Friday the 13th - The scary spice & tea cupboard

Even if it's Friday the 13th I suppose it's only scary if you're very easily scared - here's my kicthen cupboard with most of my spices and teas.

I do have selected ones on shelves and in the pantry. But this cupboard serves me well just beside the stove and above the microwave.

It's rather interesting, that my love for colours and travels, has followed all the way into that spice cupboard.

I didn't realise that until recently, when opening the door, seeing all the colours, browsing through the shelves, remembering the travels from which I've brought home some of the spices and teas..., the thoughtful gifts..., thinking about all the nice foody stuff you can explore with a little help from the friendly bottles and tins there... - and I thought it would be quite a fun thing to share some of the content. Very figuratively of course.

So let's take a quick browse from from top to bottom - on the top shelf we have the larger bottles, like syrup, salts, some different kinds of sugar, breadcrumbs, the lovely colourful ceramic salt & pepper mills from Whittard of Chelsea (one of my favorite stores in England!).

I do think one might be able to discern some sea salt from England, old fashion baking powder, big jars of coarseley grinded blackpepper and cinnamon, cocoapowder from Holland in a lovely old tin, some spices from the Azores and Madeira, cheese sprinkle (yum!) and hot periperi from South Africa. And of course that superb Jamaican jerk from Florida - I treasure it, I save on it, just because I can't seem to find just THE right stuff at home or anywhere else...

Middle shelf -where the smaller containers of spices and herbs have their home. I can see curry, InaParmaans vegetable stock from South Africa, a boring, modern tin of baking powder from Coop, a porcelain cat for serving sugar (the lid is broken, not by me), lots of different types of cardamom, colourful striped pepper & salt containers from Swedish brand SagaForm, my old, old lemonshape egg-timer, dry yeast, saffron...

Lower shelf - now here are the really important things in life, the teas! Some Sun-Maid raisins, some instant teas (English fruits, Mulled wine, Rhum & Raspberry, Good morning) and hot chocolate (Luxury orange - not a nice one) from Whittard's, different teas in containers, tins, boxes and baskets. The creme de la creme most certainly being Yorkshire Gold of course! I also see that old, handmade wooden sugarbowl that is a bit chewed on by a cat unknown. And quite a nice bag of chai latte from Lipton. I spot some take out-menus from a selection of distinguished restaurants. And Aurora's cortisonmedicine for when her allergies flare up.

Now that wasn't too frightening, was it? I now bid you a Friday the 13th-goodnight, have some spicy herbal tea-dreams!