I agree about the dill being happiest during a short window of time in the Spring - fortunately a few plants will provide enough to last us through most of the down time. Since there is so much more than I can use fresh during the growing season, what I do is pick lots of sprigs & freeze them whole, packed pretty tightly into a wide mouth glass jar. The leaves & stems are simple to add to whatever I'm cooking; they crumble easily while frozen & the stems can be chopped up, if desired. Glass is better than plastic, IMO, because it's more airtight, so things don't get stale.

What I like about Penzeys is they sell almost all of their spices in the little 1/4 cup jars, which really helps me keep my spices fresh, since single-me doesn't use up spices that fast, especially the less common ones. I also love some of Penzeys unique blends. But I have to pay shipping so not much of a cost savings so I only order things once and a while from there, specialty items, etc. I can also get good spices locally so it's all good. I don't throw spices out too often, I just use them a little more liberally if they are older. Chile powders seem to hold up relatively well for me, I don't go thru the hotter stuff very fast. Paprika, on the other hand, looses its delicate flavor fast. But who cares if you are just using paprika for the color. I do some N. African/Middle Eastern and Hungarian cooking and I actually use paprika for the taste. As for having little jars of weird spices on the counter, I hear ya! But in those situations I try to find recipes I like using that ingredient. I love to experiment in the kitchen. Tumeric is so good for you, I have developed a repertoire of recipes using it. BTW, that's another spice that doesn't do well sitting on the shelf for long periods of time. I think that's why a lot of people don't think tumeric has much taste, because the taste it does have seems to fade faster than I can use it up. I like tumeric with rice and peas or spinach. It's the poor man's saffron.

Jkayd Spice stack makes several versions. BBB carries the smaller one. Mine is the larger version although they were talking about an even larger version. I ordered mine on-line - one of the few things that were not local but at the time it was a new company. One thing to remember - always return the tray to the closed position. I forgot a few times and closed the door on the open tray. I knocked the tray off the stack and lost one spice jar lid on the landing. The rack popped back into the stack easily. - pretty impressive. I just went to their website. They now have for sizes. Mine has 4 columns and they added a 2 column and 5 column version in addition to the original 3 column and the classic 4 column. It also looks like BBB and SLT both carry the 5 banger I put mine on the second shelf so the UCL weren't cooking the herbs and spices. It fit perfectly on my bottom shelf but put on second shelf - so I have a bit of space above for a couple tins Some day, I will add the labels but for now they are just alpha so it is easy to make changes. Good luck This post was edited by a2gemini on Sat, Dec 6, 14 at 15:58

Terri, Lars' Algerian chicken is very, very good. It can be served hot or at room temperature, I served it at room temp for the Michigan Run and there was none left. I bought sumac especially for that recipe and it was well worth it. I did mine in the oven, the instructions for that are at the end of the recipe. Algerian Chicken 1 whole chicken 4 cloves of garlic 1-1/2 tbsp Kosher salt 1 teaspoon of sumac 1/2 teaspoon of sesame seeds 1/2 tsp coriander seeds 1/2 tsp fenugreek 3/4 tsp cumin 3 tablespoons of butter, room temperature 1 tbsp minced Thai basil (or 1/2 tsp fennel) 2 lemons 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil Freshly ground black pepper extra herbs, 1 tsp each minced fresh oregano and basil, optional 4-5 sprigs of thyme Place the chicken in a roasting pan with a rack. Line bottom of pan with aluminum foil for easier clean up. Slide your fingers under the breasts to separate the skin from the meat, turn the chicken over and do the same with the thighs. Mash the garlic with 1-1/2 tablespoons of salt in a mortar and pestle or finely chop the garlic and incorporate the salt into it with the side of your knife or back of a spoon. Add the sumac, sesame seeds, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, and cumin and mix to pulverize the seeds. Add butter and basil and combine to mix. Tuck pieces of the butter into the "pockets" under the skin. Squeeze the juice of one lemon allover the chicken, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle freshly ground black pepper. Season the cavity with pepper and tuck in the lemon halves and more herbs into the cavity if desired. Place the chicken on the barbeque and cover, leaving vents fully open to maintain heat. Baste the chicken every 15 minutes alternating water (spritz) and pan drippings. Midway through cooking turn the chicken 90° or 180°, depending on how uneven the heat is. Continue frequent basting. The cooking time for a 3-1/2 pound bird is about 1-1/2 hours, depending on how hot your fire is. Cook to an internal temperature of 160°, measured in the thigh. Let rest covered about 30 minutes before carving. Squeeze fresh lemon juice into the roasting juices, and pour into a gravy boat. Add salt, if needed. Serve with roasted potatoes, green salad, and French or Italian bread. *If roasting in oven, start oven at 450° for at least 20 minutes, and you can reduce it to 350° for the remainder of the roasting time. (based on recipe from Chef Farid Zadi) Annie