I have to admit, like a drug, once you start to use it, it's like it saved your life! Fabulous on fish or grilled vegetables, or fowl.

It's so easy; it transforms mundane chicken into the insane. And all you have to do is add a dusting of fennel pollen to the mix of salt and pepper! It's that easy!

Fennel's leaves, seeds, and fennel pollen have been in culinary use for a long time. They say the Greeks and Romans used this very flavorful plant for culinary purposes.

The gathering of this pollen from the wild fennel grown in Umbria is not a lighthearted task. Simple enough, gather the flowers when blooming, capture in a bag, let dry in the sun and shake to release the pollen.

Gathering enough to put in the palm of your hand is not difficult. Gathering enough to make more than that means a lot of plants and a lot of shaking to get there.

The process takes an enormous amount of time, and patience is required. This Wild Tuscan Fennel Pollen is like no other on the planet. Its bright yellow coloring is created by microscopic little angels, mimicking a flower.

And like the magical stories we have read, it only takes a tiny dusting to change our palates forever!

Transforming fowl or fish, or adding a touch to a green vegetable, it is amazing what this secret mythical "dust" can do! You can feel the heartbeat of the pixie in every bite!

It can top almost everything you eat in the summer, fall, or winter, from grilled veggies to fowl of any kind. With just a little olive oil, salt & pepper, and a shimmering dusting of fennel pollen. It's that easy! And is magically better!

Shop now for the Magical Wild Fennel Pollen!

Click Here To See Everything Featured in This Newsletter!

This simple and delicious recipe produces satisfying results that makes fun in your mouth.

See the Bigoli with Fennel Pollen Recipe here!

Pure lemon oil is ideal for baking and to use in sauces, dressings, soups, glazes, whipped cream, and frostings. It can also be used in sweets and hard candies.

Boyajian has dedicated 25 years to the pursuit of the finest sources for their natural extracts. The result has been a line of consistently superior products that are relied on by home cooks and professional chefs alike.

Unlike common supermarket varieties, Boyajian lemon oil is undiluted and unadulterated.

Because of its remarkable intensity, only a few drops of oil are required to replace zest or peel.

Shop now for Boyajian Lemon Oil!

This recipe is so simple. It was originally adapted from a recipe in a magazine. With just a small amount of fennel pollen the flavor transforms in a wonderful way.

See the Fennel Pollen Ravioli Recipe here!

This is a perennial favorite in our house—always the first choice and a must for fennel lovers.

So crazy easy for fantastic results it makes the mundane go away with ease.

See the Fennel Pollen Chicken Recipe here!

This recipe came from the need to make a chicken recipe full of flavor that was easy and fast to construct.

Place a baking sheet large enough to hold all the chicken, with space between, in the oven, and pre-heat to 350F....

See the Harissa & Kefta Chicken Thighs in the oven Recipe here!

When you first open the jar and go for a pinch, the first thing you will notice is the silky smooth feel between your thumb and forefinger. Wow!

This incredibly fine grind is amazing! Understand it is not a powder like so many commercial spice blends.

This Kefta has texture and feels fabulous. And the "whiff" is wonderfully effervescent. This Moroccan spice blend is smooth and distinct, complex and simple all at the same time. Though initially, the aroma is "recognizable" with cumin leading the "flavor," it shares the olfactory epithelium with the other spices for a perfect balance.

We couldn't wait to fire up the grill (we did) and top our chicken with this very special Moroccan spice rub!

Adding olive oil, salt, a little lemon juice, Ras el Hanout, and Kefta Rub, and we had a party! We can't wait to rub it on everything come summer!

Named koofteh (kofta) by the Persians, the root of kefta, which means literally "pummeled meat."

Kofta is most commonly used as a description for a minced meat "dish" - a meatball. Known as "kefta," it found its way to Morocco from Persia via every country that separates the two, including Morocco, Turkey, Lebanon, and Persia. Each with their own distinct versions of kefta.

Not just any meatball like we have in the West, this "fist"-sized, full-flavored dish is most often served with a yogurt sauce to contrast the spices.

The act of "pummeling," working the meat so that the proteins break down and the lamb, onion, garlic, salt, and the spices bind together. Do not include any flour or filler as they are not used in an authentic dish.

This Kefta recipe is from Mehdi's great Uncle, one of Casablanca's finest butchers. This "Moroccan" version of Kefta is inspired by local cuisine and includes cumin, paprika, cayenne, cinnamon and mint; hazelnut was in the original recipe but has been omitted for allergy reasons.

Shop now for Villa Jerada Kefta Rub!

Harissa is not one of those condiments that has only one authentic recipe. In fact, from town to town, region to region, it can vary from a little to a lot, from texture to ingredients and from hot to not so hot. Of all the harissas we have tried, this is the very best!

