Alison's Cranberry Chutney

This cranberry chutney is a cheerful and tasty delight. For anyone who remembers fondly the childhood thrill of a colorful canned fruit cocktail, get ready to re-live it. The chutney is easy to make and comes together in a snap with popping cranberries, crunchy celery and almonds with a topping of lemon zest. A melange of flavor and texture, this chutney does justice to the intensity of the cranberries by mixing it in good company. Serve it alongside your holiday meal and make extra! It is great on turkey sandwiches and freezes well.

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Vadouvan Paste

Vadouvan Curry is a spice blend with South Indian and French influences, and the name means "sun-dried spices" in French. This fusion blend can be used just like a curry powder, or made into the iconic Vadouvan paste, a rich blend of onion, shallots and aromatics.Making Vadouvan paste takes a little doing, but is worth the effort. Some some specialty shops sell the paste for $100 per pound! A little does go a long way, and the paste is a wonderful short-cut to add fully developed curry flavors into your dish in an instant. The flavor is bold and subtle at the same time, with a meaty base surrounded by an intricate spice melange. Proportions and methods for making Vadouvan paste vary, we tried out several and liked this one best for its simplicity.Try Vadouvan paste in our Vadouvan Vegetable Pie.

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South Asian Coconut Butter

If you love sauces, and want to try something new, check out Mastering Sauces by Susan Volland. This book is full of inspired and delicious sauces like this coconut "butter," using classic South Asian flavors like Turmeric and Brown Mustard Seed to add a little zing to coconut oil. From the Author: "In South India, coconut oil is the cooking oil of choice. Many dishes are garnished with a drizzle of coconut oil, popped black mustard seeds, crispy fried curry leaves, and frizzled small red onions. I like to stir these wonderful ingredients together like a compound butter and spread or melt it on various foods as the whim strikes: on savory pancakes, pilafs, or grilled whole fish."

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Chermoula

Afro-Vegan by Bryant Terry is a mainstay vegan cookbook on our shelves at home. He researched traditional Southern cooking, going back to its roots in Africa and the Caribbean, but made the recipes vegan. The results are delicious! (Bonus: Every recipe has a song choice, too!) We especially love this recipe. Chermoula is a versatile marinade combining fresh herbs with dried spices, oils and citrus to create layers of flavor. It is used liberally in Algerian, Libyan, Moroccan and Tunisian cooking to flavor fish, seafood, meats and vegetables.

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Heavenly Béchamel and More Fun with Mace Blades

Of the five classic French "mother sauces," béchamel gives us some of the most rich "small sauces". Although béchamel may be the most simple to prepare, that doesn't mean it can't also show off some pretty complex flavors. Taking the time to create layers of flavor in the building blocks of a recipe ensures that the sauces and dishes created from those blocks will build palaces of flavor. As the recipe below demonstrates, there are not many ingredients in the basic béchamel sauce; just milk, roux, and the onion cloute. An onion cloute is an onion studded with cloves and a bay leaf, and although I've seen some recipes call the cloute optional, it is not. The onion cloute is essential, as it is the only flavor added to the milk besides butter. An Italian chef I once worked for insisted that a béchamel was never complete without a bit of nutmeg, an ingredient that was conspicuously absent from béchamel recipes in my traditional French culinary education. Once I tasted his version, I never again made my béchamel without a dusting of freshly ground nutmeg to finish it. Never, that is, until a few weeks ago when we were lucky enough to get the first shipment of mace blades we've been able to secure in years. I had always used a mixture of mace powder as well as a little extra freshly grated nutmeg when making creamed spinach from a béchamel base, but I had been reluctant to to try including mace powder in every batch of my béchamel for fear of the flavor being overpowering. This is a perfect application for mace blades! By adding a nice mace blade or two to my onion cloute, I could get the subtle mace flavor I was looking for without overshadowing other flavors. Béchamel itself is used in many recipes for lasagna, croque madames, or soups, but there are quite a few other sauces that can be derived from a basic béchamel, often by adding just a few ingredients. The French call these "small sauces" and some of my favorites are: Cheddar cheese - add some shredded cheddar cheese, Mustard Powder, and Worcestershire sauce or Worcestershire powder. Mustard sauce - add some prepared mustard. Crème Sauce - just whisk in some heavy cream (I also like to add a heavy pinch of Piment d'Espelette.)

