Spice Racks Blog

Sometimes, you crave simplicity. Like the pleasure of freshly washed and ironed cotton sheets. Cream colored ponies and crisp apple strudel. Or even brown paper packages tied up with string. Of course, simple things are all the lovelier when they are also useful. So I hope your next brown paper package contains these Unlabeled Spice Bottles.

Plain spice jars are a terrific idea if you’re starting to build your spice collection. You can go to your local store that sells spices in bulk, pick up  a few different ones, and bottle them up at home. If you like your new spice, you can create a label (or just Sharpie the top of the jar!), and add it to your permanent collection. And if you don’t like your new spice (I’m looking at you, chipotle-carraway blend), just wash out the jar and get ready to try a new herb or spice.

Besides storing spices, these unlabeled jars have many other household uses. 

• They’re a perfect way to store glitter for kids art projects. The shaker style tops help to reduce some of the mess from glitter art projects.
• Are you a beader? These jars are terrific for organizing all sorts of beads. From seed beads to hex cuts and faceted beads, these glass jars can keep them sorted. Don’t feel like you’re stranded without a craft organizer - just get some jars.
• These glass jars are also a nice way to display any sort of small collection. I know of people who, during each trip they take, collect a little bit of dirt from the area they’re in. It’s a perfect way to display collections of sand, or small pieces of beach glass. 
• You can also add a little pizazz to your desk by using these jars (with the lids off) to hold small office supplies like paper clips or staples. Sometimes you just need something a little unusual to lift your spirits, and using uncommon items to store common things is a great way to cure the blues.

What would you put in these spice jars? And yes, you could always fill them with spices and put them on your kitchen spice rack!

Growing up, salt was salt. But then sea salt started gaining popularity. Kosher salt started being used more frequently in home kitchens. And now, it seems that the traditional, iodized table salt is being left in the wake of the gourmet salt revolution!

Flavored salts, once considered a weird gimmick, are taking the culinary world by storm! Secret Stash Sea Salts, out of Seattle, are one of my favorite purveyors of unique salts. They take all natural sea salt, craft unique salt flavors using reduced sauces, spice mixes, and more. The result is hand crafted, artisan salt in flavors like Almond Orange Cardamom, and Lavender Rosemary. They also have a Pineapple Cumin Chili Salt, which I can’t wait to try!

Another fantastic salt is Hawaiian ‘Alea Sea Salt from Hawaii Salt. This sea salt has been enriched with the mineral rich ‘alea clay from Hawaii. ‘Alea Sea Salt has a mild, smooth flavor, and a distinctive reddish color. It’s one of my favorite salts to use while grilling meats.

And if you think that flavored salts are too ‘froo-froo’ for you, may I introduce you to Bacon Salt? Bacon Salt is exactly what it sounds like - salt with the delicious taste of bacon. I tried it on a baked potato - and it was pretty delicious. It’s also vegetarian, so if you or someone you know is a vegetarian who misses the pleasures of bacon, it’s a great gift.

Have you seen any great salts out there? I’m definitely looking to expand my collection!

This is the Mesh Spice Rack. This metal spice rack can be wall mounted, or it can stand on a counter. And you can mount it inside a pantry door. What’s really neat about this spice rack is that because of its basic design - it’s really quite versatile. For instance, you could:

• Mount it on the wall by your stove. Now, I know that keeping spices by the stove isn’t a great idea (the heat makes the quality of the spice degrade faster), but keeping things like salt and pepper, olive oil cruets, and other cooking essentials by the stove is a real time saver. Plus, since this rack has hooks, you can hang your hot pads and oven mitts!
• Running out of bathroom storage? The Mesh Rack is here for you. It’s a great way to supplement the space in your medicine cabinet. You can store vitamins, cosmetics and more! Once again, those little hooks will come in handy for hanging face cloths and wash cloths.
• You can even bring the Mesh Spice Rack to work with you! Mount it on your office wall, and use it as a way to office supplies (notepads, sticky notes, and boxes of paper clips - get them off your desk and on this rack!). Or, another cool idea is to mount this rack in the break room, and fill it with tea (most tea boxes and cans fit on this rack perfectly), hot chocolate packets and other drink necessities. 

And, of course, you can use it for spices in the kitchen, too!

Hi everybody! I asked my pal Nicole to write about her favorite spice racks. Check out Nicole’s blogs - Garment Racks Blog and Room Dividers Blog.

Low on drawer space? This drawer style spice rack is the perfect option for someone who is low on drawer space but wants the convenience of a spice drawer.

This featured spice rack has ample spice storage and it has a convenient size, able to fit in almost any cabinet, counter or shelf. The pull out trays are great because you can see what you are looking for instead of digging around. This feature is great for putting the spice rack on a higher shelf or cabinet out of the way.

 This particular spice rack has three different shelves and can hold up to 50 spice jars depending on the sizes.

 Now if you have an extra drawer that is begging to have spices in it, there is a spice rack that will work for you, too!

This expanding spice rack has many features all in one convenient drawer tray. It is likely this rack will fit in almost any drawer you try it in because it has expandable side trays. If your drawer is large enough, you’ll be able to expand the side trays for extra spice storage or even a few utensils.

This option holds a large amount of spice jars and they are all easily accessible.

 Whether you have drawers or not, cabinets or shelves, none of the above or all of the above, there is a spice rack  for you!

