mango&lime — a blog about food and eating in miami

For Food Destinations #4, a blogging event created by Maki of I was just really very hungry, I asked bloggers to write about their favorite gourmet gift shop. Even though there are many great shops in Miami, I discovered a wonderful store while in Houston, where I spent the last two weeks visiting family for the holidays: Penzeys Spices.

It’s hard to imagine cooking without spices. Even if you keep it to the most basic level, salt and pepper are in everyone’s kitchen, so for the cook, good-quality spices can make a wonderful gift. It was my mom’s friend who told me about the place, while urging me to use “good” cinnammon in baking. It makes a difference, she said.

To give you an idea of the variety the store offers, — more than 250 spices, seasonings and herbs — four different types of powdered cinnammon with varying levels of spice, or “bite.” There’s Ceylon True Cinnammon, China Cassia Cinnammon, — the most popular according to the saleswoman — Korintjie Cassia Cinammon, and my favorite judging from its strong, spicy scent, the Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cinnammon.

The store has a rustic feel to it, its shelves and signs all wood. Visiting it is a sensory experience. Most products are sold in both bags and glass jars in varying quantities. And you can sample and smell every spice they carry. I spent minutes by each display reading about the properties of the spice and its possible uses, some which might not be the most obvious.

The store also sells seasoning mixes, salad dressing mixes and herbs, even cheese seasonings and an array of dried chilli peppers and chilli pepper spice blends.

For the uncertain who need a gift, the store has a section devoted to Gift Boxes, some tailored to the baker, the pepper lover, the barbecue lover; others are tailored around a specific spice, like the Indian curries 8-jar set, which includes Sweet Curry Power, Hot Curry Power and Maharajah Curry Powder among others; and for occasions, they have a wedding set and a starter’s set.

My aunt was looking for Sumac, which is among the store’s specialty spices. Sumac is a popular spice in Iran and Turkey. Although I’ve never tried it, its flavor is described as acidic, similar to vinegar or lime. Since she wanted to take some back to give as a gift, she bought the largest bag available and bought small glass jars, which Penzeys sells as well, so she could package them herself. A way to make your money stretch because although the prices won’t break the bank, they’re not your average supermarket spice prices. They also have a Hot Chocolate Mix that I really liked and would make a wonderful gift.

In the end, I left the store with only one purchase: cinnammon sugar, a blend of sugar, their China and Ceylon Cinnamon and sugar-aged Vanilla Bean.

Just sprinkle it on toast, waffles or in coffee.