Curry It Up

It has been a while since I have posted a new recipe.  Rest assured that this is not because I have not been cooking.  Rather, circumstances have been such that my husband has been eating a lot of soft foods and I have been fighting seasonal allergies and a bit of a sore throat.  I am sure that we will both be back to 100% soon enough and I will be back to my kitchen experiments as usual. 

In the meantime, I have been stepping out on my beloved garlic and instead have been having an intense affair with curry powder.  Now, before I go any further, let me make it clear that shaking a little curry powder on some food does not a curry make.  Curry and curry powder are two different beasts entirely.  Generally speaking, curry is something akin to a gravy, simmered in Indian spices and true curry pretty much never involves the use of curry powder.  If you want authentic curry, stop by a really good Indian restaurant.  Curry powder, on the other hand, is a combination of ground spices, which usually include coriander, turmeric, cumin, fenugreek, and chili peppers.  Curry powder as we know it was something of a marketing ploy devised by the British in the mid-18^th century to sell exotic spice blends. 

Now, back to my love affair with curry powder.  When a much younger version of me purchased my first jar of curry powder, I had no idea what it would taste like.  In all honestly, I was not very fond of the flavors and I could barely choke down the dish I had prepared.  Not wanting to be wasteful, as time went on, I began adding little bits of curry powder to all kinds of dishes – a dash on a sandwich, a pinch on pasta, a little sprinkle on roasted meats.  During this time, a funny thing happened:  I developed a taste for curry powder and I began craving it.  On the occasions that I used it, I began adding it in larger amounts.  Then I began adding curry powder to everything from avocado to zucchini and everything in between. 

In the past week, I have added curry powder to roasted chicken, potatoes and even a salad.  Sometimes I add it all by itself and other times, I combine it with other spices.  I love that with only a small amount of curry powder, I can transform a simple dish into something that tantalizes with exotic scents and flavors. 

Spices are a way of life for me.  In my little kitchen, I have an entire cupboard dedicated to them and on occasion, I like to open the door and breathe in the mingling scents.  I have my favorites and a few I am not so fond of and I love to use them all.  I will always love garlic above all else but I will never feel guilty about stepping out with curry powder.

What are your favorite spice blends?  Comment below and let me know!