Spices & jigsaws

I have just been listening to “Saturday Live” on BBC Radio 4. The studio guest today is Cyrus Todiwala, the chef.

Among other things he was asked to name his 5 favourite spices. He reeled off a list which sounded rather more than five to me. I found myself thinking of my five favourites. My conclusion? Undoubtedly cinnamon & nutmeg have to be in the list. They are fairly sweet spices but that little bit of nutmeg lifts wilted spinach to something special. I also have fond memories of a Cinnamon Ring-a-round, a sort of scone with cinnamon sugar running through it & on it, I used to make regularly. Chilli for heat also has to be there. I suppose I have to admit I’m not sure where I’d be without black peppercorns. As for the fifth spice, that is far more problematical. I love the colour of turmeric & of saffron. I love the variation of flavour using different peppers. Then there’s cumin, coriander giving a scented warmth. The list goes on.

Cyrus went on to comment it was the Romans who first brought spices to this country. It had never dawned upon me that pretty all spices used in this country do naturally come from abroad. I know you can grow your own chillies in this country but they are not a native species. The nearest to a native spice I can think of is aniseed. We certainly have, though it’s rapidly becoming had, liquorice fields in Yorkshire. Dill/fennel thrives here though I wouldn’t be surprised if they weren’t imported with the Roman soldiers. I certainly remember seeing them thriving as wild flowers along the roads of Croatia. Fennel seed is the one spice I do grow in our garden.

These thoughts vaguely tie in with the jigsaw I’m currently doing. The theme is Roman Britain. Around the map of Britain are various paragraphs about what the Britain did for this country &, for that matter, the tale of the Roman invasion under Julius Caesar & the resistance under Boudicca.

It’s strange how two such apparently different concepts, spice & jigsaws, can coincide & come together.