BY the way, I've got nothing against dried spices. I'm not a fan of middle-eastern cooking or of curries, though the very occasional blowout in a good Indian restaurant is something I do enjoy. I will use dried spices when they're called for. But most of my cooking doesn't call for them. I do use paprika, whether sweet, or hot, or smoked, and nutmeg occasionally. I grate fresh nutmeg and won't use powdered. I'm very wary of it. One grate too much can wreck a dish. I simply can't understand why anyone would use dried herbs (except for oregano). They grow so easily in gardens, containers or pots on the windowsill. Parsley freezes perfectly. Garlic can be bought for next to nothing all year round. Mrrzy castigates me for having this attitude. Mrrzy needs to know that cooking with shortcuts is hardly shortcuts at all. There's nothing so joyous as picking a sprig or two of fresh basil, even if it's from a pot on the windowsill, and sprinkling the torn leaves on top of a pasta dish or a pizza. You can't do proper Italian cookery with dried basil, dried parsley, dried garlic or dried thyme. And in this day and age there is simply no excuse for trying to do so. I live in a remote part of England that totally lacks shops of non-British ethnicity. But our supermarket has all the fresh herbs you could ever wish for. They may not be as good as what you grow yourself. But they're a damn sight better that those abject little jars of dried herbs that bear little resemblance to the fresh article. Nothing sad about me, mate. I've been there with all that processed, dried crap. I've moved on and it's been a revelation. Have a go. Your first task is to bin any dried basil that resides in your house. No self-respecting Italian cook would ever use that, and, though you might think you can, you can't improve on real Italian cooking with your dried herbs!