A Quick Recipe – It’s Hot!
Submitted by gardenerspath.com
The days when people had to grow their own herbs are long gone; these days, you can easily buy any kind of plant at the local grocery store, or at a farmer’s market. But there’s something that’s added to the food when you use freshly picked herbs which you’ve grown yourself, and when you make your own herb mixes.
And even if you freeze or dry homegrown herbs, you’ll find they still have a more powerful taste than the ones you buy in a jar. That alone makes it all worth the effort, even if you don’t enjoy the process itself.
Making Herb Blends
Once you’ve got an herb garden from which you can pluck healthy bounties, you can even package these into neat little arrangements and give them crafty gifts! That way, you can make sure that people who don’t have access to a home herb garden can enjoy cooking too.
There are plenty of options here; from bags, jars, canisters, and other containers, to custom herb blends that will make for an even more memorable gift – as well as a tasty addendum to any recipe.
And that’s where we come to the art of mixing herbs! There are plenty of interesting blends you can make. Don’t worry if you don’t have every single plant that’s needed for a specific blend; people with homemade blends rarely do, seeing as that would mean a huge variety of plants.
Just add the ones that are missing from store-bought packages – but make sure you’re buying herbs of premium quality. Don’t risk making your blend subpar by mixing discount bulk herbs with your own homemade blend.
Homemade Mexican Spice Blend
When we think of herb blends, most people assume that we’re talking about Mediterranean herb blends, with subtler ingredients like parsley or thyme. However, don’t forget that spices come from herbs as well!
So, why not make a nice spice blend for people who like adding a bit of a kick to their vegetables, potatoes, or chicken! The mix we’ll describe here goes great regardless of whether you’re grilling or cooking with a sheet pan. Plus, as is becoming increasingly important, it’s paleo-compliant and gluten-free; so your diet won’t suffer at all if you use it!
Okay, so a word of warning – this blend is quite spicy, and it can get quite hot depending on how you make it. Though, a good thing is that you can customize the levels of heat in its taste by adjusting the amounts of all the different ingredients you put in.
Another positive side is that this spice blend, while savory and exotic, probably won’t require anything even an averagely interested cook has in their pantry.
So, all you’ll have to do is find the ingredients from all around your kitchen, mix them up, and find an air-tight container to store them in. The expiration date for a blend like this is around a year, so you’ll be able to get the maximum out of it.
The Blend Itself
So, let’s look at the different spices found in this blend:
- Cumin & Paprika – these will provide the savory base for the rest of your spice blend
- Coconut or brown sugar – not too much; it’s only supposed to balance out the spicier flavors by adding a subtle sweetness to the mix
- Cloves, ginger, cinnamon – add an interesting twist to the Mexican hotness
- Salt and pepper – all the flavors will be brought to life by these two
- Cayenne – finally, the crucial ingredient for hotness! If you want to tone it down, don’t use too much of this
Enjoy!
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