MY 5 FAVORITE SPICES

In this post I want to tell you about my favorite spices, turmeric, ginger, chillies, cinnamon and vanilla are my top 5, they enrich my recipes and give aroma to my kitchen.

There are many more, I love cardamom or different types of peppers, but here I will focus on my 5 chosen ones.

And is that cooking with spices is very special, I love giving my dishes different touches of flavor, giving them something extra, going one step further.

With the use of spices it is possible to do so, but not only that, you are also taking advantage of the potential that many of them have, the antioxidant power of turmeric and ginger, the analgesic effect of capsaicin present in hot peppers or the invigorating power of cinnamon.

 

My favorite spices in the kitchen: Turmeric, ginger, chili peppers, cinnamon and vanilla.

 

La cinnamon It is anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, invigorating and improves the sensitivity of cells to insulin, it is also a powerful natural preservative.

Capsaicin present in chilli Peppers and in chili peppers, it is used as a topical analgesic in some pathologies such as psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis or neuralgia.

El ginger It is a natural antioxidant, rich in polyphenols, is anti-inflammatory and is capable of improving digestion.

Pods vanilla Natural are also essential in my dessert recipes, as you know, I do not use sugars and I try to prepare low carbohydrate dessert recipes, to compensate, the best solution is to flavor with spices, vanilla, cinnamon and cardamom are my top when it comes to healthy sweets.

Vanilla is a very aromatic spice, it is marketed in pods and its price is high, but it well deserves it, currently Madagascar vanilla is highly appreciated, although it is grown in many other places.

Natural vanilla provides an aroma and flavor that its derivatives do not provide, it is really special and cooking with it makes a difference, especially when sugars and sweeteners are dispensed with, the natural aromas are what give the recipe its identity.

 

LAs spices make a difference in many recipes, using them or not can change the result in a very noticeable way.

 

Let's start at the beginning, it's time to talk about the turmeric, and of course, curcumin.

 

 

Curcumin is one of the chemical compounds present in turmeric, it is responsible for its intense orange color and is used as a colorant in the food industry, its code is E-100, so you know, if on a label you read “E -100 ”is because that product contains this natural colorant.

Turmeric benefits:

• Powerful antioxidant
• It is anti-inflammatory, its consumption is recommended to prevent and treat arthritis.
• For the same reason, its consumption is recommended in Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
• Regular consumption of turmeric is believed to prevent the development of cancers such as those of the lung, breast, prostate, and colon.
• Improves the cardiovascular system and neurodegenerative diseases.
• It potentiates anticoagulant medications and their consumption is not recommended in case of gallbladder disease.

For all this, its consumption is recommended for most people, it is easy to incorporate it into the daily diet, dry and in powder or keeping a piece of dried rhizome at home to be grated a little when needed.

It is an ingredient that is never lacking in curry (a mixture of spices) and is almost always added to curry (a traditional stew of Hindu cuisine).

You can add it to soups, creams, broths, scrambled eggs, sautéed, and any cooked vegetable, it adds flavor and color and all the benefits that I have just detailed, it is worth consuming, don't you think?

 

Ginger and turmeric are two of my favorite spices when cooking, in addition to their benefits, their flavor and color are unmistakable and delicious.

 

From ginger I will tell you that, like turmeric, it is a root, you can buy it fresh or dried and ground, each of the presentations has different applications.

I love its flavor and that spicy touch, when you taste it for the first time it does not leave you indifferent, it actually seems different depending on the recipe and the dish in which it is used. A piece of root in a hot green tea with lemon is not the same as in a glass of sparkling water and ice.

It does not taste the same ground and dry in the dough of some cookies or in a pumpkin cream, that fresh, grated and drained with soy and orange and lemon juice to marinate tofu.

Ginger has many uses in the kitchen and many benefits that you cannot miss.

 

 

Ginger benefits:

• Helps with digestion, stimulates the synthesis of digestive enzymes.
• Natural expectorant.
• Helps treat migraines
• Relieves premenstrual syndrome in all its aspects, pain and mood.
• Its continued consumption reduces LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.
• It is a natural antioxidant, rich in polyphenols and is anti-inflammatory.

Chili peppers and chillies give a natural spicy touch to your recipes, take advantage of all their benefits.

