When I think of saffron, the first thought that comes to mind is expensive, and second, pretty dainty threads of orange, red, and gold. These warm colorful threads are the stigmas of a flower of the crocus family which originated in west Asia and grows in Kashmir and Turkey, and in Mediterranean countries – the largest quantity these days comes from Spain. The use of saffron is very much a part of cuisines of these regions.

Saffron has a delicate fragrance. I find it not-so-easy to pin-point its flavor. For me, it has a somewhat sour, mostly sweet-bitter taste. Some say it’s bitter, or that it has a bitter, honey-like taste. It has also been described as having a bright metallic flavor. The taste is very individual I’d say.

Whatever flavor/s your taste buds detect, you don’t want to actually taste much saffron in a dish. Great chefs say if you can taste the saffron in a dish, there is too much. Use saffron with a light hand, like a pinch, or no more than is needed for a recipe. You’ve probably discovered for yourself a little saffron goes a long way.

But don’t let this or the price sway you from including saffron as staple spice in your kitchen. Have some handy to make great Indian, Mediterranean, Moroccan, and Spanish recipes. Paella is a popular dish using saffron, as well as curry dishes and desserts.

Preparing Saffron
It adds beautiful coloring of golden to pale yellow and give an equally beautiful taste and aroma to recipes. Saffron strands need to be soaked in a little warm water or nut/seed milk to infuse and bring out its gorgeous color. An alternative to release its aroma, flavor, and color is to grind it into a powder, and all you need to do is add the appropriate amount to your recipe – no further extraction is necessary.

Storing Saffron
If stored properly, this precious spice can have a good long shelf life. Keep it stored tightly sealed and in the refrigerator.

The Giveaway
Generally on the last day of the month our monthly herb of the month drawing takes place. The month of June had been kind of hectic and our herb of the month posted on the last day of June. So, this giveaway will run in July until Saturday, July 24th at 11:59pm PST.

If you’ve never or have always wanted to try saffron or have run out and need more, enter this drawing for a chance to receive organic saffron, courtesy of our sponsor Mountain Rose Herbs. Leave a comment below sharing tips, suggestions, ideas, your experience using saffron, or simply your desire to try it. On Sunday, July 25th, one of your names will be drawn from the comment section of this post, and Mountain Rose Herbs will send a gift of saffron to the lucky participant.

Are you on Twitter?
For extra entry points, copy this message below and retweet:

@RawEpicurean offers a gift-the most expensive spice in the world SAFFRON courtesy @MtnRoseHerbs Enter drawing here http://bit.ly/aHjDIB

I love my Kyocera knives and kitchen tools and I like introducing people to them. Having good quality cutlery is a must and the Kyocera brand is a part of my cutlery collection. I also own their ceramic peeler, mandoline, and the everything mill. When house guest or people from raw food classes I’ve taught try my Kyocera knife, they love it. It slices effortlessly. No roughed up tomatoes with this knife. It slices a tomato like a dream, and dicing, and chopping fruits, vegetables, fresh herbs, etc., is sheer ease.

The ceramic peeler is lovely. Its blade has the same qualities and benefits as the ceramic knife. Peeling fruits and vegetables is also effortless.

What’s so else besides ease of slicing and peeling makes these ceramic kitchen tools so great? The ceramic blade is made of zironium oxide making it ultra-sharp, beating most stainless steel knives in the sharpness department and can last for years without sharpening. It’s stain-proof, rust-proof, nonstick, light weight, has no metallic taste or smell, won’t alter the appearance of food, and is super easy to clean. Both are dishwasher safe.

I’d like to introduce you to this knife and peeler. I have one of each to giveaway: one 5″ easy-to-grip ceramic knife, and one advanced ceramic peeler!!

To enter the drawing, tell us why you would like this set in the comments below.

Are you on Twitter? If so, for extra entry points, copy this message below and retweet:

@RawEpicurean is giving away Kyocera ceramic set: 1 ceramic knife & 1 ceramic peeler. Enter the drawing here http://bit.ly/d6FMZ1

This drawing ends Saturday, July 24th 11:59pm PST. Best of luck. Thanks for participating.

P.s. If you already own Kyocera ceramic kitchen products, I’d love to hear your feedback. Thanks.

I like orange skinned apricots – the ones that are fresh ripe and sweet – but last summer I spotted two varieties that really intrigued me. One is called Angelcot White Apricot and the other Black Velvet Apricot, both captured my curiosity and I had to buy them no matter what the cost, believe me they weren’t cheap.

