Culinary Spice Merchants

As true foodies, Pam and George have been obsessed with food and spices for years. As George traveled the world as an airline captain, Pam dived into cooking classes and writing. With Culinary Spice Merchants, they are branching out to create fabulous spices from all over the world. With the Old West Collection, their thought was to begin stepping back to a simpler time when food was honest…and a handshake was your word. Each spice comes with a story that is based on real people who loved food. Aunt Lou’s Special Seasoning is based on Lucretia, who planned on striking it rich in the gold mines of the Dakota Territory. She did end up wealthy, not from gold, but from her own incredible cooking talent. Then, there’s Mark Twain who headed West. He loved apple pie and at the Cliff House Restaurant in San Francisco, they served the best. Our Perfect Pie Spice is based on that recipe. Then there’s Lizzie Johnson, the only woman who drove her own cattle to market. She was also a great cook and created a secret spice recipe that she used on her cattle drives. So, Texas Secret BBQ Seasoning was born. In the 1800’s, Fred Harvey built Harvey House Hotels and restaurants all along the railway stops. Worcestershire Sauce had recently been invented in England and Mr. Harvey thought it would be a great idea to have the Worcestershire Sauce bottles on his restaurant tables. Powdered Worcestershire Sauce is the inspiration for that. Same sauce, only more convenient. By the way, cowboys in the 1800’s, as today, loved their coffee from sunup to evening as they sat around the campfire. So it was natural to create Cowboy Coffee Rub. Finally, in the early 1800’s California was ruled by Mexico and rancheros hired hardworking Vaqueros to herd their cattle. Each year at round up time, the ranchero would host a Spanish style barbecue of spicy grilled steaks for the Vaqueros and their families. Vaquero BBQ Rub is based on those spices. Come, take a taste of the Old West.