Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice: making spice sugars

My favorite way to teach easy improvisation in the kitchen is to make Spice Salts. As the name suggests, a Spice Salt is any spice--or combination of spices--mixed with salt. It is THE way to taste if and how different spices go together. Once you have a Spice Salt you like, you can build on it to make a unique Spice Oil, Butter, Mustard, Broth, or Yogurt. With those condiments, you are a piece of protein, produce, grain, or pasta away from a meal.

With the same ease, you can experiment mixing spices to sugars, too, Add these Spice Sugars to hot chocolate, iced coffee, sugar cookies, caramels, and other holiday confections. Or put them on toasted nuts, like I did for last weekend’s holiday fair, where I tossed the nuts with little pieces of sharp cheddar and a sherry-raisin sauce.

You’re familiar with Spice Sugars already, if cinnamon sugar or pumpkin spice is your thing. But why not try your hand making some original ones? Grab two or more spices that you normally wouldn’t put together and add a spoonful of sugar to taste. Try crushed fennel seed and pink peppercorn or cumin and cinnamon.

Here are some quick ideas for how to use whatever sugar you make:.