Cinnamon – Dale’s Daily Data

It’s hard to resist the smell of cinnamon.  It’s one of those aromas that you never confuse with anything else.  Is there anybody that doesn’t like the smell of cinnamon?

Cinnamon is native to what is now Sri Lanka.  Cinnamon is actually a tree and cinnamon sticks are rolled up pieces of the bark.  The smell of cinnamon comes from an oil in the tree called cinnamonaldehyde.

Ancient Egyptians used it for embalming.  It was also used for preserving meat

From the word cannon, Italians called it canella meaning little tube.

Doctors in the middle ages used it as a treatment for coughs and sore throat.  Some doctors today use it to control blood sugar levels in diabetic patients.

At one time cinnamon was considered one of the most valuable substances on earth.  In the first century A.D. it was 15 times the value of silver.

The Dutch and the Portuguese fought a war in the 17^th century in present day Sri Lanka over cinnamon.

When other countries around the world with similar climates found out they too could grow cinnamon trees, the monopoly and its value fell.  Today it’s grown in most tropical climates in the South Pacific, the West Indies and in South America.

SOURCE: homecooking.com