I love to learn and taste new things. This is perhaps the reason I love ethnic cuisine so much; there are so many chances to taste something I've never had or didn't know existed. Even at Lee Garden's dim sum brunch a few years ago, confronted with a jiggling bowl of assorted innards which I couldn't bring myself to take more than 2 bites of, I still loved the chance to see and try something I've never had.
It's even more exciting when I try something "normal" that I've never encountered before.
While I was spending my day at Pistacia Vera, Spencer pulled out a few jars of Cinnamon. One was Vietnamese, which I first encountered 8 or so years ago and it was an enlightening experience after having had nothing but mild cinnamon my whole life, and the other was Ceylon. Now, I've been familiar with Ceylon tea for quite some time, but i didn't realize they had a different variety of cinnamon.
It was amazing.
While the Vietnamese cinnamon smells spicy and hot and makes your mouth water immediately, the Ceylon is rich and complex; earthy and intriguing. One of those things you just keep sticking your nose into because it's so new and exciting. I couldn't stop smelling the two next to each other.
Spencer recommends using the Ceylon for fruit desserts, especially during this time of year.
Did everyone know about this? Am I the last to learn this?
Well, I found it so exciting that I am going to give away a pair of cinnamon. One small jar of Vietnamesse cinnamon, and one of Ceylon from Penzey's. If you would like to be the recipient of said cinnamons, please leave a comment telling me the most recent thing you've learned about food. Actually, you can tell me anything you've learned lately in general. if you think it's something we'd all like to learn, please feel free to leave a link with said information.
I can't wait to hear your stories!!
