Lynn Smythe's Blog
Posted by Lynn Smythe
Tiramisu, AKA Tuscan Trifle, is a traditional Italian dessert which may have originated in Siena, which is a north west Italian province located in Tuscany.
When my mother visited Italy years ago, back in the late 1980's, she was introduced to this wonderful dessert at many of the various restaurants she dined in. Each town she and her companion visited had its own variation of this incredible dessert.
If you are having trouble finding the mascarpone cheese you can substitute cream cheese. Classic tiramisu is made with lady fingers which I can not locate in my local grocery stores. The margherite cookies make an acceptable substitute.
A classic recipe for tiramisu can be found in my article Traditional Italian Meal. I have come up with this recipe as my salute to this traditional Italian treat. In recent years this treat has been adapted into a variety of other desserts including cake, cookies and puddings. My local Costco even sells a chocolate flavored tiramisu, although my husband and I don't enjoy it as much as the traditional recipe.
Information on the history of tiramisu can be found on the What's Cooking America and Anna Maria Volpi websites. See the article The Many Culinary Uses of Cinnamon for additional information on cooking with this spice.
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
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Posted by Lynn Smythe
The Herbs & Spices topic is less than one month old. Prior to this time articles that had to do with cooking with herbs and spices were posted to various sections of Suite101.
If you enjoy the topic of herbs and spices, here are some additional articles that can be found on Suite101 that you will find interesting.
Spice Pairings and Storage Tips
Herbs and Spices for Good Health
The Many Culinary Uses of Cinnamon
Turmeric An Exotic Spice
Chive Blossoms and Edible Flowers
Snickerdoodles Recipe
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
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Posted by Lynn Smythe
I love cooking with an assortment of herbs and spices. Many of my culinary creations use a variety of ingredients commonly found in Thai-style cuisine.
Here are some of the herbs and spices commonly used in Thai cuisine. My future articles will feature many of these ingredients. If you have questions about any of these items, feel free to ask and I’ll answer you as soon as possible.
Spices
- Black pepper
- Cardamom
- Chili peppers
- Cinnamon
- Cloves
- Coriander
- Cumin
- Fennel
- Galangal
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Nutmeg
- White pepper
- Tamarind
- Turmeric
Herbs
- Betel leaves
- Cilantro
- Holy basil
- Kaffir lime leaves
- Lemon grass
- Mint
- Pandanus leaves
- Thai basil
Note: Coriander and cilantro come from the same plant. Cilantro refers to the fresh leaves while coriander refers to the dried seeds which are usually ground into a fine powder.
The Food of Thailand
If you are looking for authentic Thai recipes I highly recommend the book The Food of Thailand; A Journey for Food Lovers by Lulu Grimes and Oi Cheepchaiissara. This book, which is 296 pages long was published by Whitecap Books in 2005. The book is full of tons of color photographs showing the various ingredients used in the recipes along with photos of most of the finished foods. Recipes are divided into 11 sections including soups, salads, curries, stir-fries, vegetables and dessert.
Excerpt from the book: “The most significant addition to Thai cuisine came not from Asia but from South America, via Europe. In the sixteenth century the Portuguese introduced what was to become one of the hallmarks of the cuisine, the chili.”
Articles of Interest See the article Ethnic Spice Blends for some of the seasonings and spices that are used in Indian, Chinese and African cooking.
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
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Posted by Lynn Smythe
I like to make my own herb and spice blends. Blends that you buy in the store may have high concentrations of salt and other unwanted ingredients. And you never know how fresh the store bought seasonings may be. By making my own blends, in small amounts as needed, I know that they are fresh.
Here are a couple of seasoning blends that are traditionally used around the holiday season.
Sweet Spice Blend
This blend works well in apple and pumpkin pie recipes. This recipe makes approximately 3 tablespoons of sweet spice blend.
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cloves
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon allspice
Poultry Seasoning
Use this seasoning blend to flavor chicken, turkey, duck or Cornish game hens. It also makes a great addition to any kind of stuffing that is served along with your poultry dishes.
- 1 teaspoon celery seed
- 1 teaspoon marjoram
- 1 teaspoon sage
- 1 teaspoon savory
- 1 teaspoon thyme
For additonal information on herb and spice mixtures see the following articles:
Ethnic Spice Blends; Harissa, Garam Masala, Curry, Chinese Five Spice and More
Traditional Spice Blends; Cinnamon Sugar, Lemon Pepper, Poultry Seasoning and More
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
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Posted by Lynn Smythe
Herbs & Spices is one of the newest topics on Suite101. It went live on November 29th. Before that time, any culinary articles related to herbs and spices that I wrote were added to one of the other Food & Drink topics.
Now that I am the feature writer for Herbs & Spices I wanted to provide links to these earlier articles for anyone that is interested. Some of my other culinary articles which feature herbs in the recipes:
Traditional Italian Meal Quick Bread Recipes
Thanksgiving Feast for Vegetarians
Here are links to some of my other articles featuring herbs. Although they are not about cooking with herbs and spices, they should appeal to anyone with an interest in herbalism.
Propagating Herbs; Starting New Plants from Stem Cuttings
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
Posted by Lynn Smythe
I am a book addict and currently have over 350 books in my personal library. My collection includes various topics including many gardening, cooking, jewelry making and decorating titles. I have a vast array of herb books covering subjects such as aromatherapy, incense, alternative medicine along with lots of cookbooks featuring herbs and spices.
When I first became interested in growing my own herbs, and using them in recipes, I had a difficult time getting used to how different the fresh herb plant looked compared to the little jars of dried herbs I was used to purchasing at the grocery store. I perused my local library and bookstores to look for a good reference book to help me identify herbs and spices.
If you can only afford one herbal reference book, I highly recommend Herbs & Spices; The Cooks Reference by Jill Norman. This book, which was published in 2002 by DK Publishing, is 336 pages long. The book is divided into two main sections, one on herbs and the other on spices. Each herb and spice is given 1-4 pages of coverage including lots of full color photographs.
For example basil, which is featured on pages 30-35, shows 13 different varieties of basil. Each herb and spice page has information on how it tastes, which parts of the plant are used in cooking, how to buy and store the fresh herb or dried spice, how to grow your own along with a variety of common culinary uses. The back of the book contains a few recipes for creating herb mixtures, spice mixtures, sauces, condiments and marinades. There are even a few recipes included for making soup, entrée, dessert and side dishes featuring herbs and spices to help get you started on your herbal culinary journey.
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
Posted by Lynn Smythe
Hello,
Thank you for visiting Herbs & Spices on Suite101!
My name is Lynn Smythe, I am the new feature writer for Herbs & Spices. I have been an enthusiastic home chef since I was a young child. Over 20 years ago I started growing my own herbs and vegetables in my organic, raised bed gardens.
Writing for Herbs & Spices allows me to combine my two interests into one exciting topic. You can view my profile page for additional information on my background and the various writing projects I have worked on.
If you have any questions or suggestions for articles you would like to see covered you can contact me via email.
Take care,
Lynn Smythe
I also maintain the I Love Herbs blog which covers a variety of non-food, herb related topics including alternative medicine, herbal supplements and magical herbalism. You may also be interested in my Herb Gardens blog, which covers all aspects of growing, harvesting and using herbs.
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