In looking at recipes for cheddar bay biscuits, I discovered that I needed Old Bay seasoning. (Well, duh, cheddar BAY biscuits, old BAY seasoning.)
Old Bay Seasoning would be one of those spice blends that I wouldn't use particularly much, as I don't cook much seafood. So, while I've always liked their colorful canisters in the supermarket, I've never actually bought any OBS.
But, I was sure I had most of the ingredients to make some sort of version of OBS, and could conjure up something along the lines of the famed Red Lobster biscuits.
Next I looked up a recipe for Old Bay Seasoning, and lo and behold, I had some form of every single ingredient listed. Now how often does that happen?!
So, I made a tiny batch of OBS in my spice grinder (coffee grinder, repurposed), and used some to top my biscuits. Yum, they were good! I'll be making these biscuits a few times in the near future.
Now, the Old Bay brand of Old Bay Seasoning is made from 18 different herbs and spices. The recipe that I used only had 8 different herbs and spices. But my homemade version was very tasty. And making just a small amount, is about right for my use.
There's not much to making this spice blend. You measure the ingredients into your coffee/spice grinder, and whirr to a powder. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 years, for best flavor.
Here's what I used:
the equivalent of 2 bay leaves (I fished out a bunch of bay leaf pieces from my pickling spice blend)
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns (I've been meaning to use those up)
just over an 1/8 teaspoon of whole cardamom seeds
1/8 teaspoon ground mustard
1 or 2 whole cloves (I used 2 very small whole cloves)
3/8 teaspoon paprika
just over 1/16 teaspoon ground mace
This made a little over 1 tablespoon of Old Bay Seasoning. A recipe of Cheddar Bay biscuits only uses 1/4 teaspoon of OBS, so it looks like I've got enough to make several batches of those tasty biscuits.
About whole spices as opposed to ground spices
Whole spices can be more economical, in the long run. In particular, if you don't use that spice very often. Whole spices retain more of their essence for a longer period of time, than ground. Up to twice as long.
If I don't think I'll use a spice very often, I try to buy what I'll need, but often end up with extra. It could be a year or more until I need that spice again.
The other issue I've encountered with pre-ground spices is some of them can become cake-y (due to absorbing moisture -- my ground cloves became cake-y to the point I had to throw them out).
Ground spices are recommended to be used within a couple of years. Whereas, whole spices can retain flavor for up to 5 or 6 years, depending on variety (cloves, cinnamon and pepper can last a very long time, if whole). Yet they taste, so "fresh" when you finally grind them.
A good example for myself is my whole nutmegs. I bought these about 5 years ago, and "shave" off a tiny amount for recipes, as I need. They taste as good today, as they did when I bought them. So, for spices I don't use often, whole spices have better keeping quality. And I can often find them in the bulk, scoop-your-own section and just buy a tiny baggie of what I need.
The other issue I've encountered with pre-ground spices is some of them can become cake-y (due to absorbing moisture -- my ground cloves became cake-y to the point I had to throw them out).
Ground spices are recommended to be used within a couple of years. Whereas, whole spices can retain flavor for up to 5 or 6 years, depending on variety (cloves, cinnamon and pepper can last a very long time, if whole). Yet they taste, so "fresh" when you finally grind them.
A good example for myself is my whole nutmegs. I bought these about 5 years ago, and "shave" off a tiny amount for recipes, as I need. They taste as good today, as they did when I bought them. So, for spices I don't use often, whole spices have better keeping quality. And I can often find them in the bulk, scoop-your-own section and just buy a tiny baggie of what I need.
Grinding whole spices can be done in a small food processor, a coffee grinder or with mortar and pestle. If I'm just crushing some celery seed to add to a tomato sauce or soup, I'll use the mortar and pestle. For larger amounts of spice, or if I want a finer grind, then I use the coffee grinder. I don't wash this out, but use a pastry brush to sweep out the grinder after each use. (If I'm going to be grinding something like granulated sugar into superfine, then I'll wipe the grinder out, and maybe grind a tablespoon of corn meal first, just to clean it out.)
I do opt for convenience with the spices that I use frequently, such as ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground mustard, ground cumin, curry powder and chili powder. I buy these ground spices in the large canisters from Cash & Carry, at a price that beats buying whole spices, in some cases. (Whole cinnamon sticks can be pricey, if I just want to grind them up to use ground.)
So, my spice cupboard contains a mix of whole and ground spices. I do love that I keep as many varieties in whole form as I do. I am often pleasantly surprised that I have just about every spice called for in recipes.
