{"id":926,"date":"2010-10-11T19:28:46","date_gmt":"2010-10-11T19:28:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/?p=926"},"modified":"2010-10-11T19:28:46","modified_gmt":"2010-10-11T19:28:46","slug":"spice-blends-the-lazy-persons-way-to-fast-and-flavorful-veggies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/spice-blends-the-lazy-persons-way-to-fast-and-flavorful-veggies\/","title":{"rendered":"Spice Blends:  The Lazy Person&#8217;s Way to Fast and Flavorful Veggies"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Poor vegetables.\u00a0 If they&#8217;re allowed on the plate at all, it&#8217;s rarely in a starring role.\u00a0 More often than not, they&#8217;re just an afterthought.\u00a0\u00a0 As one <a href=\"http:\/\/everydaygoodeating.com\/whole_kitchen_classes_description.html\" target=\"_blank\">Whole Kitchen<\/a> participant put it, &#8220;After spending time on the entree, I end up just steaming\u00a0 a vegetable real quick and call that good.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Spice blends are the lazy (or just busy and harried) cook&#8217;s answer to bland veggies.\u00a0 Who doesn&#8217;t have time to sprinkle a little spice over some cookedvegetables?\u00a0 No one.\u00a0 So there&#8217;s no excuse for having an unappetizing blob of vegetables taking up the real estate on your dinner plate.<\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 363px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"  \" src=\"http:\/\/i722.photobucket.com\/albums\/ww230\/mcolletterogers\/Spices3.jpg\" alt=\"Herbs and Spices\" width=\"373\" height=\"322\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">For   best flavor, get the freshest herb and spice blends, like these  purchased  from a spice shop.  And be sure to store  them in airtight  containers,  like these from Tupperware. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>I&#8217;ve always created custom spice combinations for my vegetable sides, and even wrote <a href=\"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/2008\/10\/09\/using-herbs-and-spices-outside-the-comfort-zone\/\" target=\"_blank\">a series on how to become an herb and spice adventurer<\/a>.\u00a0 Recently I discovered an equally fun (and much less intimidating) approach in premixed spice blends.<\/p>\n<p>In preparing for a<a href=\"http:\/\/everydaygoodeating.com\/whole_kitchen_classes_description.html\" target=\"_blank\"> Whole Kitchen class <\/a>on chicken salads, I visited <a href=\"www.savoryspiceshop.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Savory Spice Shop<\/a>, where Dan Haywood suggested I try Herbes de Provence, a classic French spice blend, as well as Tarragon Shallot Citrus Seasoning, a house blend.\u00a0 I tested the two blends on and in everything from lamb chops, quiches and green beans to chicken and tuna salad.\u00a0 The results: instant and delightful pizazz for less than a latte.\u00a0 Check out this economical and easy kitchen trick:<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color:#800000;\"><strong>The Blends: <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The expert balance of flavors in Herbes de Provence is\u00a0 a sure bet for a wide array of dishes.\u00a0 As a timeless classic, it\u00a0 can be found anywhere herbs and spices are sold, from the bulk section of Vitamin Cottage to the herbs and spice section of a regular grocery store.\u00a0 If buying in bulk, half an ounce will easily last a month or two.<\/li>\n<li>The Tarragon Shallot Citrus Seasoning is a custom Savory Spice Shop blend, but equally versatile and fun.\u00a0\u00a0 If you can&#8217;t get to a Savory location, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.savoryspiceshop.com\/shopsavory.html\" target=\"_blank\">order it on line<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color:#800000;\">Bulk Buying Best: <\/span><\/strong> I was always reluctant to try spice blends because the ones in a typical grocery store are fairly expensive, doubly so if I didn&#8217;t like\u00a0 one and had to pitch it.\u00a0 This problem is alleviated now that blends can be bought at spice stores (online or storefront), or from the bulk section of a health foods store.\u00a0 You can do a taste test at the store to pre-qualify a blend.\u00a0 Then you can buy just a small amount to cook with and make sure it appeals to your taste buds.\u00a0 Buying in smaller amounts also means a blend will likely be used up before going bad and having to be tossed.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color:#800000;\">Watch Out: <\/span><\/strong>If you do choose a pre-bottled, commercial blend, read the ingredient label!\u00a0 They often contain artificial flavorings, colorings and preservatives, needless additions since good spices have plenty of flavor\u00a0 on their own.\u00a0 One more reason to buy at a local spice store, where blends are made only with herbs and spices, what a surprise!<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color:#800000;\">Crush and Sprinkle: <\/span><\/strong>Remember to gently rub Herbes de Provence (or any leafy dried herb) between your hands while sprinkling into a dish.\u00a0 This helps release its\u00a0 flavors more fully.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color:#800000;\">Did I Mention Fun?<\/span><\/strong> For cooks caught in a rut, the biggest problem often isn&#8217;t a lack of recipes, time or energy.\u00a0 It&#8217;s an &#8220;inspiration-deficit.&#8221;\u00a0 Just walking into a spice store will remedy that problem.\u00a0 Wander around the flavors and blends and you&#8217;ll soon be itching to try something new.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color:#800000;\">Recipes<\/span><\/strong> Yellow summer squash may be bland, but it makes a perfect backdrop for pungent herbs.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/2010\/10\/12\/officially-end-of-summer-dishes\/\" target=\"_blank\">Check out these two recipes,<\/a> using Herbes de Provence as well as Greek Oregano (did you know there are both Mexican and Greek oreganos?)<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color:#800000;\">Ready for an Adventure:<\/span><\/strong> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.savoryspiceshop.com\/aboutus\/where.html\" target=\"_blank\">Savory Spice<\/a> has several locations in the Denver Metro Area, California and North Carolina.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.penzeys.com\/cgi-bin\/penzeys\/penzeysstores.html\" target=\"_blank\">Penzey&#8217;s Spices<\/a> also has locations all over the country.\u00a0 Both of these stores sell on line as does\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thespicehouse.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Spice House<\/a>.\u00a0 For a lot of interesting info on spices and delectable recipes, see <a href=\"http:\/\/www.janespice.com\/spices\" target=\"_blank\">Jane Spice<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><em>Want to learn more abut herbs, spices and blends?\u00a0 This is exactly what we do in <a href=\"http:\/\/everydaygoodeating.com\/whole_kitchen_classes_description.html\" target=\"_blank\">Whole Kitchen Cooking Classes<\/a>.\u00a0 This week, seasonal cauliflower and carrots will be transformed from ordinary to sublime when jazzed up with two more of Dan&#8217;s suggestions: Vietnamese Sweet Lemon Curry and Vadouvan, a French curry blend.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/everydaygoodeating.com\/current_whole_kitchen_flyer1.html\" target=\"_blank\">Check out the current class flyer<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Poor vegetables.\u00a0 If they&#8217;re allowed on the plate at all, it&#8217;s rarely in a starring role.\u00a0 More often than not, they&#8217;re just an afterthought.\u00a0\u00a0 As one Whole Kitchen participant put it, &#8220;After spending time on the entree, I end up just steaming\u00a0 a vegetable real quick and call that good.&#8221; Spice blends are the lazy &#8230; <a title=\"Spice Blends:  The Lazy Person&#8217;s Way to Fast and Flavorful Veggies\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/spice-blends-the-lazy-persons-way-to-fast-and-flavorful-veggies\/\">Read more<\/a><\/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":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-926","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","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\/926","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=926"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/926\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}