I hear a lot is, \u201cCan you help me learn to use herbs and spices?\u201d <\/span>It seems there are a fair number of people use herbs and spices only rarely or are uncomfortable venturing beyond a few basics like basil, cinnamon and oregano. <\/span><\/p>\n That of course, is a misfortune that borders on tragic! <\/span>Herbs and spices are one of the quickest, cheapest and most effective ways to take a meal from ordinary and ho hum to extraordinary and extremely enjoyable. <\/span>What\u2019s more, they are practically calorie-less! <\/span>Could you ask for more?<\/p>\n So how do we get ourselves to take that sometimes uncomfortable step into a more interesting herb and spice zone? <\/span>Begin by just being open to an spicy-herbalish experience. <\/span>I get inspired most by fresh herbs, especially those in my garden and at the farmer\u2019s market. <\/span>This year, for instance, my garden boasts some lemon balm that I planted on a lark. <\/span>I recently dared myself to try a nibble\u2014and thank goodness. <\/span>Now I am motivated to use its pungently rich lemon flavor in something.\u00a0 (I’ll share a recipe later.)<\/p>\n I also get inspired by recipes that call for a new or rarely used flavorings\u2014as with this morning\u2019s stew recipe. <\/span>I would normally default to my usual parsley and thyme combo. <\/span>But Julee Rosso\u2019s recipe for Beef Stew with Eggplant* had me combining coriander and paprika with cinnamon, allspice and cayenne pepper! <\/span>Who wudda thunk that such a wild combination would make such an intriguingly delicious stew? <\/span><\/p>\n Other ways to instigate an herbalish, spicey experience:<\/p>\n Once you\u2019ve settled on one or two options that deserve experimentation, what\u2019s next? <\/span>You\u2019ve likely seen charts that list all the herbs and spices, along with the kinds of foods they go best with. <\/span>There\u2019s a good one in the 1997 edition of Joy of Cooking. <\/span>Here is another good online version that includes some interesting history:\u00a0 http:\/\/aidanbrooksspices.blogspot.com\/ \u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n While these charts can be a helpful way to get started, I find it more useful to actually find a recipe or two from a cookbook or other source that I trust. <\/span>Actually making recipes with an herb or spice is how I learn what foods they work with and how they taste when combined and cooked in a dish.<\/p>\n Finding recipes that utilize a particular herb or spice is not hard with the Internet. <\/span>You\u2019ll get dozens if not hundreds of search results. <\/span>The hard part lies in plucking the right recipe for your circumstances out of the plethora of possibilities. <\/span><\/p>\n Tomorrow\u2019s post will share a number of tricks and tips to help winnow your search results. <\/span>Until then, here is the takeaway thought for today: <\/span>At some point you just gotta take the plunge<\/em>. <\/span>That\u2019s what it means to get out of a comfort zone\u2014you take a little risk, but gain a whole lot in the way of fun, interest and excitement. <\/span><\/p>\n And for goodness\u2019 sake, what\u2019s the worst that can happen? <\/span>You make a dish that you absolutely hate. <\/span>So you pitch it and order takeout. <\/span>Not exactly the kind of downside that qualifies for \u201cend of the world\u201d status! <\/span><\/p>\n To further put things in perspective, consider that there\u2019s maybe a five percent chance of this risk occurring. <\/span>That means there\u2019s a 95 percent chance that you\u2019ll be rewarded with a meal that is delightfully and tantalizingly different! <\/span>So even though it can be unnerving to step out on a limb and try something new and different, I think you\u2019ll agree that it\u2019s a completely reasonable\u2014and worthwhile\u2014risk to take.<\/p>\n Tomorrow:\u00a0 Six Tricks and Tips for a Successful Spice Adventure<\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Want a little more encouragement and help to brighten your food life? <\/span>I provide kitchen coaching<\/a> via phone and email. <\/span>Helping busy people put pizzazz back into their daily mealtime routines is one of the services I offer. Check it out.<\/a> <\/em> <\/span><\/p>\n *Beef Stew with Eggplant, recipe from Julee Rosso\u2019s Great Good Food, p. 487. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you want to begin using more and\/or more interesting herbs and spices, the most important step is taking the plunge. Don’t get persuaded to hunker down in your comfort zone by a possibility of un-success that’s really pretty small and hardly disastrous.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20,19,12,14,1],"tags":[66,126,146,261,292,348,367,426,540,541,542],"class_list":["post-107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-recipes","category-how-to-set-up-a-healthy-pantry","category-herbs-spices","category-new-ingredients","category-uncategorized","tag-beef-and-eggplant-stew-recipes","tag-comfort-zones","tag-coriander","tag-great-good-food","tag-herbs","tag-julee-rosso","tag-lemon-balm","tag-paprika","tag-spice-charts","tag-spices","tag-spicy-herbalish-experience","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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