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Flavorful Kitchen Escapades

Learn about a spice or herb, try it out at home, and come back to talk with others about your experiences with this spice club. Spice packet, information sheet, reading & resource list, and recipes provided. Meets every other month.

Call the Reference Desk at 847-259-6050 x130 with any questions.

Upcoming Club Meetings

Spoons full of natural food coloring ingredients

Featured spice: Natural Food Coloring

Dates Tuesday, March 31
Time 7:00–8:00 p.m.

Details Battle the gray days with some color! Butterfly pea flower, cranberry, hibiscus flower, and mango powders don’t pack quite as much punch as the more standardized artificial colors, but they’re still fun to experiment with.

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bunch of fresh summer savory

Featured spice: Summer Savory

Dates Tuesday, May 19
Time 7:00–8:00 p.m.

Details An annual herb native to southeastern Europe and eastern Asia, its flowers and leaves are used both fresh and dried. Though it takes a while to germinate, it grows well in pots (as a mint relative, it will escape and spread unless contained and regularly harvested).

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small bowls filled with spices and seasonings

Featured spice: Sicilian Citrus Italian Seasoning

Dates Tuesday, July 28
Time 7:00–8:00 p.m.

bowl of powdered coconut sugar

Featured spice: Coconut Sugar

Dates Tuesday, September 29
Time 7:00–8:00 p.m.

bowl full of star anise pods

Featured spice: Star Anise

Dates Tuesday, November 17
Time 7:00–8:00 p.m.

Past Featured Spices & Herbs

Revisit your favorite spices and herbs.

Featured spice: Green cardamom and rose petals

Details Kick off the new year with two ancient flavors. While they can be used in many ways, we’ll provide a bundle with a recipe for date and nut squares that draw on ladoo and khajur burfi for inspiration—naturally sweet, protein-packed, and imbued with the complex, fragrant scents and flavors of cardamom and rose.

Spoon full of green cardamom pods sorrounded by a sprinkle of rose petals

In the collection

To browse books featuring nutmeg in the library, ask for help at the Reference Desk.

Featured spice: Nutmeg

Details Nutmeg's rich scent and sweet, spicy flavor has been prized for centuries, whether where it grows naturally or in the far-flung regions where it is traded.

Spoon full of nutmeg

In the collection

To browse books featuring nutmeg in the library, ask for help at the Reference Desk.

Featured spice: Galangal

Details Galangal is a cousin to ginger, with a distinct taste and scent that can layer fabulously with other spices.

Galangal whole root and slices
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  • Galangal
    • Slow noodles : a Cambodian memoir of love, loss, and family recipes
    • Num Pang : bold recipes from New York City's favorite sandwich shop
    • Flavors of the Southeast Asian grill : classic recipes for seafood and meats cooked over charcoal
    • Malaysia : recipes from a family kitchen
    • The adventures of Fat Rice : recipes from the Chicago restaurant inspired by Macau
    • Real Thai cooking : recipes and stories from a Thai food expert
    • Lemongrass & lime: southeast Asian cooking at home
    • Kalaya's Southern Thai kitchen
    • The Indonesian table
    • Pok Pok : food and stories from the streets, homes, and roadside restaurants of Thailand
    • Hawker Fare : stories & recipes from a refugee chef's Isan Thai & Lao roots
    • Rice. Noodles. Yum. : everyone's favorite Southeast Asian dishes

Featured spice: Caraway

Details Caraway seeds are small, aromatic and were initially used for medicinal purposes before people began cooking with them. They have a complex, bittersweet flavor.

Caraway spice spilling from a giant spoon

In the collection

To browse books in the library, ask for help at the Reference Desk.

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  • Caraway
    • Simple : effortless food, big flavors
    • Fresh Midwest : modern recipes from the heartland
    • The fresh-milled flour bread book : the complete guide to mastering your home mill for artisan sourdough, pizza, croissants and more
    • Cast iron gourmet : 77 amazing recipes with less fuss and fewer dishes
    • Pickling
    • Heirloom : time-honored techniques, nourishing traditions, and modern recipes
    • Secrets of great second meals : flexible modern recipes that value time and limit waste
    • Bring it! : tried and true recipes for potlucks and casual entertaining / Ali Rosen ; photography by Noah Fecks.
    • Wild honey and rye
    • Amber and rye
    • The authentic Ukrainian kitchen : recipes from a native chef
    • Midwest made : big, bold baking from the heartland

Featured spice: Sumac

Details Sumac, a sour, tangy fruit found throughout much of the world, has been used both fresh and dried since ancient times.

Sumac spice spilling from a giant spoon

In the collection

To browse books in the library, ask for help at the Reference Desk.

Skip Sumac widget
  • Sumac
    • The Arabesque table : contemporary recipes from the Arab world
    • Edible plants : a photographic survey of the wild edible botanicals of North America
    • The feel good foodie cookbook : 125 recipes enhanced with Mediterranean flavors
    • Field notes for food adventures : recipes and stories from the woods to the ocean
    • The kitchen without borders : recipes and stories from refugee and immigrant chefs
    • A Middle Eastern pantry : essential ingredients for classic and contemporary recipes
    • Field guide to trees of North America
    • New Native kitchen : celebrating modern recipes of the American Indian
    • Ripe figs : recipes and stories from Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus
    • Sababa : fresh, sunny flavors from my Israeli kitchen
    • The Sioux chef's indigenous kitchen
    • Sumac : recipes and stories from Syria

Food & Recipes


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Find a scrumptious collection of food and recipe resources including food culture, nutrition, and cooking instruction.

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