If any pantry has, in our humble opinion, these essential ingredients, then a delicious meal is easily in the making. Many of these items offer a subtle yet noticeable difference in the overall flavor. We hope you will agree that these are indeed as basic as bread and butter.
Condiments
Bella Cucina Farmhouse Olives: A nice mixture of six Italian varietals, steeped in olive oil, garlic and herbs.
Edmund Fallot Tarragon Dijon Mustard: Don't let the bright green color deter you from this super strong, pungent mustard. A little does indeed go a long way! I particularly like it with roast chicken and in salad dressings.
Matiz Piqullo Peppers: From the northern coast of Spain, these peeled fire roasted peppers are wonderful in salads (try with romaine, toasted pine nuts, feta and olive oil), stews, sauces, scrambled eggs, or with a cheese platter with fresh goat, baguettes and olives.
Chukar Cherry Pistachio and Berry Mix
For a quick hors d'oeuvre, reduce port (it will probably take an entire bottle), until thick and syrupy and toss in a bag (or a portion of) of nut and berry mix, then pour over triple crème cheese. Serve with crackers or fresh baguette. These are great snack items or for tossing into a salad with fresh goat cheese.
Dalmatia Orange Fig Spread. So versatile! Could be a condiment for over a soft, triple crème cheese, served with roasted almonds and dried fruit. It could be warmed with a splash of brandy added and spooned over vanilla ice cream, or use as a filling for a fruit gallette. Or it could be savory when used as a glaze for roasted pork. It is sweet, but not cloyingly so.
Bella Cucina Cranberry Conserve: Again, so versatile! Spread on roast turkey or chicken sandwiches, or as a glaze for turkey, lamb, or chicken. One of my favorite ways to use it is with for an hors d'oeuvres with American Vintage Wine Biscuits, fresh goat cheese, a sprinkle of cracked black pepper, and then put a dollop of Cranberry Conserve. I actually prefer just to put it in a nice small bowl and let the guests make their own cracker.
Seasonings and Herbs
ESSENTIAL!! I think this is the single most important item on this list, and certainly the broadest in application. If there is only one thing you should buy, it's this.
Fleur de Sel, the "caviar of the ocean", is a finishing salt that brings out the natural flavors of food, unlike regular, bad table salt that just makes things salty. Fleur de Sel, the residual crystals from tide pools, is harvested only a few times a year off the coasts of France, when the temperature is just right. Once you've tasted it, you'll understand why you paid four times the amount of regular sea salt. Remember, it is a finishing salt, not cooking. Try it over heirloom tomatoes, greens or cooked pasta.
Sundried Tomato Crumble: Garnish galore! Over soup, salad, cheese, the surface of the hors d' oeuvres tray ...endless possibilities in providing a splash of color.
O and Co. Italian Tomato Powder: A lot of flavor is packed into this tiny jar. Just a teaspoon (or more) will intensify soup, ground meat, sauces. Sprinkle in hummus and garnish with chives for a quick dip.
Matiz Sweet Garlic: From Spain, this jar of peeled garlic in has been cured in water and salt to remove the smell and bite. Lasts for months in the refrigerator.
Just as an aside, and not anything that we sell, but I often add a burst of flavor to soup, meat, grains and legumes with equal parts of cumin, fennel, coriander, Spanish paprika (spicier than Hungarian, which is sweeter) cayenne, chili powder, the obligatory fleur de sal and pepper. Sometimes fennel. I encourage you to experiment!
Sweet Jams
Frog Hollow Organic Apricot Conserve* is just what an apricot should taste like.
Just as good over toasted rosemary raisin bread, or brioche, as it is over vanilla ice cream.
Or spoon over pound cake or New York style cheesecake. Spread over brie cheese and garnish with fresh berries and grapes and rim with blanch sliced almonds. As a savory condiment, add chopped fresh rosemary for a glaze with pork or ham.
*Just FYI, click here to read the differences between "conserve, jams and preserves.
Savory Jams
Carol Hall Red Pepper Jelly -for the ever popular and quick "cheese and crackers" -- pepper jelly spread over cream cheese. Good on quesadillas and sandwiches with cured meats.
