Fall Has Arrived... Let's Spice Up The Pantry!

Exciting Ingredients Part 4: Cinnamon

It has started to get chilly in Tiny’s neighborhood! Summer goes by so quickly and while Tiny will miss her days swimming at the beach and watching the fireflies, she is excited to spend some time inside learning how to cook cozy, cool weather treats. While flipping through a few baking cookbooks this week, Tiny noticed one ingredient kept popping up… cinnamon! She did a little bit of reading up on this spice and found so many delicious and different ways to use it.

People have used this sweet spice for at least 4000 years! As early 2000 BCE, the Egyptians used it as a perfume as well as for funerals and other religious ceremonies. Cinnamon was mentioned in the Hebrew Scriptures and Christian Old Testament several times, and Pliny wrote about it during the early Roman Empire.

Cinnamon is native to Southeast Asia and it can come from several different varieties of trees in the Cinnamomum genus. The spice is in fact the inner layer of tree bark that is peeled away from the branches. As the bark dries, it curls up into the tight, coiled “quills” or “sticks” sold at spice markets and grocery stores around the world. The sticks are also often ground into a fine powder that is convenient to use in so many sweet and savory recipes.

The two most common varieties of cinnamon are called Ceylon and Cassia:

Cassia cinnamon, the more common of the two, is grown mostly in Indonesia, China, India, and Vietnam. The sticks are thicker, with dark, reddish brown curls. Cassia cinnamon has a stronger smell and flavor. 

Ceylon cinnamon, the more delicate and expensive type, is almost always from Sri Lanka. Ceylon sticks are thinner and more crumbly, and very easy to grind up in a coffee grinder or mortar and pestle.

Arab traders originally brought spices, silks, and other Eastern goods through the Middle East and into Europe. Today, cooks all across the world use cinnamon in their own completely unique ways. 

These sweet spiced almonds are an easy vegan snack for your lunchbox or a great topping for yogurt.

For dinner, try these little North African-style lamb meatballs baked in a cinnamon-scented tomato sauce. Feel free to leave out the red pepper flakes, if you are sensitive to hot spice! 

You can also try a rich and coconutty Indonesian chicken curry or a hearty Greek moussaka if you are feeding a crowd.

For veggies, try cinnamon with roasted pumpkin, squash, carrots, or even in this cheesy, vitamin-rich kale and sweet potato casserole.

When it is time for something sweet, sip a glass of horchata, a cool, refreshing rice drink, or whip up a batch of yummy (dairy-free!) Mexican chocolate pudding.

And if you would like to celebrate something with a good, old-fashioned cake, this easy apple ring is so nice to share with your friends!

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This post created by Kat Craddock

Photo credits: Cassie Sciortino