Dill weed - Anethum graveolens.

Excellent herb to include in your pantry especially for potato dishes, cabbage recipes, butter, cream cheese, eggs, fish and grilled meats.

Freshly harvested for 2010.
Cultivated, grown and harvested in the USA

by conscientious small herb farmers.

This herb has many uses since ancient times.

The entire plant has many usues from leaves, flowers, seeds and stem.

It is used medicinally for a salt-free diet as it is rich in minerals.

Dill water has been used for digestive disorders like flatulence, stomach cramps, indigestion, insomnia and colicky conditions for babies.

this herb come from the old world and was brought to the new world by early American settlers.

http://www.teafirst.com/HerbsDillWeedpage1.html

Scientific classification


Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Apiales
Family: Apiaceae
Genus: Anethum
L.
Species: A. graveolens
Binomial name
Anethum graveolens
L.

Recipe: Curried rice with Spinach Pilaf

1 cup long grain rice - basmati - washed and drained

2 cups water

4 tbsp olive oil

1 small red onion - chopped fine

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

2 tbsp Malaysian Curry powder

1 bag Spinach cleaned

2 tbsp Clarified butter/Ghee

1 tsp fennel seeds

1/4 cup slivered almonds

Pinch of salt

Dash of pepper

1. Heat the clarified butter in the pan and ad the ginger, onions and add 1 1/2 tbsp of the Malaysian curry powder.

2. Cook until the ingredients are slightly caramelized.

3. Add salt and pepper.

4. Toss in rice and stir well. Add water in when the rice looks slighly translucent.

5. Cover and cook rice until well done.

7. When the rice is done, use a fork to loosen the rice.

8. In a saucepan heat the olive oil, and add fennel seeds, silvered almonds and the 1/2 tbsp Malaysian curry powder.

9. Toss in the spinach and rice and turn the stove off.

10. Stir well and serve.

Malaysian Curry Powder

Spice mixtures require a trained and knowledgeable hand to make a perfect combination.

This curry powder is perfectly balanced in flavor and

heat ratio is refined to balance the flavors of various spices.

This is a family recipe that has been passed down for several generations.

Very aromatic, with a mild scent of cardamom, cinnamon, chilies, fennel and various other spices.

When placed on the tip of the tongue the heat of the chilies in the mix spread out evenly into the entire mouth.

This mix is unadulterated with any rice powder, or arrowroot powder.

It consists of pure spices with no substitutes or thickening agent.

This mix makes an excellent chicken curry and can be used to make a beef or lamb curry powder by adding

 some paprika and a touch of cayenne powder.

Curry or curry powder is a mixture of a number of spices with turmeric being the foundation of any good blend.

Turmeric is from the ginger family and it has been used since ancient times to the present in the culinary delights of the East, in medicine and also for dyeing fabrics.

Turmeric has a yellow color.

The best quality of turmeric must have a beautiful, bright yellow.

 It must taste smooth and slightly sweet.

It must not have a bitter after taste nor have impurities or dilutes like arrowroot or rice flour.

Other ingredients that may contain in a curry blend may be fennel, chilies, cumin, coriander, cloves, cinnamon or cardamoms.

Consuming curry powder enable the person to consume a variety of spices that has many health benefits, thus fulfilling the old saying, variety is the spice of life.

In Ayurvedic medicine, spice is life.

Spices are used to cure and correct health problems.

Turmeric is helpful with any inflammation of the joints and also helps to prevent joint swelling.

Research has shown that spices help in thwarting Alzheimer’s disease.

MD Anderson Center in Texas thinks that curry may help to protect against cancer.

 It has been shown to turn off the genes that can trigger the onset and spread of breast cancer and stabilizing pancreatic cancer.

 Much more research is being done into the health benefits of spices and herbs.

 Cultures that have been using it as food and medicine for thousands of years prior do not need validation from the scientific community to know that it works and they cannot all be wrong and ignorant.

Recipe: Palm Sugar Coconut Crepes

Ingredients:

Coconut Filling:

150 g Grated Coconut

100g Palm Sugar (Gula Melaka)

100 ml Water

1 Pandan(Screwpine) Leaf, knotted

For the Crepes:

200 g All Purpose Flour, sifted

4 Pandan Leaves

300 ml Water

100 ml Coconut Milk

1 Large Egg

1 tsp Vegetable Oil

1/2 tsp Sea Salt

Oil for greasing the crepe pan

Method:

1. To make the filling, boil the water with palm sugar and pandan leaf.

2. Lower the heat and simmer until all the sugar has melted.

3.Then mix in the grated coconut, stir until well combine for about 10 minutes.

Set aside to cool.

For the coconut crepes:

1. Blend the Pandan leaves with water and strain the Pandan juice.

2. Combine the flour, Pandan juice, salt and coconut milk and stir well.

3. Then add the egg, oil and whisk until the batter is smooth.

4. Heat up a lightly oil Crepe pan or any non-stick pan over moderate heat.

5. Pour about 2 to 3 tbsp of batter, swirl the pan to distribute the batter evenly.

6. Allow the batter to set and turn over to cook the other side.

7. Place a portion of coconut filling in the centre of each crepe and fold them like in spring roll.

8. Serve immediately.

Palm Sugar

This sugar is commonly known as Gula Jawa/Gula Merah or Gula Melaka in Malaysia.

