@Rooster I will join the others in saying that I hope you stick around or at least return after lurking…
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April 1 is an interesting day to make such a decision …
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Please say it ain’t so @Rooster. I hope you reconsider at some point. You are a major contributor to this forum and will be sorely missed.
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Oh no! Was it my fault ? I think it was my fault. Sometimes saying that works.
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I still don’t understand what happened here. No, it was obviously not your fault. But something about the “we are one” references on several posts made him think twice about being part of this board. The one clip from “Freaks” creeped me out. How could anyone sit through that whole movie. And what was up with Frankenstein movie clip? A mob of people going after one poor guy? Maybe he saw something in this board he didn’t like anymore. I don’t know.
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I shouldn’t have directed this to you. Not trying to put you on the spot or anything. My apologies, please accept.
Moderators hat on
Rooster has made his desire for a break evident. We will all miss his contributions and obviously the door is always open for family to return home. If you wish to discuss theories than please do so privately.
I know personally if I needed a break from some sort of drama and I peeked back and read that my break created more drama the chances of my return diminish.
Please give hypothetical scenarios a break and respect @Rooster wishes for a break and wish him well.
Let’s leave it at that.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation.
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My apologies for another post about @Rooster , not a theory though, just to say that he was the one who recommended a lot of sites to sell my harvest.
The other thing, about my personal forum experience, is that, I left another famous food forum as I was confronted by a member for posting a joke in the jokes page which was deemed to be “stereotyping” and honestly it wasn’t offensive which was admitted even by the forum mods. I have no theory about why @Rooster left the forum but he was one of the helpful members I found on this forum during my short stay.
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@Rooster if you’re still reading…
I used your favorite Diaspora Mace this week in a lamb dish - Kashmiri Rogan Josh (along with some saffron, though that wasn’t Kashmiri as the Diaspora order is pending - it’s currently Persian).
It was lovely. Subtle, warm, deeply flavorful.
Thinking that grinding some blades to a powder might enable more frequent use…
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Recently I’ve bought a few Beyond Burlap spices, and have been awed by both their strength and aroma. Last week I was making a large pot of Harira and realized I was out of the cumin I regularly use; i availed myself of the BB cumin, but wisely (I thought) cutting the amount by half. Well, still too strong and pungent for what I needed, and the soup was unbalanced. I added more tomato and chicken broth until it was more acceptable. I truly think 1/4 the called for amount would have been better, but also will use my go-to cumin moving forward in that soup. I’m sure I’ll find a usage for the extremely potent BB product.
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I wonder if it’s roasted cumin - for some preparations the cumin seeds are roasted a bit darker, and it yields a much stronger flavor than the regular. Like blonde roast coffee vs dark roast. The toasty cumin can be a finishing sprinkle too, on raita and chaat.
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A helpful thought @Saregama, but I checked the jar, and it is wild mountain cumin from the Hindu Kush, and untoasted. I know things grown at high altitudes can be mind blowingly potent, as well, I’m sure this varies somewhat by virtue of it’s wildness. I just need to dial it back a bit more. I look forward to using in a cumin forward Lebanese lentil soup with lemon. Also, for some upcoming Indian cooking projects.
I’m happy for you that you’re back home after the unexpectedly lengthy trip! I’m sure your family & the kids will be missing you terribly, however. I’ll miss your adventures in family cooking to be sure. You played it well! Looking forward to see where your post pandemic cooking and eating adventures take you. Even if it’s not out of your ‘hood.
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I was the lucky winner of a raffle that included Spicewalla seasonings for carne asada, pescado verde, and al pastor. 
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Congratulations. Hope you enjoyed it. Something won is much more tastier than something bought 
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@Rooster @Elsieb @Lambchop @saregama I am planning on ordering za’atar from Burlap & Barrel and was wondering, what are your favorites? I would love to try more. Also considering ground bay leaf as I use leaves all the time.
Love the silk chili - not too hot with a nice flavor. Have gone thru 2 jars😋
The oregano buds had good flavor but came in a badly designed plastic grinder bottle. I dumped it into a different jar.
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I LOVE the ground bay leaves, and the ground ginger, turmeric, cobanero and urfa chiles are good too. I was underwhelmed by the fermented white pepper, and use the wild mountain cumin sparingly and with caution due to its potency and flavor profile. To me, it works better in Middle Eastern foods than either Mexican or SW U.S. applications. I wanted to compare their Vietnamese cinnamon to the one I usually use, but they were out of stock. Let us know what you get, and how you like your spices. Hopefully they will still have the free kitchen towels promotion with your first order.
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Back here after a while. 10 months, the thread says. 
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Their black pepper is 9.99 a bottle of 50grams ! That’s the price of 3 kilograms here.