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Harissa and Vegetable Couscous

This recipe has been a long time coming. Hardly anyone who comes in to the shop -- spice masters and novices alike -- can pass over the North African section without some long, lingering sniffs. The spices from that region are so exotic, in their perfect union of sweet-spicy-aromatic. "How do you use the Harissa?" is one of the most common questions following the exclamations of delight. And though my fellow merchants and I have written versions of this recipe on many a business card, envelope, and scratch paper, it's about time it took its place among our favorites here on the blog.The tender-crisp vegetables and fluffy couscous are a perfect vehicle for this sumptuous sauce, our version of the traditional Tunisian red pepper condiment that is so ubiquitous in Northern Africa. The cumin, coriander, and caraway add complexity and depth, with the guajillos lending just enough heat to be interesting without being overwhelming. You can also try the Harissa sauce on grilled meats or eggplant -- or even on halibut!

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Spicy Smoked Paprika Romesco Over Grilled Trout

My first taste of romesco was not, sadly, in Catalonia. I first encountered this crimson sauce in Walla Walla, Washington at a going away party for a dear foodie friend. I prepped ribs, halibut, and vegetables while my compatriot raced around the kitchen preparing “the sauce”. He toasted almonds, blistered heirloom tomatoes, roasted peppers and garlic, and (after several stops in the Cuisinart) it came out like ruby velvet. We served it with the halibut, where the rich sauce found its perfect match in the clean taste of the firm white fish. That meal was my inspiration for this recipe.I grew up in northeast Wisconsin, deep in the Northwoods, on the banks of the Wolf River. The rushing water was my lullaby as an infant, my playground as a child, and where I found my love for food the river continued to provide. Smallmouth bass hid out in the deep holes at the bottoms of rapids. I pulled gallons of crayfish out of the water with a pair of diving goggles and my bare hands. My favorite, though, was the trout. It's delicious, simple to prepare, and environmentally sustainable.You can pick up Idaho-farmed rainbow trout at many grocery stores and they only take a few minutes to prepare. We grilled ours and served it with our very own romesco. We bumped up the sauce’s heat by adding some Spanish Smoked Picante Paprika, while reducing the prep time by using jarred peppers and canned tomatoes. You wind up with a dish that’s impressive enough for date night and simple enough for any week night.

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Aji Mirasol Salsa

Aji Mirasol chiles, the dried form of the Aji Amarillo, are a unique chile pepper absent from the arsenal of many chefs. A staple of Peruvian cuisine, their uniquely fruity flavor make Aji Mirasols a versatile pepper - great in a wide variety of dishes, but especially salsa. The combination of fresh citrus, cilantro and the slightly spicy Aji Mirasol chiles just begs to be eaten with grilled halibut, shrimp, chicken, pork or goat. Try some at your next barbecue and wow your guests with one-of-a-kind South American flair!

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Caribbean Spice Grilled Salsa

Fresh pineapple tastes of a wild summer, its tropical sweetness tempered by raucous acidity. Our favorite way to tame the fruit is to cook it slowly until the pale yellow becomes a rich gold and the sugars take center stage, as in this grilled salsa.Our Caribbean Spice, with the richness of allspice berries, is the perfect blend for this salsa. A bit of extra cumin adds an intense savory note that’s perfect for grilling. The smoky flavor from the grill counterpoints the sweetness of the pineapple and tomato perfectly, leaving you with a well balanced and delicious side for tortilla or plantain chips, as well as chicken or fish.

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