SPOTLIGHT on Spices!

Nutmeg and Mace

Nutmeg is the kernel of the seed of the fruit of the Myristica Fragrans tree,

which grows in the Moluccas Islands; the mace is the lacy veil (aril) that covers the seed.

The fruit, that resembles an apricot, ripens six to nine months after flowering, and it is usually gathered when it falls to the ground.

The Myristica Fragrans is an evergreen that grows to 40 feet or more;it has dark green oval leaves and pale yellow flowers. It starts bearing fruits at its seven or eight year and continues for up to 40 years. This tree was eventually exported and raised in Penang, Sri Lanka and Sumatra and eventually taken to Grenada in the west Indies, where almost a third of the worl's nutmeg is produced today.

Nutmeg and mace were used since the 6th century as medicine for digestive disorders, liver and skin complaints, in China India and Arabia. They were probably brought to

Europe by the crusaders and were used as fumigants; they became popular in the kitchen only in the 16th century (it took a while), when they became the cure for just about everything. By the 18th century people carried their own nutmegs, together with small ornamental graters, sometime made of silver or bone, to flavor food and drinks.

Harvesting the nutmeg: 
The husk is stripped off and the mace, which is of a scarlet

color, is removed pressed flat and dried on mats, until it turns yellowish/orange.

The seeds are dried on trays for four to six weeks until the nutmegs rattles in their outer shell.

At this point the seeds are cracked, the nutmeg

s removed then graded according to size and quality.

Aroma & Taste: Nutmeg and Mace are similar in taste, the aroma is rich, fresh and warm; the taste is warm and highly

aromatic-sweetish in nutmeg and more bitter and pungent in mace.

In Italy nutmeg is used in vegetable dishes, with veal and in fillings for homemade pasta.