It is made from the sap of the date palm - Palmyra Palm or the sugar date palm - Phoenix Sylvestris.

The sap is harvested by making several slits into the bud of the palm tree.

Upon collection of the sap, it is boiled to thicken the sugars and then traditionally poured into bamboo tubes that have 3 to 5 in diameter.

The sugar is left to solidify forming cylindrical blocks.

It is used in South East Asian cuisine and in their traditional herbal medicine.

It is known to liquefy phlegm in the lungs and soothes a sore.

Due to the growing pandemic of diabetes, this sugar fulfills the requirements for a healthy sugar substitute because it has an extremely low glycemic index and high nutrition content.

It can be used as a substitute for any sugar or sweetener.

Use it is cakes, to sweeten coffee, cookies or salad dressings.

Recipe: Coconut Palm Sugar Salad Dressing

1 lime - juice and grate the rind

1 lemon - juice and rind grated

2 tbsp Coconut Palm sugar

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp freshly grated ginger

4 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp cilantro feshly chopped

Combine all ingredients in an empty bottle, cover and shake well.

Chill and pour over any desired salad.

Coconut Palm Sugar

This sugar is harvested from the watery sap that drips from the flower buds of the coconut palm or the sap of the sago, Arenga pinata palms.

This is not the same as palm sugar - Gula Jawa/Gula Melaka.

This sugar is also known as Arenga sugar.

This sugar is high in nutrients and has an extremely low glycemic index.

The sap is harvested every morning.

It is then boiled down in woks to resemble sticky sugar.

The substance is then whipped and poured out into lumps on cellophane or filled into containers.

This is not a highly processed sugar therefore the flavor, consistency, color and level of sweetness will vary from each harvested batch.

This sugar can be used as a substitute for any recipes that calls for sugar.

It has a rich caramel taste, and a slight smoky coconut aroma to it.

It offers a far richer taste and flavor than any other sweetener.
It is after all the nectar of the coconut palm flowers.

Smoked Sweet Paprika

Origin of the word paprika has many colorful stories associated with it.

One story comes out of the Hindu legend, that the spice was named after a religious Indian man by the name of Rysh Paprike. Etymological roots of the words is said to originate from the Slavic languages (pepperke, pipeka meaning pepper) that was translated into Latin - Piper  to mean pepper.

Like all languages we are some how connected and what better way to begin that with food.

This smoked sweet paprika has a wonderful flavor and aroma to it, especially when cooked with rice or chicken or even in a soup to give a warmer feeling and taste.

Cultivated in the US and smoked to achieve the best flavor.

Paprika - Capsicum annuum

Paprika is not a pepper.

It comes from the nightshade family- Solanceae.

It is a relative of the pepper.

Originally from South America, but varieties have been cultivated in in the Northern Hemisphere in countries like Spain, Hungary, Turkey and the United States.

These northern hemisphere cultivation has bred out the capsaicin content of the pepper thus making it milder and sweeter.

Capsaicin content in the pepper is what makes it hot or gives the burning sensation to the taste buds.

It activates the nerve endings of the tongue to send signals to the brain indicating pain, consequently inducing the body to release endorphins, the body's natural pain killers while giving rise to euphoric and pleasure sensations.

Our paprika is from the USA and has a dinstictive russet-red color.

Something all fresh and good quality paprika must be like.

It is extremely mild in heat level but full of robustness, aromatic, flavorful and alive.

What are Spices

Spices come as fruits, berries, flowers, seeds, barks and roots.

They usually grow and thrive in the tropical regions of the world, although some are found in temperate parts too.

Most of the spices come out of the South East Asian part of the globe.

Some spices like vanilla, various chilies and allspice are indigenous to Central America,

but have been cultivated extensively in other parts of the world.

Herbs are sometimes considered spices, especially when they produce seeds and stamens like dill and saffron.

The sources of flavors of spices are contained in their essential oils that are concentrated when they are dried.

Drying spices enables the longevity of the product and therefore can be transported across the oceans, thousands of miles away from its origin making it the most sought after commodity in human history.

Spices have connected humans across the globe, caused countless wars, indirectly leading Columbus to the discovery of the New World and made the world a 'smaller' place.

It is prized not just for its flavors but most especially for it health and curative powers.

Most of our favorite foods are made special because of spices.

The cinnamon roll would be lost without cinnamon, and apple pie is made delicious with that extra bit of cinnamon or allspice.

Clove revolutionized dentistry as it is a natural analgesic and antiseptic.

It is also used for the common cold, bronchitis and has antimicrobial and antifungal properties.

Ginger was and is stilled used for circulatory conditions, colds and rheumatism.

Turmeric has been used for anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer.

Human civilization depended on spices and herbs for their survival.

It enabled for preservation of food, and used substitution for money in trade and taxation and embalming of the dead.

Once, only for the rich and privileged, spices are now widely available to practically all economic brackets.

The irony of scarcity and rarity of spices changed human history.

It brought about a global community that shares the desire of same food flavors and health benefits.

Now in abundance and availability, the spice world is going through its own renaissance as more people on the planet re-discover that it is not just about flavoring food but rather the hidden health benefits for life management.