I remember, I couldn’t get home fast enough to try them and when I did, I was amazed. They made quite a tasty impression and both are sweeter and juicier than the traditional orange skinned apricot. Now I am a bigger fan of apricots.

While reading up on these two varieties, I discovered that California produces almost 95% of the apricots grown in the United States, and apricot growers are continually experimenting to produce new varieties. I wonder if any of these clever growers have more mouth-watering apricots coming down the pipeline?

The season for harvesting apricots here in North America usually begins mid-May and lasts until August and novel fruits like Angelcot and Black Velvet – both are part of the Proprietary Class of tree ripened fresh fruits – the season is even shorter so if you see them and haven’t tried them, please do. If you have tried them, I would love to know how you liked it.

VARIETIES

Orange Apricots – these pretty orange apricots range in color from yellow to deep orange, and sometime the skin has red or rosy touches.

My husband and I bought a Blenheim Semi-Dwaft Apricot tree. We anticipate this tree will bare lots of sweet firm golden fruit sometime next year.

Black Velvet Apricots – are the result of a new cross blend of 50% apricots and 50% plums and is exclusively produced from Kingsbury Orchards in California.

Though it is classified as an apricot it has mostly the characteristics of a plum with a faint apricot taste. Its skin has a slightly fuzzy coat, which is probably why the word “velvet” is in its name. It has a tangy sweet flavor.

Angelcot White Apricot – New on the apricot scene, this white apricot was developed by a farmer located in California by the name of Ross Sanborn.

Don’t let its color fool you, its pale flesh may seems like its unripe, but that is simply its distinct coloring. You will know better once you bite into it and taste its succulent juiciness.

The list goes on, there are many more types of apricot, each with their own specific characteristics. Steve Alber at Harvest To Table has a great list of the varieties of apricots with description and harvest times.

Nutritional Profile and Benefits

According to the Apricot Producers of California, just three fresh apricots provide 35% to 45% of the recommended daily intake for Vitamin A. They are a great source of antioxidants and vitamin C. Apricots contain:

Beta-carotene | Calcium | Dietary Fiber | Iron | Lycopene | Phosphorus | Potassium | Tryptopene | Vitamin C

They are low in sodium, calories and fat, so eat as many of these healthy fruits as you desire.

Selecting and Storing Apricots

Apricots will continue to ripen after they have been picked from the tree. Any that are too firm or have touches of green may not be completely tree-ripened. It’s the tree-ripened ones that taste best and have the highest level of antioxidants.

Choose apricots with the best coloring for its particular variety. They should be plump with fairly firm skin, yield to gentle pressure when lightly squeezed, and have a delicate aroma.

Ripe fruit can be kept longer if refrigerated. If you have apricots that need to ripen a bit more, keep them at room temperature or place them in a paper bag with a banana or an apple. [The ethylene gas released helps ripen the fruit.]

Freezing apricots – cut in half and remove the pit. Dip in a solution of 1 part fresh lemon juice and 3 parts filter water to help discourage discoloration. Place apricot halves in an airtight freezer friendly container or bag. Freeze up to 3 months

Preparing Fresh or Frozen Apricots

Fresh apricots – wash them well before use; pit and peel, if necessary.

Frozen apricots – bring to room temperature and prepared as desired.

Serving Suggestions

Apricots are one of many delicious fruits to eat out of hand, whole and fresh. If you can find Black Velvet and Angelcot apricots, try them. They would make a unique and delightful stand in for the traditional orange apricot in recipes. Serve these fresh juicy sweet fruits in one of the following way:

Have you tried Black Velvet or Angelcot apricots?

Recipe Suggestion :: Apricot Crumble Bar

What is your favorite apricot recipe?

Coriandrum sativum

Historically cilantro is among the world’s oldest spices and said to be one of the first spices to arrive in America. This fresh flavorful feathery flat leaf herb is also referred to as Chinese parsley or coriander leaves. The entire plant [leaves, stalk, seeds, even the roots] is edible and worth singing its praises but, it’s the coriander seeds that are the focus and our herb of the month.

Coriander seed is actually the dried fruit of the coriander plant. It’s used as a spice and has a refreshing, earthy-lemony scent. I like to open the jar and inhale; it smells so delicious. Coriander seed is one of the most popular of all the spices used in Indian cuisine, plus is an essential flavor covering broad culinary territory in recipes from African, Asian, Latin American and Middle Eastern kitchens.

