Bring flavor with Spice Club
Experiment with new flavors at home using EPL’s Spice Club.
Building off of the library’s popular Seed Library, Spice Club offers free kits with a pre-portioned sample of spice with recipes. Regional and historical background on the spice are included as well. The spice available will change monthly.
The first spice available is fennel.
“Through the Curiosity Index, we’ve learned that Elkhartians are interested in programs around the topics of gardening, food and home cooking,” says Susan Schroeder, reference department head. “Since the Seed Library will be dormant through the winter months, this is an extension of that do-it-yourself type programming.”
Spice kits are available at the reference desk on the second floor of the downtown library.
Once you’ve made something with the spice, share it with us on social media by tagging @myepl on Facebook, Instagram or X. You can also email your pictures or thoughts to reference@myepl.org.
Susan says the idea came from a patron talking about how she grew fresh dill using seeds from the seed library.
“She was chatting with us of her success growing dill, and how she used it in various recipes and the idea was born,” says Susan.
The spice available each month will be:
- September – Fennel
- October – Turmeric
- November – Za’atar
- December – Ginger
- January – Five spice
- February – Cardamom
For more cooking inspiration, the library has a large collection of cookbooks available for checkout. Susan picked a few to highlight:
- The Salvisoul Cookbook by Karla Tatiana Vasquez
- How to Eat 30 Plants a Week by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
- Indulge by Valerie Bertinelli
- Ottolenghi Comfort by Yotam Ottolenghi
More recipes are available on AtoZ World Food through EPL’s Digital Library.
The Seed Library will return next spring. Keep watching for more home cooking and gardening programs.