I have a big collection of salts—Indonesian, Himalayan, Japanese, smoked, curried—and I am not shy about liberally sprinkling them as finishing touches on everything from salad to oatmeal. I've also experimented with adding my own flavors (black trumpet mushroom, wild lime, shiso seed) and recently was inspired by this lovely post to try some new ones. If you have not yet discovered the wonders of sea salt in all its sparkling, saline glory (maybe you missed this post?), this is your chance. Of late I have sprinkled black trumpet salt on mushroom risotto, smoked salt on ricotta, cacao salt on beans, citrus salt on tempura and cumin salt on lamb. It adds a wonderful crunch and a pure burst of flavor that dissolves on the tongue. Irresistible.

At the moment, citrus abounds in my kitchen. (I love this corner, by the way. I will often sit on this little leather couch and enjoy the early morning sun, drinking a cup of genmaicha and writing.) I have kumquats, limes, lemons, bergamots, Indian limes and HoneyBells to choose from.

Kumquats are actually much more versatile than you would think. I like to eat them whole, or add slices of them to my drinking water. Paradoxically, the rind is sweet and whatever little inner flesh they have is the more tart part. You can also cook them down with sugar and water to make a fantastic quick marmalade.

Sea salt is produced through the evaporation of seawater, usually with minimal processing. This leaves behind trace minerals and elements, which add flavor and color depending on the water source. Table salt is mined from underground salt deposits and more heavily processed to eliminate minerals. It usually contains an additive to prevent clumping, as well as added iodine, an essential nutrient for synthesizing thyroid hormones. You only need a tiny amount of iodine and if you're not eating table salt, you can get enough by eating sea vegetables, fish, dairy products and even strawberries. It's yet another good reason to eat some seaweed.

I've made salt with citrus zest before, so I was intrigued to see that the post on 101 Cookbooks calls for drying it in a low oven. I tried this with one batch and discovered that it really seems to decrease the pungency, both in smell and taste, so I prefer to skip this step. I find that the salt sucks enough moisture out of the zest to prevent it from clumping, and in this way also retains much more of the flavor. You can experiment to see what you think.

While I was at it, I decided to make a few other flavors. I had some small glass spice jars on hand, and figured they would make nice hostess gifts for friends. I was cooking a lamb dish for dinner, so thought of cumin seeds. Toasting them first brings out their oils and both intensifies and mellows them, adding a rounder note.

I blitzed them a few times in my spice grinder, then added sea salt and pulsed that briefly to combine. The smell is glorious. This would be fantastic sprinkled on a jícama salad, over fish tacos or on a tomato curry.

I've had some cacao nibs lurking about my pantry for a while and this recipe made me think of them again. If you've never tried these before, I suggest you order some from here. They are bits of fermented, dried, roasted and crushed cacao beans. Crunchy yet tender, they have a complex, slightly bitter chocolate flavor and are very rich in antioxidants. Earthy, but not sweet, they are somehow strangely satisfying to eat plain but also can be used in a variety of dishes, from cookies to mashed potatoes. I'm making oatmeal right now, and I stirred some pumpkin puree and grated apple into it and added a generous pinch of cacao salt. This shallot marmalade looks incredible, no?

This cacao salt is simply nibs and salt blitzed in the spice grinder. I plan to sprinkle it on banana bread before baking it and, as I mentioned earlier, it's delicious on black beans. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. If you'd like to try a few of your own combinations, you can always go here for inspiration and supplies. Before you know it, you'll be an old hand at salt...or just an old salt.