Vanilla

Vanilla is one of the most refined, best-loved, and most expensive spices in the world, being the dried and fermented pods (fruit) of a tropical orchid. It has an inimitable sweet, warm, floral-creamy aroma that has become a synonym for the very notion of sweet flavour.

The high cost of natural vanilla, like saffron, is explained by its exceptionally labour-intensive production: the orchid flowers are pollinated by hand, and the gathered pods undergo for months a complex process of fermentation and drying, during which their enchanting aroma develops. Vanilla is the queen of desserts: it is added to ice cream, custards, baking, pastries, chocolate, whipped cream, sauces, and drinks. It is used in various forms: whole pods (from which the aromatic seeds are scraped), natural extract, vanilla sugar, or paste. A cheaper alternative is synthetic vanillin, which imitates the main aromatic component but lacks all the depth and complexity of natural vanilla. Besides sweet cookery, vanilla is occasionally used in sauces for refined dishes. This legendary spice was prized as far back as the Aztecs. Vanilla is the embodiment of cosiness, tenderness, and delight, an aroma that makes any dessert truly enchanting.