2011 Spice Rack Challenge - A Food Blog Challenge

There are many food blog challenges out there - the Daring Bakers, where participants are encouraged to bake a specific treat, or Tigress Can Jam  where there's all sorts of food preservation going on, or the Dark Days Challenge where you make a meal that's truly local and blog about it.    I was cleaning out my spice cabinet the other day...they don't fit into a mere rack; instead my dried herbs and spices have taken over two cupboards in my kitchen.  It dawned on me that I have some herbs and spices that are my favorites and get used up at a rapid clip, and still others that I use only occasionally.     I need inspiration - enter the 2011 Spice Rack Challenge!

• Each month we'll focus on one dried herb or spice and post a recipe you've cooked using it.  The recipe may include others but the herb/spice of focus must be integral to the recipe. 
• The month's spice/herb of focus will be announced the last Friday of the prior month.    The focused herb/spice will not be repeated in subsequent months. 
• Bloggers will post their recipes on their blogs during the 3rd week of the month with the deadline being Friday midnight. (exact dates will be clarified each month when new produce in focus is announced) 
• On the last Wednesday of the month I will post a round-up here and announce the new spice/herb of focus. 
• Although this isn't a local food challenge, use of ingredients found locally are strongly encouraged.  For many of us, finding a locally grown spice isn't possible.   In fact, the desire to import spices developed the trade routes centuries ago and are an important part of our history.   Hundreds of years ago, the spice trade was controlled by the wealthy Middle East and inspired Columbus, de Gama and Magellan to find a better way around the world.  Nutmeg was worth more than gold!    Spain and Portugal spent much of the 16th century fighting over cloves, while England and the Dutch dueled over nutmeg in Indonesia.  So, lets use herbs and spices to inspire us to cook more with local ingredients.  

FAQ

• When do I need to sign up?  To participate in the challenge, sign up before the deadline for the first post, which will be January 21, 2011.  
• How do I sign up? Send an email to: momskitchen(at)comcast(dot)net please put Spice Rack Challenge as the subject and include your name and blog url.  Participants will be listed here.
• Do I have to have a blog to participate?  Yes.  It's really easy to start a blog.   This blog is written with Google's Blogger.  Or there's others out there like WordPress 
• What happens if I should miss a month?   To participate, you will need to blog all 12 months.   If you miss a month, you can still participate, but will not be included in future roundups.   But you are welcome to post in the comments section of the round up post with a link to your blog post. 
• What if it's past the Jan. 21 deadline and I still want to participate?  Great!  Just post a link in the comments section of the round up post each month.  

I look forward to your spicy posts!