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April 2008
New spring vegetable salad recipe
Recipe ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds small new potatoes, halved
14 ounces can broad beans, drained
4 ounces cherry tomatoes
l/2 cup walnut halves
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
4 tablespoons olive oil
Pinch of sugar
8 o...
March 2008
Fried zucchini sticks recipe
Recipe ingredients:
4 zucchini
1 cup flour
1 cup bread crumbs
2 garlic cloves
6 fresh basil leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried basil
3/4 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
2 eggs
3 cups oil
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Recipe method:
Slice z...
November 2007
Orange spice pickled eggs recipe
Recipe ingredients:
8 hard cooked eggs
1 1/2 cups white vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 can, 6 ounces, frozen orange juice concentrate
1 cinnamon stick, broken
8 whole cloves, crushed
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Recipe method:
Arrange eggs in 1 quart jar with...
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October 2007
Golden gate potato casserole recipe
Recipe ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chives
1 pint sour cream
1/8 teaspoon pepper
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Recipe method:
Melt butter and cheese in a saucepan.
Remove from heat and add sour cream...
September 2007
Raspberry angel cheese cake recipe
Recipe ingredients:
1, 10 inch, angel food cake
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
1 cup milk
2 cups whipped cream
Fresh raspberries
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Recipe method:
...
June 2007
Sugarplum bundt cake recipe
Recipe ingredients:
1 1/2 cups butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup chopped candied cherries
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 small box instant lemon pudding mix
6 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
Vanilla-buttercream frosting mix
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April 2007
Madeleine cinnamon delights recipe
Recipe ingredients:
2 eggs
1 cup white sugar
1 cup white flour
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup butter melted and cooled
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
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Recipe method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F...
Herbs and spices reference
The International Standards Organization (ISO) defines spices and condiments as vegetable products or mixtures thereof, free from extraneous matter, used for flavouring, seasoning and imparting aroma in foods.
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Webster describes spi...
Spice flavours
Important flavour compounds found in culinary herbs and other spice plants are:
eugenol (allspice, cinnamon, cassia, clove)
piperine (black pepper)
gingerol (ginger)
myristicin (nutmeg)
turmerone (turmeric)
vanillin (vanilla)
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The...
Quality specifications
Within the herb and spice industry, the terms authenticity and quality are sometimes at odds. Authenticity can be defined as freedom from adulteration, most obviously in the sense of absence of foreign bodies or extraneous matter, but it also suggests ...
International quality specifications
Herbs and particularly spices have always been highly-priced commodities and vulnerable to adulteration. In consequence simple standards evolved early. As an example, in 1180 in the United Kingdom in the reign of Henry II, a ‘peppers’ guild...
American Spice Trade Association (ASTA)
The American Spice Trade Association (ASTA) was established at the beginning of the twentieth century. Given its long involvement in regulating the quality of herbs and spices entering the USA, ASTA standards are recognised and endorsed by the United S...
Quality tests
There are a number of other tests used in the industry, some of which are for specific herbs or spices. Some of the best-known and widely used are:
Piperine levels. The test is specifically for peppers of the piper species. This involves extraction me...
Quality assurance systems
Quality assurance (QA) systems for raw materials should be planned and documented using Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles. Any quality assurance system should start with a comprehensive raw material specification agreed with...
Essential oils
Essential oil fractions and oleoresins derived from spices are used widely in the food industry to provide flavour. Some of the main essential oils and their origins are shown in the table below.
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Determining the quality and purity ...
Essential oils adulteration problem
Adulteration has been a serious problem for many years in the area of essential oils. Undoubtedly the economic incentive to blend synthetic flavourants with natural oil is too high to resist. Some essential oils naturally contain a single compound at h...
Organic spices
Global awareness of health and environmental issues is spreading fast in recent years, especially in the developed countries. Sustainability in production has become the prime concern in agriculture development. The organic method of farming is the bes...
Organic spices standards and certification
The most significant factors distinguishing organic farming from other methods of sustainable agriculture are the existence of production and processing standards, and certification procedures.
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Standards are developed by private as...
Organic spices quality
To sell organic spices, quality considerations are most important. Since no chemicals are used for fertilization, control of pest and diseases, elimination of weeds and growth acceleration, some buyers fear that the microbial population in the end prod...
Organic spices world trade
No reliable published data are available on global trade in organic agricultural products. The International Trade Centre, Geneva has, however, carried out a market survey in Europe (Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Austr...
Future trends organic spices
The organic spice trade is of particular interest to many developing countries growing spices. It should be noted that the initial growth in the organic spice sector is encouraging. Some organic food experts visualize that insufficient supply of organi...
Aniseed production
Anise is cultivated in Turkey, Egypt, Spain, Russia, Italy, India, Greece, Northern Africa, Argentina, Malta, Romania and Syria. Anise is primarily exported from Turkey, and also from Egypt and Spain in particular. From an industrial standpoint, the qu...
Aniseed main uses in food processing
Aniseed’s long popularity throughout so many lands stems from its many uses: flavourant, culinary, household, cosmetic and medicinal.
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While the entire plant is fragrant, it is the fruit of anise, commercially called aniseed, ...
Aniseed functional properties
The pharmaceutical data mentioned in the literature mainly refer to anise oil and anethole. Anethole is structurally related to the catecholamines adrenaline, noradrenaline and dopamine. Anise oil and anethole have a number of functional properties:
a...
Aniseed toxicity and allergy
Aniseed contains anethole and estragole which are structurally related to safrole, a known hepatotoxin and carcinogen. Although both anethole and estragole have been shown to cause hepatotoxicity in rodents, aniseed is not thought to represent a risk t...
