Lady Amalthea's Spice Mixture

Before beginning the food and recipe portion of our program, I owe it to you to bring you up-to-date on what's been happening in Amalthea's world. First off, Ozzy and I moved out of Chinatown and into our own apartment in Chelsea. It's a studio with a small (though serviceable!) kitchen. However, since it's just the two of us, there hasn't been anywhere near as much cooking going on as there once was--hence the long silence. And, since Ozzy (usually) justs eats his own food, I'm really just feeding myself, so experimentation has fallen to the bare minimum.

However, there is now an (increasingly regular) eater in our apartment, who presents a unique new eating challenge. Yes, Lady A has a new beau--a vegetarian. While the Vegetarian (which shall remain his title until further notice) certainly enjoys my cooking, his dietary restrictions are influencing (and changing!) it. Add to that the fact that I've recently become anemic (due to mono, not a side-effect of dating the Vegetarian!) and my cooking is in a state of transition, to put it lightly.

That said, I was fiddling around in the kitchen today and decided it was high-time to excite my taste buds and create a new spice mixture to be used in all sorts of exciting ways, as yet undiscovered. If you have suggestions (preferably vegetarian-friendly!), post them in the comments!

Lady Amalthea's Spice Mixture

• 2 teaspoons cumin, ground
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cardamom, ground
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, ground

Mix all ingredients together. Store in an airtight container. Enjoy!