Penzey's Spices - Turkish Seasoning

I used to buy all my spices from the grocery store, but in the last few years I have gotten hooked on Penzey's Spices. I like them because they have a much better selection than you can find in most stores, you can buy the spices in many different volumes, and the spices themselves seem to be a bit more fresh. They often will send you a small sample bottle of one of their spice mixes with your order. In my last order, they sent me a bottle of their Turkish Seasoning which is now my favorite spice blend.

Turkish Seasoning is a blend of salt, garlic, cumin, black pepper, oregano, paprika, sumac, red pepper and cilantro. I've made up two different recipes that work with this seasoning which are found below.

Peas and Rice
This is sort of a mix between a pilaf and a risotto.
1 medium onion, chopped
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 medium clove garlic
1 can drained chickpeas
1 1/2 cup wild rice mix (I use a mix I bought at Costco - Organic Harvest Medley)
1 can tomatoes
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp Turkish seasoning
3 cups broth
2 cups defrosted frozen peas

Cook the onion in butter and sugar until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1 min. Add chickpeas, wild rice, tomatoes and cook 1 minute. Add white wine, salt, parsley, Turkish seasoning and the broth. Simmer covered until the liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally. Add the defrosted peas until they are warmed.


Fessenjon
This recipe is my attempt at recreating a Persian stew made of walnuts and pomegranate juice that I first had in California. Be warned that while it is tasty, it does not look pretty.
1 cup toasted walnuts
1 medium onion, cut into quarters
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
2 lbs pork, cut into bite sized pieces (chicken works well too)
1 Tbsp oil
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp Turkish seasoning (OR use an extra 1/4 tsp of cinnamon and add 1 Tbsp of lemon juice after cooking)
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
cooked white rice or saffron rice

Puree the onion with the walnuts, tomato paste, and 1 cup of the pomegranate juice. Lightly brown the pork in the oil and 1/2 cup of the pomegranate juice using a large skillet. Add cinnamon, Turkish seasoning, brown sugar, salt and ginger to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Add the last 1 cup of pomegranate juice to the pan along with the walnut/onion mixture. Simmer, uncovered, for at least 1 hour. Serve over white or saffron* rice.

*just crumble a pinch of saffron into the cooking water of your rice.