Gomashio

This recipe is from The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone. It's a delicious condiment made from toasted sesame seeds and sea salt. Sesame seeds are full of calcuim with black sesame seeds having a higher amount of minerals than tan seeds. Its really delicious on rice, but I've been using it on all sorts of foods (stir fries, soups, greens...). Toasting the seeds completely changes their flavor.

It's easy to make and can be stored in an airtight container for 2 weeks. Simply add one teaspoon fine sea salt to a dry skillet over medium heat and roast for about 3 minutes until salt is very dry and slightly browned. Transfer the sea salt to mortar and grind to a fine powder. In the same dry skillet, still over medium heat, toast 6 tablespoons of rinsed sesame seeds until the seeds have a nutty aroma, puff up a little, and crush easily between your fingers. Add roasted sesame seeds to mortar and crush together with pestol until seeds are mostly ground.

You can add some iron to the gomashio by using a cast iron pan.