Spice Market : What exactly is Dukkah?

Whether you've heard of it or not dukkah is getting bigger by the day, with our favorite blogs and magazines adapting recipes using this middle eastern spice blend.  We've gathered some information to introduce you to the origins and uses of dukkah.  Stay tuned for original recipes this week on our blog and more from the producers of Gary & Kit's brand Dukkah Spice Blends.

• The name is a colloquial Egyptian word derived from the word “dakka,” which means “to crush,” which is what you do to many of the ingredients that go into the mix.  More from NY Times Blog >
• Dukkah, an Egyptian spice blend of toasted nuts and seeds, has become a international favorite over the past few years, thanks to its popularity first in Australian restaurants and then among home cooks and food blogs. The warm, aromatic mixture is addictive when served as a dip with bread and olive oil.  More from The Kitchn >
• At Gallway restaurant, Ardbia, the traditionally savoury spice blend has been flipped on its head, with a sweet variety used to garnish chocolate pots... More from The Telegraph UK >

Recipe: Soberdough Cinnful Raisin French Toast

What goes better with Father's Day than food and beer?  Soberdough is a super simple way to combine both!  Just mix one package of Soberdough with one 12 oz beer and you're well on your way to a freshly baked load of artisanal bread.  We took it a step further and made our loaf into french toast.  It's a hearty breakfast suitable for Father's Day or anyday.

Soberdough Cinnful Raisin French Toast

• 1 package Soberdough Cinnful Raisin Bread Mix
• 12 oz beer
• cinnamon and sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup of milk
• powdered sugar & syrup for serving

1. Preheat your oven to 350. Grease a 9x5" loaf pan.
2. Combine the beer and soberdough mix according to package instructions.  
3. Spread half the mix into your loaf pan.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.  Add remainder of dough mix and spread evenly.  
4. Bake for 1 hr (if you have a hotter oven, 50 minutes should do it)
5. After the bread has cooled completely, slice 3/4" thick slices
6. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat.
7. Combine eggs and milk in a pie plate.  Dip each slice of bread in the mixture coating on both sides. 
8. Add bread slices to the pan and toast on each side, approx 3-5 minutes per side.
9. Serve warm with powered sugar and syrup.

Recipe: The Three Jerks Jerky "J.L.T."

Three Jerks Jerky is based in Venice, California and is the brainchild of best friends and fraternity brothers Jordan Barrocas and Daniel Fogelson.  These two guys were just not happy or satisfied with other jerkys on the market and could not find any premium jerky-free of all the bad stuff! So what do two fraternity brothers do that love food and have an itch for entrepreneurship?  Well, they started the first craft beef jerky company.  They take the most lean and succulent filet mignon (the finest steak from the most precious part of the cow)  and flavor it with pure ingredients, to create an incomparable beef jerky. Jordan and Daniel are fun loving guys, that love what they do and are proud of their product.  Check out their recipe they developed, it not a BLT but a JLT!!!  Enjoy...

Three Jerks Jerky J.L.T.

Ingredients:

• 1 Country Bread Loaf
• 1 Beefsteak/Heriloom Tomato
• 1/2 cup Mayo
• 1 teaspoon Truffle Oil
• 1  Head Butter Lettuce
•  Three Jerks Jerky

To Prepare:

Slice bread, tomatoes and tear lettuce. Mix mayo and truffle oil. Pile the Jerky, lettuce, tomato and truffle mayo on your bread. Eat!

Travel Notes: Atlanta Sips & Bites

The Optimist 914 Howell Mill Rd NW, Atlanta, Georgia 30318

My favorite restaurant in Atlanta, GA.  I’m not an expert, by any means, on the Atlanta Restaurant scene, but The Optimist was hands down the best place I have ever eaten in Atlanta and probably this year.  Arriving at the restaurant, you are greeted with an outside green area that is a very mini miniature golf course,  small tables and fun lodging area for hanging outside.

Once inside you are welcomed by the friendly staff and the retro style of the restaurant. My husband was instantly impressed by the bartender (wish we could remember his name) who was very knowledgeable about the oysters and the wine list.  We did order some oysters while we waited for our table.  They come with crackers and three sauces.  We had a few virgin oyster eaters, which is always fun! I thought they were perfect and everyone enjoyed them.  

The dining room is noticeably louder than the bar and outside area, for me it was a bit loud.  We were seated at the table facing the the open kitchen, love seeing all the activity.  The menu was placed in front of us and my husband and I thought we died and gone to heaven, there were just so many tempting choices.  

We decided to start with 5 appetizers. Our two favorites were the frothy she-crab soup with shrimp toast and charred spanish octopus with charred ramp salsa verde, spiced yogurt and pine nuts.  If I wasn't so mesmerized by the food, I would have taken more pictures!  For dinner I got the scallops, seared to perfection, sweet and tender and the topped with asparagus, bacon, marcona almonds and parmesan. I enjoyed the contrasting textures of the scallops along with the bacon and parmesan crisps.  My husband ordered the pork chop, crispy pork belly, bacon jus, preserved cabbage. The presentation and the taste were fine, but he realized he should have chosen a fish option!  The sides all sounded amazing, so we of course ordered a few and our favorites were crispy fingerling potatoes, rosemary garlic aioli and bok choy, ginger, pickled peppers .  

