Friday, March 13, 2009

Variety is the Spice of Life...


The diet of most Americans is pretty rich in flavor. If we were to be transplanted into one of the many countries that live on a diet of plain beans and rice...many of us would go nuts!...and yet...that is what many of us have stored in our long term storage...and plan on living on when times get hard. It is a good idea to figure out some ways now that can add variety to basic food dishes...to avoid becoming sick of eating the same thing over and over again. A great place to start is by taking an inventory of what is in your spice collection. Do you have a good supply of the basics like salt...and pepper? Do you have things that will taste good in sweets like cinnamon? Are your containers actually full? Are the spices still good!!? It is so easy to think...."Yeah...I've got good spices..." and yet they have become tasteless and gross with age. That spice you picked up a few months ago for that fancy cake...wasn't really a few months ago....it was years ago!!

It really is incredible what some good herbs and spices can do...to make even the plainest of meals more appetizing.

Back in High School I discovered something called "Spike" seasoning. As an unlearned in the ways of cooking teen I figured out how to make Top Ramen...and also discovered it tasted better with Spike on it. I graduated to egg noodles with a bit of butter...topped off with Spike. Yum! Nowadays I put it in soups...on meat...etc...etc. It really is an all purpose seasoning.

Spike's Seasoning Ingredients:

Salt and sea salt crystals, special high flavor yeast, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, mellow toasted onion, onion powder, orange powder, soy flour, celery leaf powder, celery root powder, garlic powder, dill, kelp, Indian curry, horseradish, ripe white pepper, orange and lemon peel, summer savory, mustard flower, sweet green and red peppers, parsley flakes, tarragon, rosehips, saffron, mushroom powder, parsley powder, spinach powder, tomato powder, sweet Hungarian paprika, celery powder, cayenne pepper, plus a delightful herbal bouquet of the best Greek oregano, French sweet basil, French marjoram, French rosemary, and Spanish thyme.

I like the little bottle that Spike comes in...because you can remove the lid...and refill it with the larger Spike box...to save money. I have multiple bottles of Spike in my storage...and even have one in my "bug out bag". Spike is available at many local grocery stores in the spice aisle.

Another thing to consider with regards to seasonings is to buy from Winco...or some other bulk bin shopping outlet. There can be a substantial savings when you buy seasonings without the fancy packaging...and put it into your own at home. You also avoid paying for the name brand as well.

2 comments:

  1. Where do you get your spike?

    crazyknitter (Becky)

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  2. I've picked it up at Elliots natural foods...they have the box and the bottles. It can also be found at Raleys. I haven't seen it at Winco. It is pretty common nowadays.

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