Spices and Herbs by Elaynn

Many of us have fond memories of certain types of foods we ate while growing up, especially if our mothers were great cooks! Mine sure was , and I don't remember anything she cooked that didn't turn out well! She really put effort into making good, wholesome meals for her family. As an adult, I don't think anything can beat good, home cooked food!

Since we were of French Canadian origin and lived near the Canadian border, much of our food was, of course, also French Canadian. I grew up calling this recipe that I am about to share with you friends, Meat Pie, but, it's proper name is French Canadian Meat Pie, or Tourtiere. Whatever you want to call it, here is my special recipe and I hope you enjoy it!

FRENCH CANADIAN MEAT PIE

PASTRY FOR 2 CRUST PIE

1 pound ground lean pork

½ pound ground veal

½ pound ground chuck

½ cup chopped onion

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 beef bouillon cube

1 cup water

¾ teaspoon ground cloves

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¾ teaspoon ground sage

¼ teaspoon ground thyme (common)

2 - 3 cups cooked diced potatoes or you can use mashed potatoes

In a large cast iron frying pan, combine pork, veal, beef, onion, bouillon cube, salt and pepper. Cook slowly for 45 minutes. Then sprinkle all over the entire mixture  the cloves, cinnamon, sage and thyme, and cook slowly another 15 minutes. Add the drained potatoes and gently stir and mix the mixture.

Turn stove off, cover pan, let this cool thoroughly for about 1 hour, so that the flavors will blend. I also stir slightly a few times during the hour, as well.

Roll out your first pie crust, to go on the bottom of your pie dish ( I like using glass, not metal or aluminum).

Turn the mixture into the pie dish. Roll out the top crust and put it over the mixture. I don't make slits for venting, but you can, if you want.( I also put aluminum foil all around the edge of the crust, so that it doesn't burn. I would take these off after about 30 minutes, try not to disturb the pie any more than necessary and don't take out of the oven.)

Bake in hot oven 400 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour. ( look for the top crust to turn golden brown.)

I have also been known to make turnovers and use this as filling. It makes nice individual servings.

We used to eat this for breakfast on holiday mornings or when we got back from church. We also ate it for supper with just a salad added. We used to put ketchup and /or mustard on it.

ENJOY!

Here are some more herbs AND spices that go good with certain foods.

ENJOY!

For those of you that are artistic, this would make a beautiful gift for someone who likes to cook and bake, or is new at cooking and baking. I had a friend who copied something like this by hand in calligraphy, on a long sheet of paper, dyed the paper some pretty color and made colored scroll work all around the edges, and made a small frame all around and made it so that it could be hung on the wall. She also said a few words of friendship and put her name on the bottom and DATED it. It was a very personalized gift. See what you can do!!

BEANS, DRIED

cumin, garlic, onions, parsley, sage, savory, thyme

BEANS, GREEN

basil, cloves, dill, marjoram, mints, savory, thyme

BEEF

basil, bay leaf, chili pepper, cumin, garlic, ginger, marjoram, onions, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, savory, tarragon, thyme

BREAD

anise, basil, caraway, cardamom, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, dill, garlic, onions, oregano, parsley, poppy seeds, rosemary, sage, sesame seeds, thyme

BROCCOLI

basil, dill, garlic, nutmeg, oregano

CABBAGE

basil, caraway, cayenne pepper, dill, marjoram, savory

CARROTS

basil, chervil, chives, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, dill, ginger, marjoram, mint, parsley, savory

CAULIFLOWER

basil, cumin, dill, garlic, marjoram, parsley, rosemary, savory, tarragon

CHEESE

basil, chervil, chives, coriander, curry powder, dill, garlic, marjoram, parsley, sage, tarragon, thyme

CHICKEN

allspice, basil, bay leaf, cinnamon, curry powder, dill, garlic, ginger, mace, marjoram, nutmeg, onions, paprika, parsley, rosemary,, saffron, sage, savory, thyme

COTTAGE CHEESE

basil, chives, cinnamon, curry powder, dill, paprika, thyme

EGGPLANT

basil, cinnamon, garlic, marjoram, onions, oregano, parsley, savory, thyme

EGGS

basil, chervil, chives, coriander, curry powder, dill, fennel, marjoram, oregano, paprika, parsley, rosemary, sage, savory, tarragon, thyme

FISH

basil, chives, curry powder, dill, garlic, ginger, marjoram, oregano, parley, sage, savory, tarragon, thyme

FRUIT

anise, cinnamon . Cloves, ginger, mace, mints, nutmeg, rosemary

LAMB

basil, bay leaf, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, curry powder, dill, garlic, ginger, mints, onions, parsley, rosemary, tarragon, thyme

MUSHROOMS

coriander, marjoram, oregano, tarragon, thyme

PARSNIPS

basil, curry powder, dill, marjoram, parsley, thyme

POTAOTES

caraway, chives, dill, marjoram, oregano, paprika, parsley, rosemary, tarragon, thyme

SALADS, GREEN

basil, chervil chives, coriander, dill, garlic, marjoram,, mints, oregano, parsley, rosemary, tarragon, thyme

SOUPS

basil, bay leaf, chives, dill, garlic, marjoram, onions, parsley, rosemary, sage, savory, thyme

SPINACH

allspice, basil,, chives, nutmeg, rosemary

SQUASH

allspice, basil, cinnamon, cloves, dill, marjoram, nutmeg, rosemary, savory

STUFFINGS

garlic, marjoram, parsley, onions, rosemary, sage, thyme

TOMATOES

basil, bay leaf, chives, garlic, oregano, parsley, rosemary, savory, tarragon, thyme

TURKEY

basil, garlic, marjoram, onions, rosemary, saffron , sage, savory, tarragon, thyme

VEAL

basil, bay leaf, chervil, marjoram, onions, parsley, rosemary, savory, thyme

I'll be doing another blog starting with the herb or spice and what goes good with it.