If you get to Atlanta, GA I would make my way to this restaurant. From the staff who were excited to be serving to the presentation and food it was a great meal - one to remember.  

Ponce City Market  675 Ponce De Leon Ave N.E., Atlanta, Georgia 30308

If you have ever been to Chelsea Market in New York, you should get very excited to hear about Ponce City Market. Ponce City is the largest adaptive reused project in Atlanta's history and based on the success of Chelsea Market.  1.1 million square feet of the historic Sears, Roebuck & Company building will be turned into a multi use building that will include retail and restaurants, office space and residential flats. This redevelopment will focus on the preserving historical character of the building at the same time keeping the authenticity of the surrounding neighborhoods and will add parks, walkways, a new BeltLine trails that will link different neighborhoods together.  

Most of the market should be open in spring of 2015. Right now its just a construction site with one operating vendor, Dancing Goats Coffee Bar.  

Dancing Goats was a great place to stop and relax during our day of sightseeing. It was an old gas station before being repurposed as a coffee shop. The parking lot was converted to a screened in patio with lots of seating, including adirondack chairs, couches and swings. The coffee was Batdorf & Bronson Coffee.  It was good, a bit too bitter for me, but everyone else enjoyed it.  They offer a plethora of pastries. We picked up their Duck Donuts and homemade poptart.  The "poptart" was flaky and buttery but could have used a bit more filling.  

Between the people watching and the comfortable chairs, we sat and talked for almost three hours, it was a great spot! 

I can't wait to get back to Atlanta to check out Ponce City market, I can just imagine its going to be foodie's dream! 

Travel Notes: Atlanta Peachtree Road Farmer's Market

Last month I headed to Atlanta for my sister-in-law’s college graduation, it also gave me an opportunity to check out the food scene, and see if there was anything interesting to bring to our Savory Pantry customers. In terms of food this trip exceeded my highest expectations.  We packed a lot in during a 4-day trip and I wanted to share some of my favorite stops and things I loved most about this trip to Atlanta, GA. Today I will start with all the good finds at the Peachtree Road Farmer’s Market.  

Peachtree Rd Farmer’s Market, 2744 Peachtree Rd NW, Atlanta, GA 30305

This Farmer’s Market was the perfect size and had a wonderful variety of products.  The Peachtree is known as the largest producer-only farmers market in the state.  What does this mean you ask?  Well everything at the Market has been grown, raised, or made by the seller, which helps keep the pricing down.  Some notable highlights:

The Little Tart Bakeshop Grant Park, Atlanta, GA www.littletartatl.com or 404-348-4797

Everything obviously looked good, but I decided to with the Bacon Cheddar Scone and I was not disappointed.  The French-style bakery focuses on baking with local products and likes to lean towards the savory side of pastries.  Oh and I also picked up their lemon tea cookies, so crisp and the flavor was buttery and lemony, it was perfect for a late-night snack in the hotel.   

Doux South, Decatur, GA www.douxsouth.com

Doux South Pickles has great packaging.  It's fresh, clean and with the glass jars you could see the freshness of the product inside.  I tried the Drunken Tomatoes they were good.  A nice person at the booth, said they are perfectly blended for bloody Mary’s, which I could imagine.  I also tried the Little Rock Caviar, I’m a northern girl, so this was my first time having this delicacy and I loved it.  It is a mix of black-eyed peas, sweet red and green peppers, onions garlic, Worcestershire sauce and vinegars.  (Hopefully you will see them soon on the shelves of The Savory Pantry).

Two other notable finds at this market, was Banner Butter and Verdant Kitchen Ginger.

Banner Butter, Atlanta, GA, bannerbutter.com or 404-401-3735

Banner Butter sells small batched butter that is naturally cultured in Atlanta, GA, using grass fed, hormone-free cows and the freshest ingredients for their flavors. They let the cream set out before churning, so that the natural cultures start to grow.  I’m really not sure how to say this, but IT’S THE BEST BUTTER I HAVE EVER TASTED!! Clean, fresh, not waxy, all good components to a great butter.  My only heart break was that I could not buy it to bring it back home with me!

Verdant Kitchen, Savannah, GA, www.verdantkitchen.com or 912-349-2958

"Our roots are in the sandy loams of the Coastal Low lands of Svannah, Georgia. Live Well & Eat Well with our delicious farm to table products based off our organic ginger crop."

Verdant Kitchen, is all about ginger! Most of the ginger that we eat or that is used in products made in the USA, comes from China, Indonesia, Brazil, and Peru. Verdant Kitchen is one of the very few that grow the root.  They then take these roots and make delicious products, including Ginger Candied Pecans, Ginger Syrup, Crystallized Ginger and Bare Ginger.  The woman that was at the booth, was very knowledgeable and let me try everything… The ginger was spicy and warming but wasn’t overpowering.  We are hoping to have this product grace our shelves soon!