Spices, such as white and black pepper, cayenne, cloves, nutmeg, paprika (Hungarian pepper), coriander, cinnamon, mace, &c., cannot be considered to have any nutritive properties. They are used for the purpose of imparting certain flavours to improve the taste of various food substances. In adding the seasoning and flavouring to dishes, it is of the greatest importance for a cook to remember that the exquisite sensibility of a cook’s palate can best be judged and admired by his or her cooking. Allspice. — This well-known and useful spice is the berry of the Eugenia Pimenta, a small tree growing in the West Indies. The fruit is gathered when green and unripe, and put to dry in the sun, when it turns black. Large quantities of it are employed in the manufacture of the sauces sold in shops. The berries combine the flavour of cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, hence the name allspice. It is also called Pimento or Jamaica pepper. Gloves. —Cloves belong to the order of myrtles. They are the unopened flower- buds of a plant called the Caryophyllus aromaticus, a native of the Moluccas. Owing to their resemblance to a nail they derive their name from the French word clou. They form a well- known spice, and are much used in cookery both in sweet and savoury 104 THE NEW CENTURY COOKERY BOOK dishes. To a stew or ragout, &c., an onion stuck with cloves is almost indispensable. Nutmeg. — Used extensively for various seasonings, both sweet and savoury. It is the seed of the nutmeg tree (Myristica moschata) a native of the Molucca Islands, but is now cultivated in Java, Cayenne, Sumatra, and some of the West Indian Islands. The fruit is surrounded by a husk ( arillus ) which is known as mace. The nutmeg is pear -like in appearance, and is usually grated for culinary purposes. Nutmegs should never be used in large proportions for seasoning because they are supposed to contain narcotic properties. Mace is the outer shell or husk of the nutmeg, and it resembles it in flavour. When good it should be orange-yellow in colour. Used whole or powdered for both seasoning and flavouring. Curry is a condiment and a spice, but is, strictly speaking, a mixture of many others. Perhaps only an Indian can make it to perfection, many of its ingredients being native to the country, whose poorest peasantry look upon curry as a daily necessity. Mustard.— There are two varieties of mustard seeds, Sinapis nigra, the black, and Sinapis alba, the white. These are ground and mixed. The pungency of mustard is more fully developed when moistened with water. It is supposed to give energy to the digestive organs, and to promote appetite if taken in small quantities. It is used as a table condiment, and for sauces, dressings, &c. Cinnamon. — This substance comes from the bark of a species of laurel, Laurus Cinnamomum, and is about the oldest known spice in the world. The cinnamon tree is chiefly cultivated in Ceylon, but it also comes from Madras, Java, and Bombay. The three-year-old branches are stripped of the outer bark, the inner is loosened and dried, which makes it shrivel up, and assume the quill form in which it is- imported. The best cinnamon should not be too dark in colour, and should be hardly thicker than paper. It has a fragrant odour, and its taste is pleasant and highly aromatic. Besides being used extensively for culinary purposes, cinnamon is much employed medicinally as a powerful stimulant.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

Spices, such as white and black pepper, cayenne, cloves, nutmeg, paprika (Hungarian pepper), coriander, cinnamon, mace, &c., cannot be considered to have any nutritive properties. They are used for the purpose of imparting certain flavours to improve the taste of various food substances. In adding the seasoning and flavouring to dishes, it is of the greatest importance for a cook to remember that the exquisite sensibility of a cook’s palate can best be judged and admired by his or her cooking. Allspice. — This well-known and useful spice is the berry of the Eugenia Pimenta, a small tree growing in the West Indies. The fruit is gathered when green and unripe, and put to dry in the sun, when it turns black. Large quantities of it are employed in the manufacture of the sauces sold in shops. The berries combine the flavour of cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, hence the name allspice. It is also called Pimento or Jamaica pepper. Cloves. —Cloves belong to the order of myrtles. They are the unopened flower- buds of a plant called the Caryophyllus aromaticus, a native of the Moluccas. Owing to their resemblance to a nail they derive their name from the French word clou. They form a wellknown spice, and are much used in cookery both in sweet and savoury dishes. To a stew or ragout, &c., an onion stuck with cloves is almost indispensable. Nutmeg. — Used extensively for various seasonings, both sweet and savoury. It is the seed of the nutmeg tree (Myristica moschata) a native of the Molucca Islands, but is now cultivated in Java, Cayenne, Sumatra, and some of the West Indian Islands. The fruit is surrounded by a husk ( arillus ) which is known as mace. The nutmeg is pear -like in appearance, and is usually grated for culinary purposes. Nutmegs should never be used in large proportions for seasoning because they are supposed to contain narcotic properties. Mace is the outer shell or husk of the nutmeg, and it resembles it in flavour. When good it should be orange-yellow in colour. Used whole or powdered for both seasoning and flavouring. Curry is a condiment and a spice, but is, strictly speaking, a mixture of many others. Perhaps only an Indian can make it to perfection, many of its ingredients being native to the country, whose poorest peasantry look upon curry as a daily necessity. Mustard.— There are two varieties of mustard seeds, Sinapis nigra, the black, and Sinapis alba, the white. These are ground and mixed. The pungency of mustard is more fully developed when moistened with water. It is supposed to give energy to the digestive organs, and to promote appetite if taken in small quantities. It is used as a table condiment, and for sauces, dressings, &c. Cinnamon. — This substance comes from the bark of a species of laurel, Laurus Cinnamomum, and is about the oldest known spice in the world. The cinnamon tree is chiefly cultivated in Ceylon, but it also comes from Madras, Java, and Bombay. The three-year-old branches are stripped of the outer bark, the inner is loosened and dried, which makes it shrivel up, and assume the quill form in which it is- imported. The best cinnamon should not be too dark in colour, and should be hardly thicker than paper. It has a fragrant odour, and its taste is pleasant and highly aromatic. Besides being used extensively for culinary purposes, cinnamon is much employed medicinally as a powerful stimulant.

The new century cookery book