It is a key ingredient in Indian curry powders, curry dishes, and garam masala.
It is used as a pickling spice.
It has been prescribed as a digestive for thousands of years.
It helps relieve indigestion and nausea.
It has antibacterial properties.

The ready-ground coriander powder is a great convenience but it loses its flavor and aroma quicker than if you purchase the whole seeds. I prefer to buy the whole seeds and grind it with a mortar/pestle, or in a coffee grinder.

I like to store my spices in recycled glass jars, keeping the lid closed tight and placed in the cabinet. Glass jars will keep your spices fresh and help retain flavor and aroma for many more months when properly stored, up to a year or two. To preserves the flavor, aroma, and color or coriander seed, store in a cool, dry and dark place.

Leaving a comment below enters you into the drawing. Share your tips, suggestions, ideas, experience using coriander, or your desire to learn more and try it.

At the end of this month, one name will be drawn from the comment section of this post. Our sponsor Mountain Rose Herbs will send a gift coriander to the winning participant.

Related Posts
Previous Herb of the Month Giveaways

Apple Sour Tonic

A refreshing absolutely delicious drink appropriate to enjoy anytime.

Juice the ingredients
Juice the apple in a juicer. Pour the apple juice in a blender and add the water and the limejuice blend until combined.

Serving suggestion
Serve in a chilled glass garnished with a slice of apple.

Serves 1

I made these caraway macaroons cookies for a class I taught at Whole Foods. They were a hit! Caraway and coconut are a tasty combination, they pair well together. The ground caraway seeds not only offer a delicious and unexpected flavor to these macaroons, they also offers nice color specs of light olive green to the creamy white shredded coconut. The recipe calls for dehydrating these cookies, but you can simply shape and serve – either way is good.

Caraway Macaroons

Enjoy these flavorful cookies with a cup of your favorite tea.

Combine the ingredients
Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Optional: place the bowl with macaroon mix in the refrigerator to chill at least one hour.

Shape the macaroons
Using a measuring spoon scoop out about 1 tablespoon of mixture, for cookies into rounds, or a shape of your choice. Place the cookies on the dehydrator tray and place in the dehydrator.

Dehydrate for 2-3 hours at 115 degrees.

* Whole Foods carries coconut flour.

This months herb of the month is on red clover, a pretty pinkish/purplish flower with narrow petals. It’s one of the many species of the clover family and is considered to be one of the richest sources of isoflavones and it offers many valuable nutrients:

The young fresh leaves and new flowers of red clover are both edible – add them to salads and soups. Also, the sprouted seeds add a robust flavor and crisp texture to salads, sandwiches, and other recipes.

These pretty blossoms, either fresh or dried, makes a delicate sweet and medicinal tea. It is alterative, antiscrofulous, antispasmodic, aperient, detergent, diuretic, estrogenic, expectorant, sedative and tonic – used medicinally to treat a wide variety of conditions, many of them having to do with reproductive functions, and menopause. It’s also known to be a good tonic for colds, purify the blood, and studies suggest it’s an anti-cancer agent.

Red clover is an easily grown no fuss plant from seed. You can even grow it from root cuttings. This plant blooms from April thought out the summer months. Consider growing it in your yard, you can find red clover seed online at Mountain Rose Herbs, or you can enter the drawing for red clover below.

Leaving a comment enters you into the drawing. Share any tips, suggestions, ideas, your experience using red clover, or your desire to learn more and try it. At the end of this month, one of your names will be drawn from the comment section of this post, and our sponsor Mountain Rose Herbs will send a gift red clover to the winning participant.

Happy Herb of the Month anniversary Mountain Rose Herbs!
It’s been a year a great fun and learning. Much appreciation and many thanks to everyone at Mountain Rose Herbs for your sponsorship and support, and to Raw Epicurean readers for your interest, participation, and support. We look forward to many more herb of the month posts and giveaway and we hope to inspire you to use herbs and spices in more and more recipes.

xoxo,
Ingrid

He’s not vegetarian, vegan, or raw, however Jamie Oliver advocates something extremely important. He is campaigning and calling attention to the unhealthy plight of school meals in the American school system. Jamie is no stranger to fighting for healthy meal for school systems. He began campaigning in his native country, England, to ban the junk in British schools and get kids eating fresh, tasty nutritious food.

Watching this video reminds me that there is plenty of resistance simply toward the idea of healthy eating. Children depend on and learn from us. They are the future. If these children are fed devalued junk “food”, and as a result are undernourished and sickly, what will their future be as the next generation of a nation of people? Imagine.