SPICEography

Tomato powder is made from dehydrated tomatoes, which are ground to powder. While the identity of the first person to make powdered tomatoes may be lost to history, what is known is that it the Aztecs were sun-drying tomatoes as early as 700 AD. The Aztecs salted and dried tomatoes to remove their moisture, which helped to preserve them for longer periods. Dried tomatoes were able to provide nutrition during seasons where it was impossible to grow and harvest fresh fruits and vegetables.

Tomato powder made from sun-dried tomatoes was widely used in Italy in the 19th century and was seen as preferable to canned tomatoes due to the risk of lead poisoning from the cans. Modern methods for making tomato powder include spray-drying, oven drying and freeze drying. Today, tomato powder is produced commercially in many places around the world including Israel and Niger. It is popular for the same reasons that the Aztecs dried tomatoes—long shelf life and versatility.

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When discussing hibiscus, it is important to note that there are two different plants with that name and both of them have culinary applications. There is a flower of Asian origin that is used as a food coloring in Malaysia. This hibiscus is Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and it belongs to the mallow family. The hibiscus that is more common in the west and that is used as a powdered spice, tea and as a food coloring is Hibiscus sabdariffa. This hibiscus also belongs to the mallow family and most likely originated in Africa. Hibiscus sabdariffa is thought to have been domesticated in the Sudan 6,000 years ago. It was introduced to India and the Americas in the 17th century and to Southeast Asia at the start of the 20th century. The plant was cultivated for its fibers, which were used in making sugar sacks for the Indonesian sugar industry.

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The use of yeast as a food dates all the way back to the Ancient Egyptians. Note that unlike the yeast used to leaven bread, nutritional yeast is inactive. It has been deactivated so that it cannot be used to make bread rise or convert sugar into alcohol. It is also different from brewer’s yeast, though the two are strains of the same fungus.

The main difference is the source. As its name suggests, brewer’s yeast is a product of the brewing industry; it is typically bitter because it is grown on malted barley and other grains. Nutritional yeast is obtained via other media, like molasses. They both contain similar amounts of roughly the same nutrients.

Researchers have traced the ancestry of modern yeast strains to yeasts back to the 16th century, but commercial production of nutritional yeast really began at the start of the 20th century. It was made usable largely as a result of the invention of the microscope and because of Louis Pasteur’s studies. Both of these factors made it possible for scientists to get a better understanding of yeast.

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After originating in Northern India, lemons made their way to other parts of the world by about 100 BC and would be used mostly as ornamental plants until 10 AD. They would be introduced to Europe by Arabs conquering Spain and then taken throughout the rest of the continent by returning Crusaders.

The zest or outer portion of the lemon peel would eventually become a popular spice and would be included in recipes from as early as the 15th century. The word zest would emerge in the 17th century as a term indicating citrus peel used for flavoring. The origin lies in the French word zeste. The definition has since been refined to indicate the colored part of the peel without the white pith underneath. The zest of the lemon would be a crucial flavoring ingredient for French pastries before vanilla became widely available.

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Lemons are thought to have originated in the northwest part of India and have been cultivated there for over 2,500 years. Some researchers consider them to be a hybrid between sour orange and citron. Lemons were brought to the Middle East and Africa after 100 BC.

Lemon trees were first used as ornamental plants until about the 10th century. Shortly after that, lemon plants would be introduced to Spain by the Arabs. From there, lemons would be introduced to the rest of Europe by crusaders who brought them back. It was during the early part of lemon’s history in the Mediterranean that lemons were first preserved. Preserved lemons are lemons that have been salted and fermented. In this preparation, the peel is what provides most of the flavor. The preserved rinds are removed from their brine and used as a spice in foods.

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While there are reports of European confectioners using powdered sugar as far back as the 18th century, it was not until the Victorian era that granulated sugar was widely available to the general consumer. Before that period, sugar was transported in large loaves or cones. The sugar in these loaves would vary wildly in their degree of refinement. To make that sugar usable, the consumer had to break lumps of sugar from the loaves or cones. If they wanted grains of sugar, they would have to grind the lumps.

The task of breaking sugar from the loaves or cones could be done with a mallet and knife, or with specialized tools called sugar cutters that resembled scissors.

To make powdered sugar, cooks had to grind or grate the lumps to a fine consistency using a mortar and pestle or with a spice mill. They would then sift the ground sugar to separate out the larger chunks so only the finest grains remain.

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