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RawSpiceBar September 2015 Review + Coupon – Spice Box
Disclosure: This package was received free for review. This post contains affiliate links.
Guest Review Alert- Gigi! I'm back again in the guest review chair with a new RawSpiceBar review! I like to cook homemade, healthy dinners a few times a week and I was excited to see this month's selection! September took us on a journey to Turkey with the Istanbul Spice Box.
RawSpiceBar September 2015 Review
RawSpiceBar is a spice subscription box and costs $6.00/month. They source high-quality, whole spices. Every month you get 3-4 premium blended spices and coordinating recipes, enough to make 3 separate dishes serving 8-12 people. Each month spotlights a different region of the world.
The Details:
Cost: $6.00/month
What's in the box? Each month you receive 3-4 spice blends which are enough to create 3 separate dishes serving 8-12 people. Each spice blend weighs between 2-3 ounces.
Shipping: RawSpiceBar ships to the US and Canada. Free shipping for both countries.
When does the box ship? Subscriptions ship the first week of the month
RawSpiceBar comes in a little flat envelope and ships via USPS. Inside is 3 different spice blends along with a large, folded glossy paper with an introduction to the spices and the coordinating recipes printed on the other 3 sides.
First Look: For September, RawSpiceBar featured recipes and spices from Istanbul, Turkey. Spices of the East combined with flavors of the West mesh perfectly to form traditional Turkish cuisine – and this month's recipes highlight a few favorites. They are a little different that what is normally featured and RawSpiceBar urges you to “explore this off-the-beaten-path way of cooking” with these selections.
The menu features recipes for Lahmacun (Baharat Lamb Pizza), Roasted Beet & Urfa Pepper Hummus, and Za'atar & Pita Crusted Cauliflower.
Lahmacun (Baharat Lamb Pizza): This recipe calls for making a flatbread (active dry yeast, sugar, flour, and salt) and the toppings (olive oil, tomato paste, ground lamb, garlic, tomato and onion, along with the Baharat Spices). Just like a traditional pizza – with a twist!
Baharat is a spice staple in Turkish cooking and the name actually means “spices” in Arabic. It's used in all types of recipes from seafood to soup. I'm anxious to try this recipe – just not quite sure if I'm brave enough to try it with the lamb… Here's a closeup look at those beautiful spices:
RawSpiceBar's Baharat blend features coriander, cumin and black peppercorn with warm spices like cinnamon, allspice, cloves and paprika.
Roasted beet & Urfa Pepper Hummus: I LOVE hummus – and I'm anxious to try this recipe. It calls for a can of chickpeas (garbanzos), roasted beets, garlic, lemon, tahini, olive oil, salt, and of course the Urfa Biber spice mix. The Urfa Biber (a Turkish chile) is a dark color and turns anything it mixes with a red-maroon color. It's often described as “raisins meets coffee” and that's exactly what it smells like – a smoky, almost sweet scent.
Urfa chiles pair well with braised meats, eggplants and red peppers and help spice up dairy or hummus spreads.
A closeup of the Urfa Biber spices.
Za'atar & Pita Crusted Cauliflower: This recipe calls for only a few ingredients (flour, pita breadcrumbs, pepper, cauliflower, eggs and salt). The spices smell AMAZING and I can't wait to try this.
Ingredients include thyme, sesame seeds, oregano, salt and sumac.
Za'atar is a Turkish cook's closely guarded secret and I can see why – the spice blend smells amazing. Thyme and sesame seeds provide a nutty flavor, balanced with the oregano and acidic sumac. RawSpiceBar suggests stirring into olive oil and serving as a dip for bread, dusting on eggs or oatmeal, or using as a dry rub on chicken or veggies.
A closeup of the Za'atar spices.
Final Thought: September's visit to Turkey is a bit exotic, but fun. I'm anxious to try the different spices, although I'm not sure I'll follow the recipes exactly – I may use the Za'atar as a dry rub for chicken, which sounds delicious.
As with previous months, it's great that RawSpiceBar gives you recipes that don't call for a lot of crazy stuff you wouldn't have on hand and everything seems pretty simple to make. What a fun way to introduce new meals to your menus! For $6.00/month it's definitely worth trying – you might find a new food you can't live without! I also love the fact that RawSpiceBar introduces things that I wouldn't normally try (in this case, lamb pizza or baked cauliflower bites). If you want to try RawSpiceBar, use this link to try this subscription. Coupon: Get a bonus month when you subscribe for 6 or 12 months. Just use this link with the code MOM2015. You will get a total of 7 or 14 months.
I hope you enjoyed my guest review – stay tuned and hopefully Erin will let me review another one soon! 🙂
Do you like FREE SUBSCRIPTION BOXES? Click HERE to see my free subscription box list.
You can see my full coupon list HERE.
Here’s my experience – RawSpiceBar’s product quality was not what I had expected (I had heard great reviews) and the individual spice packets contained less than what was promised on the label (I individually weighed each packet – even if you include the weight of the mini brown envelope, the product delivered was less than what was promised).
I canceled after 1 month – I think, it was a waste of $6 for less than 3 spoons of spice!