Vanilla...

An incredible spice called Vanilla...
Vanilla is plain. Vanilla is boring. Nobody wants just plain vanilla. If you were out of time for dessert at a dinner

Vanilla: Plain and boring,
Or wonderfully intriguing?

party you were hosting, and all you had was vanilla ice-cream, you'd run for something to serve it with. Maybe strawberries or raspberries? Maybe some white chocolate curls, or dark chocolate sprinkles. Maybe you'd grab some butter, sugar, and cream and whip up a deliciously thick and rich caramel toffee sauce? Maybe candied apple slices, pretty and crisp with red outer skins, or a sprig of mint to garnish? Nobody wants plain vanilla. Not special enough, not tasty enough, nothing catches ones attention. Certainly nothing, that holds ones attention firmly in its grasp, nothing that compels you to sit up and take notice. No one describes the flavour as a 'burst of vanilla', or calls out its richness, or its warmth. It is just there, plain, simple, basic, the base, a background flavour that quietly complements all other flavours, boosting them, emphasising them. The truth is, Vanilla IS the base, it's all-important in its lovely rich subtlety. It is needed to complete a dish, to complement it, to embellish it, or even to offer a comparison against. Truth is, Vanilla is all-important, because without it, we would be deprived of the notability of all the rest. 

SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE VANILLA

1.       Vanilla is tropical orchid.

2.       Vanilla is native to Mexico and Central America. The interdependent nature of vanilla and its natural pollinator, the Melipona bee, which is native to Mexico, so it was difficult to cultivate it outside of its native places until hand pollination was discovered.

3.       The process of the cultivation to the harvest of vanilla is long and labour intensive. It must be hand-pollinated and nurtured, and needs a long drying time. That's why it's so highly prized- and highly priced!

4.       It is the second most expensive spice after saffron.

5.       Vanilla is widely used: in commercial and domestic baking, in manufacturing perfumes and oils, and in aromatherapy.

6.       The first cultivators of vanilla were the Totonac people. According to Totonac mythology, the tropical orchid was born when Princess Xanat, who was forbidden by her father from marrying a mortal, fled to the forest with her lover, where they were captured and beheaded. The places where their blood touched the ground, the vine of the tropical orchid grew.

7.       The selling price of vanilla rose in the 1970's after a tropical cyclone destroyed main croplands, and remained high through the early 1980's before dropping 70% until April 2000.

8.       After tropical cyclone Hudah struck Mexico in April 2000, prices rose from US$20 per kilo to US$500 per kilo in 2004. A good crop, coupled with decreased demand caused by the production of imitation vanilla, pushed the market price down to the US$40 per kilogram range in the middle of 2005. By 2010, prices were down to US$20/per kilo.

9.       The vanilla flower only lasts about one day, sometimes less! Therefore, farmers have to inspect their plantations every day for open flowers on the vanilla plants.

10.   Vanilla has always incredibly valuable, so naturally it has a long history of robbery.In Madagascar, vanilla rustling was a major problem for many years. Growers branded the individual beans when they were green and the markings remained after they were dried. Whenever someone suspected their beans were stolen, they could determine by their distinctive tattoo whether or not the beans were theirs.

11.   As I mentioned before, vanilla is the world's most labour-intensive agricultural crop. It takes up to three years after the vines are planted before the first flowers appear. The fruits, which resemble big green beans, must remain on the vine for nine months in order to completely develop their signature aroma. However, when the beans are harvested, they have neither flavour nor fragrance. They develop these distinctive properties during the curing process.

The history and production of vanilla is incredibly interesting. It becomes apparent that vanilla is, indeed, not plain and boring, but a mysterious, delicate and intriguing little plant with a long history. In fact, it’s obvious to see the reason why vanilla is so expensive! I own a bottle of vanilla beans that's resting somewhere in the dark recesses of my pantry shelves, not even realising what a treasure I possess. Author Frederic Rosengarten Jr. describes it in The Book of Spices as "pure, spicy, and delicate"; he called its complex floral aroma a "peculiar bouquet". And he's right. Vanilla is an underappreciated spice, easily dismissed for other flavours and flavour combinations we deem more exotic or original or strange. The next time I go to get a gelato or sorbetto, I'll go for vanilla, if only to appreciate the complexity and intrigue of this wonderful tropical cactus (providing I don't get distracted by something sharp and zingy! What can I say? I love lemon!) So here's to Vanilla, The wonderful, under appreciated flavour of it, the amount of toil that goes into it, and the beautiful warmth and richness of it. Lets never call it 'plain' again! 

For more interesting facts or information, or to learn how to prepare vanilla, visit these sites:
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/glossary/vanilla
http://vanilla.servolux.nl/vanilla_facts.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanilla