• Nathan Hall Simple to Sublime Spices
• DaVero Estate Lavender
• Round Pond Olive Oil
• Peppers of the World
• Redisland Australia Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Tutta California Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Pasolivo Olive Oil
• Salts of the World
• Alternative Oil
• Fennel Pollen
• Bariani Olive Oil
• Chateau Gayot Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Tutta California 2005 Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Next time you cook, think twice before reaching into your pantry for your regular cooking oil. The type and freshness of oil can make a huge difference in taste, even if you’re only cooking for yourself. We recommend Tutta California’s 2005 Extra Virgin Olive Oil, blended from various olive varietals in the Golden State’s Central and San Joaquin Valleys. This particular blend is quite fruity and smooth, with hints of grass and artichoke, but it’s the slight scent of green apple that makes this olive oil especially tasty. Try it with your favorite warm sourdough bread or combine it with balsamic vinegar to drizzle into your favorite exotic green salad. As a gourmet item, its $18 suggested retail price is not over the top. You may, however, have a hard time locating this oil. It is available mainly in high-end specialty food outlets like Bristol Farms. For locations or more information, visit www.tutta-ca.com.

Global Seasoning

Novices beware: this salt is not meant to flavor large pots of boiling water. Canadian chef Stefan D. Czapalay takes us back to a time when salt was regarded as a precious mineral, a sentiment carried on today by chefs worldwide. Czapalay’s Salts of the World are collections of gourmet salts from the four corners of the globe and available in two sizes. The Chef’s Salt Collection ($24.95) contains ten half-ounce vials of the precious salts including Korean sea, Hawaiian red clay, Fleur de Sel, Celtic sea, Kosher, Sel Gris and South African sea. Serious salt connoisseurs should opt for the Epicurean Salt Collection ($69.95), which includes one-ounce portions of fifteen salts, such as Peruvian pink sea, Australian flake and Hawaiian black lava. Use these to finish foods, which will reveal the independent textures of the salts and some of their unique mineral characteristics. The sets come in space-saving tins and include suggestions on how to use each spice. This is a gift that inspires experimentation and fosters new views on seasoning. To purchase or for more information, visit www.chefstefan.com.

Time for an oil change? Rice bran oil is pouring on its charms, promising high levels of antioxidant Vitamin E and essential fatty acids. Those distinctions help the flaxen-colored oil stand out from other oils, whose fats are made from olives, sesame, grapeseed and Vitamin-E rich almonds and avocados. In addition, rice bran oil is high in mono-unsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, allowing a 490-degree smoke point, even higher than peanut oil (460 degrees) or grapeseed oil (485 degrees). That causes cooked foods to absorb less of the fat, no doubt a plus since the rice bran extraction is higher in calories than olive or peanut oil—at 130 calories per tablespoon versus 120 calories—and higher in saturated fat per ounce than most oils. Its light flavor takes on a slightly nutty, buttery taste when heated that perks up fried zucchini or seafood. It is also hypoallergenic. To learn more, visit www.californiariceoil.com.