I use the granulated garlic for soups and stews and dried beans. It is super easy and had a good fresh garlic taste that holds up to long cooking in the crockpot. I use fresh for stir frys and pasta and quick cooking stews. I also like the granulated garlic for salad dressing--it is basically dried garlic granules so they rehydrate in the dressing if you store it for a while. But you can also grind it for a powder. I also keep it on hand for times when I am out of fresh. I like that it comes in a small container so I use it up before it looses all its punch. I also keep dried onions around for the same reason, not better than fresh but they add their own layer of flavor when you're out of fresh or are cooking something for a long time. Another thing I get from Penzeys is vanilla sugar, which I love in Chai but I'll bet would be good in coffee if you like that kind of thing. It makes a good gift for a chai lover or sweet coffee drink lover. You can make your own, but I rarely have time to just fix dinner let alone do much homeade gift making anymore. I buy vanilla beans in bulk from Penzeys when I need them, but that is rarely anymore these days. I used to make my own homeade chai but not anymore. The only other thing I would use the whole beans for is vanilla bean marmelade, which I don't think I will have time to make this year, but is great if you're into gourmet marmelades. I also like the sandwich sprinkle, although I hardly ever sprinkle it on a sandwich. It is just a good all around seasoned salt, I use it in soups and salads when they need to be punched up a bit. I got a seasoning gift pack from my good friends, boy was that nice. The two that I use all the time are the Mural of Flavor and the Tuscan Sunset. I have to say I really don't like the Sunny Spain, it tastes oddly acrid to me. Also I don't use the Bavarian very much but that's because I am a vegetarian and I do mostly Mediterannean cooking. I may give it to my mom next time I'm home because she does pork chops a lot cause my dad loves them. It might be good in some kinds of bean soups, but again, when I do a bean dish it is mostly a Mediterannean style one, so I haven't used up the Bavarian seasoning very fast, even though it is good. Another unusual item they sell thru Penzeys is dried Cilantro. It is no way as good as fresh, or even frozen, which is how I do cilantro these days, but if you're out and are in a pinch, (which is me most of the time) it is at least something to add for some amount of flavor. I bought a bunch of pumpkin pie spice and apple pie spice for a chai mix experiment and I still have a lot, but when I finally use it up I'm going to try Penzeys. Same with the cinnamon. I also second their chili powders, they have an amazing array. They have a lot of curry powders too, but I am not that much of a curry fan so can't speak to them. When I do make curry I usually do my own spice blends.

Lpink, Oh, tart cherries! Back in my childhood in Ohio there was a tree in our backyard so I fondly remember wonderful cherry pies, and miss being able to get them here in the south. I love warm cherry pie (ala mode, of course) and was distressed at having to buy cans of tart cherries at an exhorbitant price, with very few cherries floating around in the can. Hmmm. Never really thought about substituting sour cream or yogurt for buttermilk. I hate having to waste most of a quart of buttermilk in order to make my mom's old cake recipe, then noticed cans of powdered buttermilk on the store shelves, so I've been using that for quite a while and don't notice any difference. . . except when I didn't sift out the little hard lumps which occurred while stored in the refrigerator.

Sherry, I don't keep kosher but Nathan does (and Ben's a vegetarian) . I don't ever cook pork though because no one in my house would eat it so although I eat it, I don't cook it or shellfish in my house. Here's the recipe with Nathan's comments below: PUERCO PIBIL 5 Tbsp Annatto Seeds 2 tsp cumin seeds 1 Tbsp Peppercorns 8 allspice pods ½ tsp cloves 2 Habanera Peppers, deseeded & deveined, chopped ½ cup orange juice ½ cup white vinegar 2 Tbsp salt 8 cloves garlic juice of 5 lemons splash of tequila (maybe ½ cup) 5 lb pork butt banana leaves (optional) Grind the spices in a coffee grinder. Put in blender along with orange juice, vinegar, salt and garlic. Liquefy. Add lemon juice & tequila. Cut pork butt into 2" squares and put into large ziplock bag. Poor liquid on top and squish around. Line deep baking pan with banana leaves (or foil). Pour meat on top and top with more banana leaves. Wrap tightly and cover with foil, so as not to allow steam to escape. Roast at 325° for four hours. Serve over rice. Nathan's comments: The peppers didn't add enough heat. He was worried about burning people out, especially those who are not used to spicy food but everyone agreed there was almost no heat. He said next time he'll probably leave in some seeds & veins. Also, it was too lemony so he would use only 3 lemons next time.

Lars, I was surprised too - but Gina is full of surprises! And I remember the entire day very well. Do open the linked pictures which are just a Google search but there are some astounding views of the Teahouse, it is really beautiful inside and out. There is an amazing story of how Boulder was gifted with this and how it was finally constructed here. It is the only traditional Persian Teahouse in the Western Hemisphere. Boulder and Dushanbe have been sister cities since 1982 and there are fund raising efforts every year. There have been a number of visits between the cities. This is from the home page of the organizations website "We sponsor cultural, educational, medical, and business exchanges between Dushanbe and Boulder. Building an environment of trust and cultural understanding - this is what citizen diplomacy is all about." Of course I would love to see you here. I don't know where your friends are in Utah but Salt Lake City is 500 miles from Boulder, an 8 hour drive or an 90 minute flight for as low as $88. round trip. Annie, I don't remember what we were smelling in the picture, but I do remember smelling all the varieties of cinnamon (before I decided on the Korintje) so it could be cinnamon. The tabletops at the teahouse are all different in the ornamental tile borders and all have chess boards in the centers. Tea and chess could occupy patrons for hours in Asia and the Middle East. Lee