Put a little spice in your life

As you all know, one of my "happy places" in life is in the kitchen. I have some pantry pickin's to share that you might enjoy, too.
Here's the gang. Some teas, some spices, some other stuff.

I love the holidays mostly because Bigelow and Celestial Seasonings come out with special tea flavors. When I want to give myself a treat, I use one of my cute tea pots and a special cup. The teapot I found at a local tea shop called the Honey Pot. The cup was a gift from Bill because I loved the black inside!
So here are some of Bigelow's offerings this season. The Eggnogg'n is really good, with a bit of sweetener to bring out the flavor. I use Stevia, rather than sugar or an artificial sweetener. My sister-in-who told me about the Eggnogg'n last year, uses two bags for a big flavor. I found that 1 bag worked for me just fine.

The teapot I found at a thriftstore for $1, isn't it a little cutie?! The cup is one of my favorites because of it's shape and color.

The next tea in the stack is Apple Cider, and it's very good, too. It does the job for me in place of the apple cider mixes that are so full of sugar. Again, I use a bit of sweetener with it.

The bottom box is so yummy - I adore gingersnaps, and while this isn't in cookie form, it's a pretty good substitute! Spicy, warm and satisfying.

Here's another tea I recently "discovered". I have several Tazo flavors, and this one is probably my favorite now. The intensity of the orange is wonderful, very uplifting. All of these teas are in individual foil packages, so it's easy to keep a couple in my bag, or coat pockets. I have my tea wherever I go, I just stop at a convenience store and get a cup of hot water for free, and enjoy a refreshing break on the road. It's nice when I am visiting, too, not everyone enjoys herb teas so I'm always prepared!

Changing gear. I have been searching for a good Greek seasoning. There is one called Cavender's that is great, but it has MSG in it, which I avoid. I'm using McCormick's Gourmet Collection Greek Seasoning for now, it's a nice blend. I use it with everything from eggs to soup, fish, chicken, egg salad.

Then I found these wonderful clear-lidded containers. Also from McCormick. They are actually seasoned sea salt, so the herb flavors aren't as pronounced. You use just a pinch of the salt, and it's OK, but I like a real flavor burst from the herbs, and to get that I'd have to bigtime overdose the salt. So while I love the containers, the salt blends aren't the first thing I reach for. I may have to find them a new home.

Looks very good, huh?! Just be careful the first time you use it, so you don't oversalt.

This canister has nothing in it. It just has a wonderful design! Another thrift store find, 25 cents.
I had to show you this Blue Pumpkin. I'll be baking it tomorrow, so we'll see how orangey it is inside....

Isn't this a marvelous painting? I have it on the counter for eye candy, gives me a little smile every time I look at it. Sometimes it is just as important to feed the soul as the body...

As for feeding the body...vitamins are important, too. Carrie found this super product online, it is very potent, with a huge amount of supporting ingredients. A full spectrum of vitamins, minerals, digestive enzymes, crucial oil blend, immune support blend, amino acid blend, digestive enzyme blend, and green super food blend. A real power house. We both use this, and have better stamina, energy, and overall "feel good-ness" (is that a legal word??). It can be ordered at http://www.12inone.com/. It's made by Ultimate Nutraceuticals, I thinks it's about $24 for a month supply, 2 gel caps a day.

Last by not least - a new salsa! This stuff is extraordinary - but only if you like cilantro and green olives! Here I'm having it on turkey patties - it's good on eggs, too. Salpica Cilantro Green Olive Salsa. Try it - you might like it!

Well, there's a sample of some of my new kitchen partners. Cooking can be plain and simple, and it often is here in the cabin kitchen. But a few new kid's on the block keep it interesting. Spicy, even!