Its that time of year when I do my holiday baking. One of the things I always make is Finnish Nisu (or Pulla or coffee bread depending on what you call it). The ingredient that gives this bread its flavor is cardamom. Do you have any idea on how expensive cardamom is in the grocery story? I spotted a tiny bottle of cardamon seeds for $8.99. Yep, $8.99 for 2 ounces, which works out to be about $72 per pound. Yikes! Of course I can get it cheaper from a local spice store, Attar, but even then the wholesale price of one pound is $36. Half price, not bad! But, then just for giggles I wanted to see if I could get it online for even cheaper and to save me the trip to the store. Yep. Amazon.com
Its a good thing that spices freeze well, because a pound of cardamom will last quite a while. I simply divide the seeds up into smaller bags to freeze and take out as needed. Then I grind the seeds in my coffee bean grinder and I have fresh cardamom for a fraction of the price.
