Spice Is Nice

Ninety percent of the world’s cinnamon comes from Sri Lanka (previously, and perhaps even more food-evocatively, known as Ceylon). Now you can enjoy Ceylon cinnamon and more from Santa Barbara as Dinesh Perera has started his company The Spicy Gourmet (thespicygourmet.com). You can order a spice-blending collection, complete with a proprietary spice grinder and recipe booklet, and relish the exotic—from fenugreek seed to whole Ceylon mace, ground freshly in your own kitchen, releasing all those beautiful flavors and aromas right in time for your meal. What’s more, all the spices are guaranteed USDA-certified organic and fair trade, so you can feel good while you eat well. But if you need more help than a host of deliciousness delivered to your door, you can invite Perera himself to lead a cooking class in your home. Starting at $75 a person, invite four to seven friends to your kitchen and choose three delicious South Asian dishes to make and devour, from thakkali isso (shrimp in a coconut-tomato curry) to annasi (curried pineapple with cumin and fenugreek). For more info, call 805-448-7961, or email dinesh@thespicygourmet.com.