So what am I doing, exactly?

I like rules. You wouldn't think it, but I do. Rules turn "let's pretend" into a game, and they turn "I'm gonna cook some stuff with tarragon" into a capital-P Project. (Rules turn "I'm being an asshole to you" into "I'm a lawyer", so I've got THAT going for me.)

My Project is this - to learn how to cook with spices*, one spice a week, over the course of a year. During each week, I'm going to attempt to cook as many things as possible that put that spice to the forefront, including some which use that spice exclusively. I'm going to learn as much as I can, in a limited amount of time, about that spice's origins, history, and general usage. If possible, I'm going to procure and use different versions of the spice in question. I'll try to do five to six dishes a week - hopefully mixing breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, as appropriate, as well as whatever other stuff sounds good. (Guess what I can't wait to put that tarragon into? Here's a hint - it's vodka.)

In pursuit of scientific rigor - for where are we without it? - I will, additionally, be making one particular dish every week. It's a simple stuffed mushroom recipe - mushrooms, spinach, a little butter, a little cheese. That's it. Every week, I'll add one, and only one, addition to that - the spice of the week. Yes, I'm aware that Cinnamon stuffed mushrooms are going to taste odd. To which I say to you - SCIENCE!

I don't have any particular order laid out for what I'm going to do and when. Week one is Salt, and therefore week fifty-two will probably be Pepper. (My wife asked me why it doesn't make more sense that week two would be pepper. To which I said to her - SCIENCE!) If you've got any requests or suggestions, please feel free to get in touch with me!


*Just because the blog is called "The Year of Living Spicily" doesn't mean that I'm restricting myself to spices. It's just that "The Year of Living Seasoningsly" sounds stupid and "The Year of Living Herbally" sounds either like I'm a hippie or a pothead. Basically, I'll spend a week on any flavorant - for example, my first week is salt, which is a seasoning, not a spice.

However, for the purpose of me not going nuts on terminology, I'm going to generically refer to any food-flavoring device as a spice. It's wrong. I know that, you know that, but it makes my life easier. Everyone is happy.