Can you imagine what it was like just a few decades ago when many of the cooking resources we enjoy today weren't available to the average home cook?
It's amazing how global cuisine has become so accessible, and I for one am enjoying the fruits of such food globalization. I've come across some very exotic recipes with ingredients I've never seen in the stores, let alone heard of, but have been able to find many of them in the gourmet grocery stores on the internet with veritable ease. Let's face it, our palates have become rather sophisticated and varied.
In the poem, "The Task" (1785), William Cowper writes, "Variety is the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavor."
I have a little twist when it comes to cooking and would offer, “Spice is the variety in cooking, that gives it all its flavor.”
While it's true that many ingredients can stand up on their own especially when they're fresh, unfortunately we aren't always able to buy the best or freshest. Herbs and spices can elevate a simple stew, a humble cut of meat or a good scrambled egg.
The only problem with these little jars of flavor is they have a narrow shelf life which many home cooks don't realize. Admit it, how many of you still have the old, leftover McCormick red and white tins inherited from some relative's pantry? I've even grabbed that old spice tin off the shelf and spooned or shaken a bit into a stew or added some to a cake or two in my early days of cooking. Now I know better.
The problem of expiration usually correlates directly to how much we actually use the spices bought especially for a certain recipe that may never be referenced again. You may need a little cream of tartar to stabilize beaten egg whites, but how many times have I grabbed mine off the shelf?
So what happens to those spices you've only used a couple of times in the last year or so? Not to mention those jars of spice can be quite pricey. It's hard to throw them away because of non use and since I like to try a lot of different, regional cuisines, I have a lot of unfrequented jars on my shelves!
The solution: I try to buy the smallest amounts possible. It would be nice to be able to purchase an ounce here or there, weighted out at my direction, but that isn't something available to me in our stores nearby. I have discovered online spice stores where small quantities in tiny ziplock bags are sold and my favorite happens to be Penzeys which has a wonderful selection of herbs and spices packaged in small, .2oz packages at very reasonable prices. Recently they had a sale and I was able to pick up a couple dozen varieties for $1 a pop.
It's also a great way to try flavor mixes instead of buying individual, expensive, bottles that are easily forgotten once they've been tested. Herbs and spices that come in these flavor mixes are a great way to liven up your dishes and Penzeys has some great ones like the “Chili 3000” which is all you need to make a tasty batch of chili. Now, I buy all my spices online and find I am throwing less of them away.
This recipe for Chicken Pot Pie uses Penzeys French Thyme and Mural of Flavor which are available in the smaller .2oz packages. You could use regular thyme or even fresh thyme but the Mural of Flavor really gives it a good kick with it's combination of other ingredients.
Chicken Pot Pie
4 small russet potatoes
1 package frozen puff pastry
1/2 roasted chicken (dark and white meat) 3 T all purpose flour
3 tablespoons butter
1-1/2 cup chicken stock
1-1/2 cup whole milk
1⁄2 teaspoon dried French thyme
1⁄2 teaspoon Penzeys Mural of Flavor
1 cup frozen peas with carrots
salt & pepper
Debone the cooked chicken and simmer bones in a stock pot just covered with water for one hour. Drain stock and set aside. Peel potatoes, cut in half and cook for 25 minutes, drain. Chop in 1⁄2 inch pieces and place in bottom of 5-inch deep lightly buttered casserole.
Place vegetables in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds to get the excess ice off. Drain. They will still be a bit frozen but they won't impart the moisture from the ice that melts off in the microwave. If you add the vegetables completely frozen to the casserole, it will be a bit watery unless you adjust the thickness of the sauce.
Melt butter in small saucepan on low heat. Stir in flour to make a “roux” which is the basis for the sauce and cook for 4 minutes, stirring slowly but constantly. Slowly add milk and stock mixture stirring each time you add the liquid. It will form a paste at first but will become more liquid as all the milk/stock is added. It is important to keep stirring so that clumps don't form. Add salt, pepper, spices and let the sauce thicken on a slow simmer for about 7 minutes to completely cook the flour and soften the dried herbs. Stir occasionally. If necessary, adjust your sauce so that you get the consistency of a thick, creamed soup (not a pudding consistency) by adding more stock.
Chop all the chicken meat and cut into small pieces and layer over the potatoes. Place frozen veggies on top of the chicken. Pour hot sauce on top and, using a large spoon, gently stir a few times making sure the sauce is evenly distributed.
Cut one sheet puff pastry diagonally in 1-inch strips. Lattice the strips over the casserole and cook at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Turn oven up to 400 degrees and keep baking for 15 minutes to brown the pastry.
Let it rest for about 10 minutes so that the sauce sets up.