 

It is the turn of the chilli Peppers, (chillies and chili peppers) and the compound that gives them that spicy flavor that makes them so special, the capsaicin.

Do you know what capsaicin is?

Capsaicin or capsaicin is the chemical compound present in hot peppers, the one that gives them that characteristic, is the active component. In addition to adding that spicy point to multiple recipes, it has other applications that you may not even know.

 

Capsaicin benefits:

• It is used as a topical analgesic in some conditions such as psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis or neuralgia.
• It is a natural antioxidant, it prevents the formation of clots in the blood.
• It is considered antibacterial, capable of preventing some infections.
• It is an expectorant, it helps to eliminate mucus.
• Anti-cancer properties are attributed to it.
• In the kitchen it has many uses, you just have to be cautious and dose it correctly.

Like many other foods with strong or spicy flavors, the use in the kitchen depends on the diners, if they are used to it, they will tolerate a higher level of spiciness, if on the contrary they are not, it is necessary to be careful and accustom the palate little by little .

 

 

Cinnamon is one of my favorite spices when it comes to sweet recipes, but its uses go way beyond that.

 

Let's talk now about the cinnamon and its many benefits, if you thought that the best thing it gives us is its aroma and flavor, you are wrong, cinnamon is a very powerful spice that should be known and incorporated into the diet.

La cinnamon It is anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, invigorating and improves the sensitivity of cells to insulin, it is also a powerful natural preservative.

What I like the most about it is precisely the fact that it is able to improve insulin resistance, and therefore, to regulate blood glucose levels.

• Its regular consumption, (1 g / day), reduces blood glucose levels, LDL and total cholesterol.
• Reduces insulin resistance.
• Lower triglyceride levels.
• It is a muscle relaxant.
• Helps to heal wounds.
• It helps to sleep.
• Multiple applications in the kitchen: cinnamon tea, all kinds of desserts and in recipes based on meats and vegetables, in stews, etc.

The two most consumed varieties of cinnamon are Ceylon and Cassia, the most recommended is the first, the main reason is that it contains less curamine, a toxic substance that in certain doses affects our liver.

The Cassia variety generally comes from China, has an astringent point and is darker in color and can contain up to 1% curamine, so be careful to consume it daily.

Ceylon cinnamon (Cinnamonum verum), with a sweeter and more aromatic flavor, and lighter in color, it has less than half the curamine than Casssia, so its consumption is safe.

Consume cinnamon daily if you want to benefit from its properties, but make sure it is Ceylon cinnamon.

 

The queen of spices for desserts is natural vanilla, it provides a very special aroma and flavor.

 

La vanilla Natural fascinates me, it is undoubtedly one of my favorite spices, I think its aroma and flavor is incomparable, it is soft and so pleasant that it usually gives desserts a very special touch.

I love buying the pods, opening them and taking out those little black seeds to incorporate them into a cream, a sponge cake, a fruit compote.

As you know, I usually prepare my dessert recipes without sugar, and whenever I can, without sweeteners, for that reason the use of natural spices is so important, they are the ones that give flavor without the need to sweeten.

A clear example is the homemade apple compoteIt is only apples cooked, but cooked with cinnamon, vanilla, and lemon juice.

Vanilla is calming, antioxidant, aids digestion, stimulates estrogen production, and contains eugenol (an analgesic substance).

As you can see, in addition to its organoleptic properties, which for me make it unsurpassed, it has health benefits, so use it in the kitchen, flavor your desserts with it and make it one more in your spice box.

 

Next, I leave you some left-wing to recipes that include:

Turmeric:

EASY VEGETABLE CURRY

Ginger:

SUGAR FREE CARROT CAKE (VEGAN)

Chilli Peppers:

SHAKSHUKA (SUGAR FREE)

Cinnamon:

SPICED VEAL

APPLE SAUCE WITHOUT SUGAR

Natural vanilla:

PUMPKIN PUDDING WITHOUT SUGAR

 

This is just a sample, all these spices can be added to many recipes, I do it every day, they add flavor and improve the nutritional values ​​of them.

But here I only talk about my 5 favorite spices, I have many more, which I love and use regularly, pepper, paprika from La Vera, all kinds of fresh and dried herbs, star anise, cardamom, I would like to know Which are yours.

Share your favorite spices in a comment, I will love to read you.

Enjoy!