Flavor

Cumin smells like old socks. Yet what would chili be without cumin -- or curry or sausages or pickles or Edam cheese? The predominant scent in most curry powders and chili powders is cumin.Cumin is the yellowish-brown, dried fruit of a small plant in the parsley family that is native to the Upper Nile.A lot of experts say cumin tastes like caraway but that makes me wonder what's wrong with their taste buds. To me cumin tastes earthy, pungent, even a little bitter. The seeds of cumin do look something like caraway seeds -- at least they are both small and oval.

The Federal Trade Commission's complaint against the maker of Pom Wonderful pomegranate juice was certainly worth headlines. The regulators have accused Pom Wonderful LLC of making unsubstantiated claims about the health benefits of its beverage, which it advertised as a panacea for heart disease, prostate cancer and erectile dysfunction, among other ailments. According to the FTC, most of the research the company cited did not follow standard scientific method or back up the advertised health claims.

Item: Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse One Step Stuffing Mix What you get: 4 1/2 servings Cost: About $2.25 Nutritional content: Turkey flavor - 270 calories, 3 grams fat, 1 gram saturated fat, 350 milligrams sodium, 14 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams sugars Preparation time: 2 to 2 1/2 minutes in microwave, 5 minutes on stove top Review: Pepperidge Farm, long a standard-bearer of traditional stuffing mixes that are baked in the oven, has jumped into the stove-top...

Food entrepreneurs have found a way to inject a little bit of the South Pacific into familiar foods and beverages for an exotic blend that seems to be popping up everywhere. Goodbye, strawberry and kiwi -- hello, passion fruit. Also known as granadilla, passion fruit is a purple, yellow or orange fruit with a yellow interior and edible seeds. It is 2 to 3 inches wide, has leathery skin that is often shriveled and is native to tropical regions that include the West Indies, Australia and Malaysia.

Q: I have heard that spices can lose their flavor over time. How should I store them?A: Spices should be stored in a very cool, dry and dark space, preferably not near the stove.McCormick-Schilling's manager of consumer food center, Laurie Wilson, says that spices from the capsicum family, such as sweet and chili peppers lose flavor, intensity and color faster than other spices and can also draw bugs if not stored properly. These spices include cayenne (red pepper), chili powder, paprika, or any blend that contains these.

* Item: IKEA's Swedish Meatballs and Cream Gravy* What you get: 2 1/2 pounds of meatballs, 16 ounces of gravy (sold separately)* Cost: About $10 for meatballs, $2 for gravy* Preparation time: 15-20 minutes for meatballs, 20 minutes for gravy* Review: My mother -- who is of Swedish descent -- makes meatballs so light and tasty that guests are disappointed if she has a party and doesn't offer them. So maybe I'm too particular when tasting other meatballs. But I'm a big fan of IKEA's food and furniture, so I was truly disappointed when I tried these frozen meatballs.

Item: Edy's candy ice creams What you get: 12 one-half cup servings Cost: About $4.80 Nutrition content: (M & M flavor only)180 calories, 9 grams fat, 5 grams saturated fat, 50 milligrams sodium Preparation time: Serve right out of the freezer Review: Just when it seemed there was nothing new to be had in ice cream, Edy's has come out with frozen treats flavored like favorite candy bars. We tried M & M's Vanilla Ice Cream (made with the mini candies that are extremely popular around our house)

Today's lesson: Drying fruits or vegetables under the sun or in the oven.The best ones are harvested at their peak. The slow drying concentrates the fruit's already-superior flavor, while compacting its bulk. The resulting flavor is more intense and far richer, perfect for use now or to save for more robust dishes later.Drying takes advantage of extra-ripe fruit and the summer season's inexpensive prices. Concentrated flavors of dried produce can pick up the depth of just about any savory or sweet dish.

If the man of your house dreams of spending Father's Day with a fishing rod in hand, you may have to put the steaks back in the freezer Sunday night. Consider his luck as the opportunity to try fish you might not usually find on a restaurant menu or in the seafood case: freshwater perch, bluegill, croaker and wild trout. The first step to cooking them (after they're cleaned, of course) is to recognize many of these fish are more delicate in taste and texture than the salmon or tuna you may be accustomed to throwing on the grill.

An easy way to fight fat is to fake out your taste buds with products that mimic butter.Several companies make butter-flavor sprinkles. Butter Buds Mix a powder that, when mixed with water, makes a fat-free approximation of melted butter. Molly McButter's latest offering, a garlic-butter sprinkle, joins its butter, sour cream and cheese flavor sprinkles.Vegetable coating sprays also come in flavors now, and savvy fat-fighters have discovered new ways to use them.Molly McButter, for example, suggests this faux version of garlic bread: Spray warm toast with vegetable spray and top with garlic-butter sprinkles.