True cinnamon from Sri Lanka has soft, crumbly bark and a complex aroma:
sweet, warm and woody, with whispers of clove and citrus.
To learn absolutely everything you could possibly want to know about cinnamon (and more), follow this link to www.globalprovince.com/spicelines/index.htm.
Every issue of SpiceLines newsletter is devoted to a single spice. In our first issue we explored the tantalizing world of peppercorns. In our second, we savor the delectable flavors of true cinnamon, grown in Sri Lanka, and its closely related cousin, cassia. Eleven tempting recipes, from Perfect Cinnamon Toast to Estofado de Pollo, will lure you into our Spice Kitchen. In Chef’s Interview, Susana Trilling of Seasons of My Heart cooking school in Oaxaca, tells us all about canela and the way it’s used in traditional Mexican cooking.
Follow these links to specific articles:
Feature Article: Cinnamon: Eight Leagues Out to Sea
‘“The shores of the island are full of it and it is the best in all the world,” wrote a Dutch sea captain some centuries ago as his ship neared the coastline of Serendib. “When one is downwind of the island, one can still smell cinnamon eight leagues out to sea.” Once known as Ceylon, modern day Sri Lanka is still the source of the most aromatic true cinnamon, a spice almost unknown in America…”
What is the difference between cinnamon and cassia? Could the world’s most ancient spice be an aphrodisiac? Our feature plumbs the chemistry of cinnamon’s sweetly astringent taste, then peers into its tempestuous past. (Did you know that Nero burned a year’s supply of cinnamon at his wife’s funeral?) After a look at cinnamon-spiced desserts in America, we travel to Morocco and Mexico to learn how the fragrant spice is used in savory fare. This use of cinnamon has a long history reaching back into the Middle Ages—and it’s stirring again in the most current kitchens…
Chef's Interview: Oaxaca Spice: A Conversation with Susana Trilling
“Seven other students and I are lounging at a long, hand hewn table, sipping chilled Coronas, eating buttery black-skinned aguacates criollos we bought in the market earlier that day. I take notes but steal an occasional glance at the Sierra Madres from the window of the school at Rancho Aurora where we have gathered for a five-day cooking class. If culinary heaven exists, I’ve found it here…”
In our interview, Susana Trilling, vivacious chef and owner of Seasons of My Heart cooking school, tells how a Chinese junk washed up on the Pacific Coast of Mexico centuries ago may have introduced Ceylon cinnamon to the Western Hemisphere. She guides us through the celebrated cuisine of Oaxaca, where canela is used to flavor everything from the region’s seven spicy moles to the most delectable Mexican chocolate.
Spice Kitchen: Cinnamon Recipes
Eleven delicious recipes, from Perfect Cinnamon Toast and Fresh Apple Tarts with Cinnamon Ice Cream to Grilled Pork Chops with Moroccan Tomato Jam. Don’t miss Susana’s recipe for Estofado de Pollo, Oaxaca’s salute to Spain: This luscious, cross-cultural chicken stew combines Asian spices (cinnamon and black pepper) with ingredients from the Old World (green olives and capers)—and the New (tomatoes and chilies). Plus Seven (Very Useful) Tips for Cooking with Cinnamon.