Here, in this jar, is Mehdi's mom's recipe. Authentic to his family, Mehdi strives to recreate Moroccan harissa as if it were made at home in his kitchen growing up.

Villa Jerada uses the finest ingredients from around the world, freshly ground and combined to make one of the freshest products we carry. All their attention to detail and the feeling of smooth heat make this Moroccan condiment a treat!

You forget how good one product is compared to others until you use a different one. And then it is like a slap on the forehead when you remember why we chose this one. We recently did that and really missed Mehdi's harissa.

Harissa remains a staple as a Moroccan condiment, much like ketchup, Tabasco, or Sriracha is in many American homes. Though some key ingredients remain essential to every Moroccan harissa recipe, variances do exist, setting some apart from the others.

Shop now for Villa Jerada Moroccan Harissa!

This recipe from Jacques Torres Chocolate in New York City was adapted from an article in Food & Wine Magazine about how chefs stay slim and in shape.

The thing that caught my eye, besides the fact that I love anything chocolate, is what Jacques said about cravings: "I'm more addicted to chocolate than I am to sugar...." And a small piece of super-quality dark chocolate can stave off his cravings.

See the Chocolate Bark with Almonds, Candied Fruit and Sea Salt Recipe here!

Valrhona Manjari chocolate is an extraordinary bittersweet couverture chocolate made from a blend of the best Trinitarios cocoa beans from Madagascar. With a 64% cocoa content, Valrhona's Manjari is perfect for home pastry chefs and professionals alike.

This Madagascar dark chocolate is the perfect compromise between the ultra-dark bittersweet chocolate couvertures with 70% cocoa content and the (often too sweet) dark chocolate couvertures with less than 60% cocoa content.

Valrhona Manjari chocolate contains a higher-than-typical amount of cocoa butter to give your desserts and truffles a silky finish and make your favorite drinking chocolate oh-so-rich! With the sweetness of the tropics, Valrhona Manjari chocolate has an intense taste, sustained fullness, and then hints of dried fruit and grilled almonds with a woody base.

It is suitable for pastry, chocolate fillings, molding, enrobing, and icing. The Valrhona "feves" are small oval disks that are easier to work with than large industrial size blocks.

Valrhona started in 1924 when a pastry chef from Tournon created a chocolate factory, which eventually achieved worldwide recognition. In 1984, it became the first to offer a chocolate with 70% cocoa. Valrhona in Tain l'Hermitage is considered by most pastry chefs and chocolatiers as the premier chocolate company in the world.

Their focus is solely on their chocolate, and to ensure the highest quality and optimum flavor, they grow their own cocoa beans, their own cane sugar, and their own vanilla on plantations all around the world. Now that's quality control.

Valrhona has finally begun to offer its professional products, cocoa, and couvertures, packaged for the home pastry enthusiast in a palette of subtle flavors, to create elaborate and delicious chocolate preparations.

This Madagascar dark chocolate is especially good for fillings and for pouring, dipping, and molding. You cannot go wrong here.

Shop now for Valrhona Manjari Dark Bitter-Sweet Couverture 64%!

These are good! Like hazelnuts from Piedmont and Sicilian pistachios, Marcona almonds from Spain are prized the world over. Some even say Marcona almonds are the finest in the world.

Almost round and very flat, Marcona almonds look different from California garden-variety almonds, and they have a richer, more intensely nutty flavor.

Our Spanish Marcona almonds are toasted in sunflower oil and lightly salted, and the result is a crisp, tender, and super-flavorful almond. If you haven't had them, try them at least once...and you might be hooked for life!

You might think that almonds in olive oil would be better, and they might be when freshly oiled and eaten soon after. But we discovered that by the time they arrive from Spain, they taste - well, oily - and we find we prefer the almonds in heart-healthy sunflower oil.

Try a small handful of these flat almonds with a spoonful of Lehua Honey. A quick snack and a great combination.

Shop now for Marcona Almonds!

Adapted from "From a Breton Garden", by Josephine Araldo and Robert Reynolds (Addison Wesley Press).

Whole caramelized onions are used as a garnish for roasted meats or birds, served with sauteed potatoes and a comforting red wine from a sunny place, a Chateauneuf-du-Pape, for example. The key to successfully caramelizing onions is to take your time. The end result, though, is amazing and makes for a wonderful side, especially if you like sweet onions.

See the Whole Onions Glazed With Honey Recipe!

From 1980 to 1984 my friend Don was Chef Louis Szathmary's Head Service Cook (there was only one chef in a kitchen back then). Which meant he ran The Bakery when Chef Louis was not there, and at the time was often.

