Nothing puts me in a holiday mood faster than the warm and sweet aroma of spice. A batch of spice-scented cookies–be they gingerbread, speculas, bizcochos, lebkuchen, pepparkakor, or melomakarona–baking in the oven sets off visions of sugarplums dancing through my head.
Today, spices are so readily available that we forget the blood, sweat, and tears that have made them a common staple in our cupboards. Spices were once more valuable than gold and their procurement the most dangerous and competitive game in the world, impelling unprecedented explorations and discoveries. The scent of spice is a wormhole into history.
Around the world, spice is the common thread that weaves together culinary traditions. Each culture has their own magical blend to offer: garam masala of India, five spice of China, mole of Mexico, baharat of the Middle East, and ras el hanout of North Africa. These blends are a syntheses of flavor and aroma–warm, complex, and elusive.
Ras el hanout, in Arabic, is top (or head) of the shop, referring to the Moroccan souks, where each merchant offers a house blend of his finest spices. These nuanced blends can include at least a dozen–and up to a hundred different spices, both common (nutmeg, mace, ginger, black pepper) and exotic (chufa nuts, ash berries, orisroot, cantharides–the now banned beetle spanish fly). The best blends are those in which the individual spices are not easy to decipher and where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
clockwise from top left: nutmeg, saffron, anardana (ground pomegranate seeds), mace, grains of paradise, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, turmeric, allspice, and ginger (center)
This year, my food-centric friends will be receiving the "top of my shop". This, along with a free range chicken or leg of lamb, makes a welcome gift, one that I would be delighted to receive…especially if it came with this to cook it in. Just sayin'.
Playing with Fire and Water 
You’ve listed some great old world spice blends, but don’t forget that the history continued with blends such as ‘Old Bay’ and ‘Cajun Blackening Seasoning.’
I’ve always found the study of spices to be biographical of the history of human civilization. Salt ranks up there as well, since our western society may easily be a whole lot younger without the quest for spice and without salt (for curing) to make the journeys possible.
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Your friends are getting ras al hanout? They’re very lucky!
I’m giving piment d’espelette, vanilla pods and valhrona chocolate, which now seem kind of dim given that you’ve actually put in well, effort.
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You are quite the all around Martha Stewart with your spice tree.
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with the warm spices and crystal snowflakes, I’m calling it a “fire and water” tree
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Couldn’t agree more with these sentiments. I’m wrapping up my lamb tagine seasoned with ras al hanout as I type. Few things are more comforting.
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hello,
i made ras el hanout for my friends this holiday season too! i really like the idea of your ras el hanout pasta – never thought of actually putting the spice in homemade pasta.
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