Ah, the aromas of the holiday seasons. Those earthy savory smells of turkey and stuffing or ham and the sweet spiciness of pies. Herbs of every kind flavor holiday meals from sage and thyme in the turkey rub to nutmeg in the pies. Wait a minute, that nutmeg is not really an herb.
Herbs and spices are quite different. Herbs are plants used for flavoring, texture, fragrance or dyeing that grow in a temperate zone. They are plants that have a culinary, medicinal or practical use that you would expect to find in a traditional herb garden. That temperate zone is one reason we all have so many wonderful herbs in our gardens. Spices on the other hand, tend to come from woody plants in tropical zones, a reason why the majority of spices are imported. The Mediterranean region brought us herbs as the Romans conquered the world and the south Asian area brought spices along Marco Polo’s spice trail.
Often we associate herbs with savory flavors found in daily cooking while spices go with sweet delectable desserts. We are of course big advocates for the culinary use of herbs. However, we do also use spices and think there is no reason herbs and spices can’t go together. The holiday stuffing could have shredded or chopped apples and/or cranberries added and along with the sage-y Poultry Blend seasoning sprinkle in a little cinnamon and/or ginger. Winter squashes of all kinds pair well with the traditional French Herbes de Provence Blend and a little nutmeg and cinnamon.
Herbs and spices are quite different. Herbs are plants used for flavoring, texture, fragrance or dyeing that grow in a temperate zone. They are plants that have a culinary, medicinal or practical use that you would expect to find in a traditional herb garden. That temperate zone is one reason we all have so many wonderful herbs in our gardens. Spices on the other hand, tend to come from woody plants in tropical zones, a reason why the majority of spices are imported. The Mediterranean region brought us herbs as the Romans conquered the world and the south Asian area brought spices along Marco Polo’s spice trail.
Often we associate herbs with savory flavors found in daily cooking while spices go with sweet delectable desserts. We are of course big advocates for the culinary use of herbs. However, we do also use spices and think there is no reason herbs and spices can’t go together. The holiday stuffing could have shredded or chopped apples and/or cranberries added and along with the sage-y Poultry Blend seasoning sprinkle in a little cinnamon and/or ginger. Winter squashes of all kinds pair well with the traditional French Herbes de Provence Blend and a little nutmeg and cinnamon.
Delicata squash with cranberries and apples. Herbes de Provence and a bit of nutmeg help add flavor to this delicious dish we had for dinner recently - yum!