Besides cooking for all the wild personalities that flocked to have Chef Louis cook for them, Don did photos for the Chef and married the coffee & dessert person.

Don is old-school cooking, he tastes everything with his finger, and cooks with his eyes, his senses and instinct. Nothing throws him, he just makes it taste good!

"The sweet/sour flavor profile cooked into the crisp, fresh cabbage makes this an ideal side dish for your roasted poultry or roast pork dinners. This year we served it at home with our favorite roast duck. You may elaborate on the recipe by adding apple wedges or golden raisins to the cabbage as it cooks" -- Don.

See the Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage Recipe!

In Italian, agrodolce means "sour and sweet," and this nuanced vinegar beautifully expresses both. Albert and Kim Katz have long been fascinated with the idea of marrying the sweetness and complexity of wine grapes that have been left on the vine to concentrate the flavors and natural sugars, with the bright and crisp acidity of authentic Orleans Method vinegar.

The versatility of this elixir will expand your repertoire!

For a simple salad dressing, add just a drizzle of olive oil, along with salt and pepper. You'll need less oil with the balanced acidity in AgroDolce than in your regular dressing recipe.

Try Katz Sauvignon Blanc vinegar in a pear, walnut, and blue cheese salad with a splash of walnut oil. It marries well with salads and other dishes that include goat cheese or with goat cheese alone.

Mix this white grape vinegar with a bit of mustard, black pepper, herbs, and olive oil to marinate chicken for the grill or to roast.

Toss with peak summer tomatoes and fresh mozzarella for an easy and delicious appetizer.

To achieve AgroDolce, Sauvignon Blanc grapes are harvested from the Suisun Valley that borders Napa on its west side. The grapes have intentionally been left on the vine for at least a month to six weeks longer than if they were to be made into a dry finished wine.

By harvest time, they are almost "raisiny" from their concentration of fruit and sugars. This is the same tradition used for hundreds of years to make the great Sauternes of France.

The unfermented juice from the grapes is blended with Katz' proprietary wine vinegar and slowly aged in oak barrels until it becomes a balanced AgroDolce Sauvignon Blanc vinegar.

The finished vinegar is almost sherry-like in color and complexity, with hints of vanilla from the wood, and sweet apricot, fig, and pear from the late-harvest grapes—but all supported by a strict backbone of crisp acidity from the vinegar base.

Shop now for AgroDolce Vinegar Sauvignon Blanc!

A unique flavor comes from the pollen collected in the rich and diverse Miombo forests of central Zambia. Over 7,000 families care for thousands of beehives and ethically collect honey only twice a year - winter and summer - from sustainably built and managed treetop bar hives, all built and managed by local Zambians.

Profits from the honey collection are used to support local families, beekeepers, and their communities.

For such a dark honey, it is surprisingly smooth, with a pourable viscosity! The texture influences your perception of the flavor. Really savor the first taste, as it will most clearly reveal all the nuances and subtleties of flavor. The start is light for a moment, then the mid-taste reveals a richness, something like molasses, and finally, the finish is a smoky roll off the edge of your tongue. After all this, you'll notice hints of the wild floral mix that the bees were busy pollinating.

All artisanal honeys reflect not only what the bees are gathering but the terroir of where they live. This honey is unique and really, really delicious.

Try this honey on your morning toast or in your tea, with yogurt, or soft or hard cheeses, and in baking recipes.

Information about the Bees and Their Habitat.

The Miombo forests of central Zambia constitute a vast and diverse woodland ecosystem that covers a large part of southern Africa, including Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. The name "Miombo" comes from the Bantu language, meaning "brachystegia," the dominant tree species in these forests.

These forests feature a mosaic of different vegetation types, including savannas, woodlands, and forests, shaped by the interactions between rainfall, soil type, and topography. The Miombo forests are a crucial biodiversity hotspot in Africa, hosting a rich diversity of plant and animal species, including many endemics.

Home to elephants, lions, leopards, hyenas, and various mammal species, the Miombo forests also support over 300 bird species. Bees, both solitary and social, play a crucial role in pollination and maintaining forest ecosystems in this region.

The African honey bee (Apis mellifera) is one of the essential bee species in the Miombo forests. These highly social bees form large colonies, playing a vital role in pollinating fruit trees and flowering plants. Despite their aggressive behavior, wild African bees are crucial for local communities as a source of honey and other bee products.

Efforts are underway to promote the conservation and sustainable use of wild African bee populations in the Miombo forests and other parts of Africa. Beekeeping programs aim to support conservation, local livelihoods, and minimize risks associated with working with these defensive bees.

Shop now for Mama Buci Zambian Winter Honey!