Karen - Emeril's Essence....

Hi Karen! - Since you are in England, you probably haven't had the experience of "Emeril." He is Emeril Lagasse, a chef with restaurants in New Orleans (now other places), and now a big star. He has cooking shows on the Food Network cable tv channel and is quite a clown, mangling any language he tries to use (including English!). He is known for always saying he is going to "kick it up a notch" (like adding 8 cloves of garlic to a recipe that only calls for 2, or adding truffles to a lobster dish no one watching at home could possibly afford to make anyway). But, his "signature" is to (are you ready for this?!) yell (yes, YELL) BAM!!!! while throwing a large pinch of this Essence mix from on high into whatever he is cooking. And, he adds this to almost everything he makes!

He uses it as a general seasoning for truly everything. I make a similar one, and I use it as a seasoning on steaks and pork chops and ribs, which I like very much (those readers who always ask for the seasoning on Outback Steak House steaks, try this). He doesn't toast the spices, but it never hurts to do that to let the flavors bloom.

If you want to see how it is used in his recipes, visit his website at www.emerils.com!

Hope all is well with you!!!