Crackers
American Vintage Wine Biscuits. Delicious! Try with Reggiano Parmigano, or with our Bleu Cheese and Spicy Pecan Terrine. I also suggest fresh goat cheese, a sprinkle of cracked black pepper, and then put a dollop of Bella Cucina Cranberry Conserve.
La Panzanella: We simply cannot keep these basic flatbread crackers in stock. All the flavors are good: Sesame, Black Pepper, Fennel and Rosemary.
Rosemary Raisin Parmesan Toast from Julienne! I hope you all already have tried this perennial favorite! Did you know you can freeze it? Serve with salad, soup, hors d' oeuvres.
Oils
Don't assume that one kind of olive oil will suffice. Really, you need one for basic cooking purposes, the others for "finishing" as you need just a bit to impart full flavor.
"O" Blood orange olive is my favorite "finishing" oil. Drizzle a few drops over pasta, greens, tomatoes or bread.
Biolea is one of my new favorites. A solid, non-flavored extra virgin olive oil that may get its great flavor because it's made from olives harvested from 200-2000 years old trees. And it's from Greece, where they have perfected the art of olive oil production with the stone mill.
Also, Greece has made Biolea the official gift for visiting foreign dignitaries.
Salute Sante Grapeseed Oil: Alight, neutral tasting oil, lower in cholesterol than olive oil, and good for everyday sautée. But be careful-it has a high flash point, so your toast points drizzled with this will broil in a minute, then catch on fire! Trial and error...
Pasta
Rustichella d' Abruzzo Whole Wheat Penne Pasta: However they make this, they're doing it right. Full of flavor, this pasta doesn't disintegrate or easily turn mushy like less expensive commercial brands. The added bonus is that whole wheat pasta is a great source of fiber!
Honey
Savannah Bee Company Tupelo Honey: The unique thing about Tupelo honey is that it can be harvested only from the Tupelo tree, found only in Georgia, for just three weeks in April. Besides the delicious buttery taste, the other good thing about this honey is that it never crystallizes in the jar.
Savannah Bee Company Honey Comb: We discovered this at the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, and the beekeepers there had us swarming like bees around their display of honeycomb, berries, fresh baguette slices and wedges of Gorgonzola Dolce. I became an instant convert to this dessert platter. Just let your guests layer the baguette slice with the honeycomb, add a bit of cheese, maybe a berry. Other cheeses to try with it are sharp white cheddar, a very creamy Bleu, Tuscan Pecorino or salty, nutty cheeses.
Coffee
Jones Coffee, the Julienne Blend We chose this blend after tasting literally hundreds of cups. It's somewhat bold, but flavorful 100% Guatamalan Arabica estate beans, from the Jones Family Finca. Roasted at 2 different levels, French and Italian, for better flavor and more depth.
Tea
Mighty Leaf Breakfast Americana: As much as I am a loose tea snob, I will concede that this is high quality loose tea packaged in individual silk pouches, allowing the tea to swirl around and "open" while it steeps. Far better flavor than regular tea bags offer, and certainly more convenient than loose tea.
Chocolate
Sometimes you just need a bite of chocolate, yes? Particularly if one is traveling...
Dolphin Chocolates are cleverly packaged in a re sealable plastic pouch to ensure freshness. Pretty smart. A variety of milk and dark combinations are offered. The "Milk Chocolate with Hot Masala" is flavorful without being overpowering. Some chocolate manufacturers go overboard...
Chuao Caracas Milk Chocolate Bar: I love the extra bit of protein I get with the huge pieces of almonds, hazelnuts and pistachios embedded in this thick bar. It almost has too many nuts, though.
Cote d' Or Fondant Chocolate Bar: Good, solid dark chocolate--and two bars come in one package!
Julienne Chocolate Bourbon Sauce
Not technically a "pantry item" as it requires refrigeration, but it continues to be one of our best selling products. Certainly try it over ice cream, or heat it to serve fondue style with fresh berries, shortbread cookies or pound cake. Sometimes just a bite straight from the jar is all you need. I especially like the pool of bourbon at the bottom.
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