A fantastic box arrived in our mail that is going to interest all you foodies… or anyone who is bored with your recipe repertoire. It was a package from SpicePanda and it has been a breath of fresh air to our kitchen.
SpicePanda members receive a package in the mail once every 3 months. In that package will be 4-5 spice blends from artisanal spice makers that are centered around a theme, but it is always a surprise. You never know what you will receive until it shows up on your doorstep. Some of the spices will be hot, some savory, some sweet, but all are meant to be something different from anything you have in your kitchen. The package includes suggested recipes, but we found it more fun to incorporate the spices into foods already on our regular menu.
Our beautifully wrapped package contained:
Vulcan’s Fire Salt from The Spice House out of Chicago. This is a mix that has a little kick from its habanero and hot chilies. We were having a pretty uninteresting dinner of bean soup – a typical weekday utilitarian meal that was, well, forgettable. Vulcan’s Fire breathed life into our soup. It was amazing.
Also included was a bottle of Grilling Pepper from Alchemy Spice Company out of Chattanooga. We put this on an oven roasted potato dish that is usually made with an Italian herb blend. Naturally, the Grilling Pepper had a little more kick to it than the Italian herbs, but it was so different from how we normally cook that it felt like a whole new recipe.
The Vermont Maple Spice Blend from Calicutts Spices found its way onto a boring bowl of popcorn. And I’m so glad it did. This blend is spicy, savory, and sweet and left me licking my fingers.
The biggest surprise, the spice that I am most grateful for the introduction to, was the Nola Pepper Blend from Red Stick Spice Company. I have never been a fan of hot spices that are out of control leaving me with a numb tongue. While this is on the warm side, it is certainly not out of control and I find myself putting this on just about everything from soups to eggs. I have loved it on everything.
For us, our SpicePanda experience was not about cooking new recipes, but rather taking what we currently have on the menu, which may be ordinary, and making it memorable. Spice Panda gave us the inspiration to do something that took our food journey to a place outside of where we would normally take it by introducing us to flavors that we never would have found on our own.
Would you like SpicePanda to breathe new life into your dishes?
Win a free 1 year subscription by entering our giveaway before June 21st
Pay a visit to the SpicePanda website for more information about their subscriptions, then get 15% off your first box using the coupon code: plan15
