M. Suzanne Terry

In our house on the farm, all the spices were in the cabinet closest to the stove. You open up the door, and there are a couple of Lazy Susans there, laden with every herb, spice, and flavor enhancer you could ever want.

I used to keep all my spices in a cabinet, too, but then somewhere online (probably Pinterest), I saw a picture of a spice drawer, and my brain practically sparkled. So now I have a drawer that I can open and see everything I typically use right there. So convenient! I keep way more than this on hand, and my own blends don’t fit, so they’re still in the cabinet. But the spice drawer is one of the best things I’ve done to my kitchen in a long time.

I add some type of seasoning to everything I make (beyond salt and pepper). I started building my own herb and spice collection when I moved into my first apartment. We had a friend who made us everything bagels by just adding random things from our spice cabinet. It’s my favorite way to make a bagel.

But my experimental tendencies started long before that. Mom usually stuck to whatever the food or recipe traditionally called for, but Dad likes playing around with different flavor profiles. Almost every conversation we have eventually gravitates toward food and the new things we’re trying.

Even when I’m shopping, I keep an eye out for spice mixes and marinades he (or my brother-in-law) might like. For my own usage, I usually like to make my own because most pre-made spice mixes are too salty for my taste. I leave out salt and pepper because I add those to taste depending on whether I’m cooking for myself – little to no salt and lots of pepper – or for others – a reasonable bit of both (or if i’m cooking for my friend Steph, no pepper at all anywhere near the dish).  There are several different blends I mix and keep on hand, including…

• Italian – oregano, basil, thyme, garlic powder, rosemary
• Spicy Italian – same as above but with cayenne pepper
• Roasted veggies – garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, basil, coriander
• Taco seasoning – chili powder, onion flakes, paprika, cumin, cayenne, oregano

I use curry powder and garam masala pretty often, too, but I just add a little kick (i.e., chili powder or cayenne) to blends that I get at the farmer’s market or grocery store and call it a day. One of these days, I’m going to get my hands on my own copy of Padma Lakschmi’s Encyclopedia of Spices and Herbs, though, and…I may have to clear out another drawer.

What are your favorite herb/spice blends?

I’m writing about food and home and how they connect this month.

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I’m pretty sure my mom baked all year long when we were growing up. We always had muffins we could warm up from the freezer for a quick breakfast, and I can’t imagine that we went too many weeks without biscuits or banana bread or something. But I just cannot fathom heating my whole apartment up by turning on the oven when the outside temps reach the upper 80s and above. I cannot take the heat; ergo, I stay out of the kitchen. I mean, I stick around long enough to throw some things in the Instapot or slow cooker or do a quick stir fry, but otherwise, for about half the year, my diet is mostly sandwiches, salads, and charcuterie (whetting your appetite for a future post here).

One of my favorite smells, however, is something baking in the oven. I love that first moment of walking into a bakery. One of the weird, lovely things about living in an apartment is that I get to smell what my neighbors bake, too. It’s a very soothing, very homey aroma, and I adore it.

So by the time it gets cool enough, I usually have a list of the things I’m excited to bake. One of the first things that goes in my oven every year is beer bread.

You can use a mix to make beer bread, but you don’t really need it. It’s just as easy from scratch. All the mix contains is self-rising flour and sugar, and I prefer my beer bread without the sugar anyway. So you just mix 3 cups of self-rising flour with a beer, plop it into a standard 9×5 nonstick loaf pan (or six mini-bundts, if you want to be cute about it, which I absolutely do), pour a ridiculous amount of melted butter over the top, and bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

“But Suzanne,” you say. “I don’t keep self-rising flour in my pantry.” Well, if you have some basic baking ingredients in your cupboard (and if you at least keep all-purpose flour, you probably do), you can amend this easily. Just take regular flour and mix in 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of salt for each cup of flour. Voila – self-rising flour.

