Veronica's Kitchen Day 22: Spicing Things Up

When we talk about Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking, we travel farther and farther East, and South, deep into the regions of aromatic spices. Beyond the paprika and coriander horizon, there exists a world of sumac, cumin, ginger, and handfuls of other exotic spices. Theirs is a fascinating history, dating back to about 2000 B.C. Entire cookbooks have been devoted to herbs and spices, and an entirely new blog could be born out of this. But before I digress here, I want to share briefly, how spices were central to Veronica's kitchen, as well as her culinary adventures.

I like to think that her dishes were only as good as the spices she used.  Too much, and it would be overpowering. Too little, and you'd need to 'kick it up a notch', (as a certain famous celebrity chef once said).  Either way, we were unafraid to give her proper feedback. She would actually ask for it; Did it have enough salt? Would you like more sumac added to yours?  Funny, one thing she'd never ask was: "Is it too peppery?". Perhaps, because more than any other spice, she was a HUGE fan of crushed red hot chili pepper, or more commonly, "Aleppo Pepper".  She loved to use this one liberally.



Sumac

Growing up, there were moments my brother and I would, frankly, get upset over her generous use of hot chili pepper.  We knew she cooked according to her own taste buds, while our taste was still budding and needed time to acquire these crazy flavors. So, we'd tell her, "Veronmama, you added too much-  again!".  Yeah, well, it took many years till she finally got the idea.  I think by then, we actually got used to eating a hotter version of whatever she lovingly prepared. And, as we know, tastes change, the palate becomes more sophisticated, and soon, you too, come to find that you're becoming more and more like your own grandmother...





Spices from Veronica's kitchen that inspired us:

• Sumac, as most often used on 'tavah mante', and the popular Lebanese salad, 'fattoush'.
• Cumin, which is used in many chicken and stew recipes, and also on top of hummus.
• Ginger, which she used in her later years, and subsequently, (and creatively),  used by my mom in dishes like, white bean fasoulia.
• Cinnamon/cloves/nutmeg, used in teas, breakfasts, cookies and cakes.

Below are the two side doors of the kitchen pantry my grandfather constructed.  You may not be able to see all the spices, but the left one was designated for sweet spices and ingredients used for baking. The right door contains a lot of the savory spices she used for fish, lamb, and meat stews.

Finally, the link below takes you to a really cool map that shows spices and herbs according to country of origin:
http://www.schwartz.co.uk/cooks-guide/herbs-and-spice-map.aspx