So, we’ve been talking a lot about various spices and spice racks. But there are two seasonings that are universally loved in every kitchen - salt and pepper. 

For the longest time, I would never salt my food. I don’t really know why - maybe it’s because my mom’s cooking was so good, I never felt the need to salt it at the table. Then one day in the college cafeteria, I had a bite of my friend’s scrambled eggs - and they were really good! Amazed, I asked her “whoa! What did you do your eggs?”. She looked at me, in the that ‘are you mental?’ way, and said “Well, I put salt on them”. My life was changed.

Salt and pepper. The wonder twins of the kitchen. Since you use them everyday, it’s best to invest in a nice set of salt and pepper shakers. This here is the Pinata Salt & Pepper Set. This colorful wooden set  has adjustable zinc gears. That lets you control how fine or coarse you want your salt and pepper. Plus - they are very festive! They make me think of laying on the beach in the Riveria Nayarit.

If you’re looking for something a little more high-tech, there’s this Stainless Steel Electric Salt & Pepper Grinder.  This one has push button action - just hit the button and your pepper is freshly ground and sprinkled on your food. Also, this grinder has a light - perfect for romantic evenings with candlelight dinners! 

Have you seen any good salt and pepper sets out there? Let me know!

I have a serious addiction to cookbooks. Not only do I use them as reference materials in the kitchen, but I tend to plunk down on the sofa and read them cover to cover - like a novel. Cookbooks are a window to endless possibilities.

I just found a new one at the thrift store, the Herbs & Spices - The Cook’s Reference Book. This book is put out by DK Publishing. I love DK books, they have the best pictures and clear, concise writing (as a side note, their travel books are great,too!).

If you’re wanting to learn more about herbs and spices - this book is amazing! It has photos of the herb or spice, the history of it, uses for it, recipes, food and wine pairings. Even gardening tips! Flipping through it, I’m getting some ideas for some new spice combinations.

When you collect cookbooks, there’s a vital kitchen gadget that you need. You’ll need a cookbook holder. I’ve got this one, I picked it up at StacksAndStacks. It has an acrylic flap that presses down on your cookbook pages, which holds the book open and protects it from splashes and stains.

Of course, you may need something else! After you start getting into new herbs and spices, you’ll definitely need a new spice rack!

Here’s a couple of fantastic spice racks I came across at StacksAndStacks.com. These aren’t your traditional carousel spice racks! Not only do they spin around for your convenience, the spice compartments are also dispensers! Here’s the first one. Behold the Spice Dispensing Carousel!

That’s right - you won’t even need your measuring spoons. One click for 1/4 tsp, two clicks for 1/2 tsp and so on. What a great way to reduce the amount of washing up while cooking (which is always a priority for me - I don’t have a dishwasher, and reducing the number of things I have to wash makes me a happy girl).

This spice rack can also be mounted underneath a cabinet. Mounting a spice rack under a cabinet is a great way to preserve both counter and cabinet space. It’s like a whole hidden world of storage opportunities.

Here’s another one I found. It’s a little modern - kinda stylin’. I think it’s because of the steel. Here’s the Stainless Steel Spice Carousel.

Same deal, one click per 1/4 tsp measurement. This would look great on a granite countertop!

So, what do you think? Are you into the self-measuring spice racks? Or are you a traditionalist - devoted to your measuring spoons? Either way, I think we can all agree that there are a lot of great spice racks out there to be found.

First of all - say the title out loud: ‘Packet Protector’. You now sound like my pal Bonnie from Chicago. Now, let’s get to the issue - what’s a packet protector?

It’s a holder for spice packets. Yes, I know - I’ve said I’m not a big fan of spice packets and mixes. But you know, sometimes you feel a little lazy. Plus, can you even make Spinach Dip without the soup mix packet? For that reason alone, I’ll give packets a pass. Because I love spinach dip more than anyone should.

The Linus Seasoning and Spice Packet Holder is a little acrylic holder for spice packets. It keeps them organized, and prevents them from getting lost in the cabinet.

But if you are totally opposed to pre-mixed seasoning packets, there’s other uses for this holder! Like:

• Organizing seed packets for your garden.
• Storing packets of bath salts in the bathroom.
• Storing bags of your own pre-mixed spices!

So, what do you think? Let me know if you’ve got any other uses for this spice packet holder. Or are you loyal to your spice rack. And is there a support group for people who love spinach dip too much?

You know what drives me crazy? Measuring spices into a spoon by shaking the spice can over the spoon. Not only can it be seemingly time consuming (shake shake shake..look at spoon…shakeshakeshake..look at spoon), but more often then not my impatience wins out and I end up opening the wide end of the bottle, shaking it - and dumping nutmeg all over the counter. Blerg!

That’s why I love these measuring spoons. These measuring spoons are dual sided - with the traditional round side for liquid measurements, and a more rectangular side for dry ingredients. This rectangular side is a blessed feature - because it’s more streamlined, it fits inside most spice jars! Plus, these spoons have flat bottoms, so they can rest on your countertop.

Okay - and here’s the cool thing about them. If you’re one of those super cool people who have a magnetic knife rack (I’m just too clumsy and flailing for such things) these measuring spoons are magnetic - so you can just stick them up there. Way cool. It’s like something Alton Brown would have in his kitchen.

Even if you don’t have a magnetic knife rack, these spoons would still stick to a metal spice rack. It can be your centralized spice system!