It’s also a good idea to sift the flour before mixing in the beer. This helps you avoid a dense-biscuit situation. I faux-sift, and it turns out great. Instead of scooping the measuring cup, packing the flour in, leveling it, and then sifting it, I just spoon it into the cup bit by bit until it’s full and don’t pack it. I never understood packing the flour just to turn around and immediately unpack it by sifting (if you do understand and want to share in the comments, I would love to learn that). But the spoon method has never failed me, so that’s probably what I’m going to keep doing.

Without further ado – here’s an easy way to make your home smell delicious.

Ingredients

• 1 stick salted butter (maybe – see note at the end)
• 3 cups self-rising flour
• 1 beer (I typically use some sort of wheat ale, but feel free to experiment with your favorite)

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Melt the butter. Brush the pan you’re baking in with part of it. Yes, I do this even with my non-stick pans so that the texture on the bottom of the bread comes out similar to the texture on the top. Set the rest of the butter aside.
3. In a bowl, mix the flour and beer.
4. Transfer the dough to the pan, leaving at least an inch at the top for it to rise.
5. Pour the remaining butter over the top.
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean (albeit slightly buttered).

Most beer bread recipes will not call for this much butter, but I do it this way because 1) I love butter and 2) I can just eat the bread as is without wanting to add anything to it. I also like the almost-crunch it gives to the outside when you surround the loaf with it before baking. If you prefer a more traditional bread texture, though, simply use unsalted butter, reduce the amount to half a stick, and add the melted butter to the flour and beer when you mix them together, saving a little to brush over the top for browning purposes. In this case, you can also skip greasing the pan (assuming your pan is non-stick – otherwise definitely grease the pan).

One might argue that you truly only need half a stick of butter even if you do pour it over the top. It will still give you that nice crunch. My only concern is…why on earth would you deny yourself extra butter?

What is your favorite thing to bake?

I’m talking about all the delicious things that remind me of home this month.

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My family has an interesting quirk in that, while so many of us grow many of our own vegetables (or trade with neighbors who do), we often resort to canned or jarred sauces. For example, most of the sauce for spaghetti we ate when I was growing up was premade and shelf-stable. Given how many other things we made from scratch, this gave me the idea that sauce was difficult or time-consuming to make.

I was so happy when I figured out I was mistaken.

These days, I make most of my own sauces. Some of them are quick; some of them are slow-cooked and 100% worth the time and effort.

A good tomato sauce can be either.

When I have the time, my favorite way to make a basic marinara is with a bunch of fresh tomatoes, peeled and roasted. Roast some onions, garlic, and a little red pepper. I add some seasonings (see below regarding my own preferences), and then slow-cook it on low for 3-4 hours. So good.

The quicker version is also no slouch, and it only takes about 10-15 minutes.

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• As much garlic as you want
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 large (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes (the fire-roasted kind if they’re in stock)
• Italian seasoning blend, to taste [you can buy this if you want, but if you have a good herb/spice collection, it’s just as easy to mix your own. Mine contains oregano, basil, thyme, parsley, and red pepper flakes.]
• A couple of shakes of cayenne pepper (probably about 2 teaspoons), or to taste
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Fresh basil or parsley to serve (optional)

Steps:

1. Heat olive oil over medium heat.
2. Saute the garlic and onion together until a little soft (about 3 minutes).
3. Pour in the tomatoes and let it warm up to a simmer.
4. Add seasonings. You can do what you want, but my advice is don’t be stingy. Mine has a good layer of green across the top of the sauce before I stir it in.
5. Add cayenne to give it a little kick. If you’re feeding some sensitive mouths, I recommend starting with a little (1/2 teaspoon), stirring, simmering, and then testing to see if you want to add more. You can, of course, leave it out altogether if you want.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. After the tomatoes have been simmering with the spices for about 5 minutes, it is ready to serve. Use it to top pasta or any other time you need a tomato sauce. It’s a particularly delicious sauce to use when you’re making Eggs in Purgatory (lean toward more cayenne) or Shakshuka (add paprika and roasted red peppers).

What’s your favorite type of sauce to make?

I’m talking about food and family and all the related quirks this month.

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